A DRAMATIC resignation by the artist employed on Okehampton's enhancement project has been hailed as 'a victory for townspeople'.
Ray Smith announced to the town's Traffic and Enhancement Group on Monday night that he would not continue to assist in the project.
His resignation follows a petition from local residents who expressed 'total dissatisfaction' with the work carried out so far on St James' Chapel.
Petition instigator Janet Stanley said this week the people of the town were finally being listened to.
'It is a victory for the townspeople,' she said. 'We are not against enhancement and it is nothing personal to Ray Smith but his style did not fit in with the town.
'I just hope now something is put forward that is more in keeping with Okehampton.'
Mr Smith, who has worked on numerous enhancement projects up and down the country, was employed as the 'artist-in-residence' at the beginning of last year after being selected by members of Okehampton's Traffic and Enhancement Group and West Devon Borough Council.
The artist has declined to speak to the Okehampton Times but the borough council's deputy chief executive David Inman said Mr Smith had resigned because he felt his position had become 'untenable'.
Mr Inman said: 'He has decided not to assist in the refurbishment proposals for Okehampton as he feels whatever he does he will be criticised.
'Ray Smith has put an awful lot of time and effort into this and has tried hard to meet the people's wishes.
'When the St James' scheme has been fully implemented and the granite weathers a little, his work, I personally feel, will get a different reception.'
The £130,000 enhancement for St James' Chapel had been dogged by disagreements between the authorities and townspeople who felt they had not been properly consulted over the plans.
Ray Smith's latest designs for Fairplace Gardens have been described as 'poor' and 'stark and out of keeping' and the toilet design referred to as a 'world war two bunker.'
Chairman of the chamber of trade Ian Bailey, who was a member of the enhancement group that selected Ray Smith, said things had been brewing for a long time and something had to give.
'People were not prepared to put up with designs which they could not live with,' he said. 'This was the only outcome.'
Mr Bailey said he was sorry things had to turn out this way: 'Ray is obviously a very talented artist and I am full of admiration for the work he has done in other towns, it was just not working in Okehampton.
'We do not want to be another Milton Keynes — the architecture of this town of regeneration must reflect what we already have as a heritage.'
He added that hopefully now the town could look forward to a regeneration strategy that included a lot more consultation and whatever went ahead, went ahead with the approval of the people of Okehampton.
Members of the traffic and enhancement group have decided to continue with the enhancement programme, despite the latest turn of events, and support has been received from local residents to proposals to increase pedestrian safety at Fairplace and improve the gardens.
Tavistock architect Steve Whettem, who has worked on previous projects for the borough council, will draw up a range of new options for Fairplace Gardens.
County Cllr Coleen Herriman, who is chairman of the enhancement group, said the mood was very upbeat for future enhancement of the town.
'I am very sorry to see Ray Smith go as he was a man with a national reputation and had enormous talent but now this has happened we have to move on.
'Okehampton deserves better than having nothing done to it — we have a lovely town but there are things we can do to make it better for the people who live here and for the tourists.
'The last thing we want to do is force anything on anyone so if people feel strongly about something positively or negatively they must let us know.'
Meetings of the group will now be once a month instead of every three months and a public meeting will be held in the Charter Hall on September 28 to discuss the refurbishment of the old mill site.