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When Radoslav Radovanovic walked through Hyde Park in Sydney's CBD nearly 30 years ago, he had an idea. He wanted a life-size chess set, just like the one in the park, to be installed in his local suburb of Liverpool.

With plans already in place to close Macquarie Street to traffic, a chess set was installed withinthe pavement of a newly renovated Macquarie Mall.

Liverpool City Library

"I told my son, who told the council, why don't we put a chess set here in the mall. So, the council made one for us,"Mr Radovanovic said.

"It was in the middle of the mall and we would gather there every day to play chess."

And while peak-hour at the chess table these days is 11am, those with other commitments are always welcome to turn up a little later.

"We come here every day, roughly 25 of us. Those with jobs, or more busy lives sometimes join us in the later afternoon."

Mr Radovanovic was born in Serbia and moved to Australia nearly 60 years ago.

Sharon Masige

He bought his first home in Cabramatta West but has visitedLiverpool nearly every day since his retirement.

Now in his 80s, he said spaces like the one on Macquarie Mall helped older members of the community socialise.

"We don't drink, we don't gamble, we're not troublemakers. We just need somewhere to pass the time. This way we can play some chess, go for a walk, talk to each other."

When Macquarie Mall was officially opened in the early `90s, not everyone was on board.

Alf Vella,a local councillor from1991 to1995,said some shop owners had been worried about the effectof removing traffic.

"A few shop owners complained in the beginning, but I think it's beaming now," said Mr Vella.

"And there will be more changes in the future to have it 'beautified' up even more."

Liverpool City Library

Liverpool Council Heritage OfficerThomas Wheelersaid Macquarie Mall had been part of a re-born trend sweeping Sydney's suburbs in the 1990s.

"It followed the same path as the birth of pedestrian malls in the 1970s," said Mr Wheeler.

"People wanted to reduce pollution, smoke, and bring back the old concept of a town centre, which harks back to medieval times."

Mr Wheeler said Parramatta and Penrith malls had receiveda similar renovation in the early 1990s.

"The pedestrian malls were transitory in the beginning, a place for business, shopping and walking through," he said.

"Now Macquarie Mall has become a place of congregation, where communities come together."

Mr Wheeler said the council was now focused on reviving Liverpool's nightlife to help make it a '23-hour city'.

"Currently most of the cafes help with daytime traffic and economy, so the next focal point is night activation," he said.

"An increase to hospitality offerings within the strip will come with new developments in the area."

Mr Radovanovic and his fellow chess club do not care so much aboutthe area's night-time economy.

Rather, they are hoping council brings back the youth tournaments from the 1990s.

"A long time ago, they used to organise tournaments here and we'd bring the kids," said Mr Radovanovic.

"And only the kids would play. We could only stand back and watch. I would like to see that happen again, for the younger generation to come back.

"Some of the children who played in those tournaments 20 years ago still stop by, but they're hardly children anymore."

See the article here:
Members of Liverpool's unofficial chess club still gathering in Macquarie Mall, 25 years on - ABC News