Benches to commemorate East Kilbride Village becoming a Conservation Area will be reinstated – according to South Lanarkshire Council.
It comes after furious locals branded the removal of the three specially carved benches by Irish pub, Mo Chara, "a disgrace".
But Mo Chara bosses told Lanarkshire Live the benches, which were placed around a commemorative tree and Celtic ironwork, were taken away to be repaired at their "own expense" as they had become "a danger" due to their poor condition.
The council now says it is investigating the furore, which began several months ago when Mo Chara set up an outdoor seating area and the benches 'disappeared' – some fearing they were gone forever.
Former Provost Alan Dick, who was in office between 1999 and 2003 and instrumental in having the benches installed, said the "public artwork" should have never been removed in the first place.
"It's nothing short of an utter disgrace," he told us, "the pub have just decided to rip out these benches to make way for more tables and chairs, " he said.
"They had absolutely no right to do so and take away what is public property.
"The benches were funded by the former Development Corporation and District Council, Scottish Enterprise and a number of private businesses.
"The pub put a sign up saying they had been removed to be refurbished when people started complaining.
"But if they were in such a bad state that they needed to be repaired it was up to the council – not the individual who runs Mo Chara – to do so.
"It's like you or I going to the Whirlies roundabout and taking one of the steel balls."
Chairman of East Mains community council, Bill Arthur, said the incident had caused a "great deal of anger," saying that residents were frustrated the matter had taken "so long to resolve".
He added: "We will not give up until the benches are back where they belong.
"We contacted Mo Chara to ask to see the benches and where they were being stored but they failed to respond.
"The council told us it didn't know who the land belonged to, but our secretary, after a great deal of digging, established that the land was registered to Lanark County Council and the Development Corporation. As a result it would now belong to its successor, South Lanarkshire Council, who we passed our findings on to.
"There is also a bigger issue here over beer gardens infringing and increasingly spilling out on to pavements posing a risk to pedestrians by forcing them on to the road."
A spokesman for Mo Chara said it received no communication from the community council in regards to viewing the benches.
He told us: "The benches are in storage and would have been put back sooner, but the council informed us that they wanted their contractors to reinstate them and not us.
"We partly removed the benches, which have been repaired at our cost, so we could re-open the business in a safe way and due to the fact they needed refurbished, but would have never done so without permission.
"We spoke to the council, local councillors and a number of others before removing them and we were told that no one knew who owned the land they were on. The businesses within the building have historically taken care of that piece of land.
"As soon as the council decide to do so, they will be returned and our beer garden will reduced in size to make space for them."
Alistair McKinnon, head of facilities, waste and grounds services at the local authority, said an investigation into the issue continued, adding that his team were "in communication with the party who removed the benches".
He added: "It is our intention to ensure that the benches are reinstated back in their original position at the earliest opportunity.”
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