Verge stalls to open doors for Dardanup shire community

A decision to allow Dardanup shire residents to set set up small stalls on the verge adjacent to their properties is viewed as a way of cutting back on red tape by shire president Mick Bennett.

Cr Bennett said selling produce from their verge could give some people a purpose and was good for the wider community.

“When you go down towards Donnybrook you often see those small roadside stalls where they sell whatever is on the tree or in the garden at the time,” he said.

“This change means that a person who is possibly giving away 5kg of tomatoes can get a couple of dollars for them at a front stall and buy seeds for next year’s lot.

“I don’t think they’re looking to be millionaires out of it and it will give some people a purpose in life – no matter what age you are, you always need a purpose.

“I think our staff have done really well to put the policy together.”

The change in policy was put to councillors at a meeting last week and was prompted by an application from Eaton resident Tobias Harrold.

Mr Harrold said he made his application to help out a friend who mentioned his produce had often been taken from a roadside stall near his Donnybrook orchard without payment.

“Nearly half of it goes missing and I figured I could possibly help him sell some of his fruit right in front of my house,” he said.

“I’ve got a big window at the front so hopefully people will be less inclined to steal.

“Where I am on Charterhouse Street we have a lot of people walking their dogs and to the oval so maybe it will help those guys to just grab something on the way back as well.”

He was unaware the council needed to change its policy in order to allow him to establish a stall and said he just wanted to approach things the right way.

While Mr Harrold has been granted permission to sell produce grown elsewhere, the new policy primarily focused on approval for selling produce grown on an adjacent residential property.