RUTLAND, Vt. -
Rutland's mayor is literally standing by his decision to ditch the park benches in the city's downtown.
Mayor Chris Louras moved his office outside to depot park during lunchtime Thursday. He met with people defending his controversial decision to remove all of the benches from the park following complaints from city residents about teens who were cursing and heckling. Some also claimed they were drinking and smoking.
The removal of the benches is temporary, but the Mayor hopes it will send a strong message that, that kind of behavior will not be tolerated.
"I've been asking people would you commit to coming down 30 minutes a week to change the environment, change the dynamic of the park and I had to ask myself the question and if I was willing to do it, I said yeah. That's what this is the start of, is getting people to enjoy the park everyday of the week," said Louras.
Mayor Louras plans to hold more office hours in the park in the near future.
