Design for a foldable bench/planter

This is a very simplified sketch of a bench design that can be disabled by residents so that the seat folds up when preferable. The mechanism for holding the seat in an upright position is not illustrated here, but it stays up without a lock. In a vertical position, the seat board closest to the hinge drops into a slot routed into a block along the side of the planters and falls down into place, thus locking the seat in a vertical position. Unless you knew how to open the seat, it would not be obvious how it flipped downwards, as the design partially conceals the drop hinge. Details of this hidden mechanism will be posted at a later date.

The bench would be at a 45 degree angle to the kerb rather than parallel to it. This design obviates the need to bolt the bench to the ground as the weight of the planters keeps it in place.

The concept is pictured here in open and closed positions.

Convertible bench chair

Here's a bench that converts to a table. It's white and plastic and nasty, but I'm looking into having this done in wood. The idea is that in the event a picnic table proves to be too appealing a honeypot for would-be late night partiers, a removable pin that keeps it in table form could be stashed away and the 'default' position would be bench.