LEGO® CITY Review: 60292 Town Centre and 60306 Shopping Street

Caz Mockett returns today with two more 2021 LEGO® CITY sets. Buying from LEGO.com? Consider using our affiliate links: UK LEGO Shop | USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop, for other countries 'Change Region'. New Elementary may get a commission. The products in this article were provided for free by LEGO; the author's opinions are not biased by this.

Today I complete my reviews of five LEGO® CITY sets to be released on 1st January 2021. So far we looked at 60304 Road Plates and then 60290 Skate Park with 60291 Family Home, which leaves 60292 Town Centre and 60306 Shopping Street. So let's head into town for some shopping!

Noteworthy parts in 60292 Town Centre

The Town Centre release contains three 16x16 road plates, one unprinted 8x16 road plate, one 8x16 crosswalk road plate, six end ramps and ten 2x4 printed tiles for centre road markings, from the common list.

Two new moulds centre around the service dog included in the set - firstly the dog itself, another Retriever identical in shape to that in the Family House but this time in Reddish Brown (6329619 | 69962) and Animal / Creature Accessory, Guide Dog Harness in Lime (6325398 | 70922).

The following are also new recolours unique to this set:

• 2 x Door Frame 1 x 4 x 6 Type 2 in Sand Green (6342692 | 60596)
• 2 x Minifig Kendo Mask [PLAIN] - Dark Blue (6331588 | 98130)
• 1 x Minifig Hair Short Bob Cut in Orange (6336408 | 62711)
• 1 x Brick Arch 1 x 3 in Green (6331592 | 4490) which seems to be a new Element ID for 4541275, but still unique to this set

As a fan of anything Sand Green, I applaud the arrival of the new door frame in this colour, and I also love the orange Bob Cut hair piece.

There are quite a few unique printed elements which are making their debut too:

• 1 x Control Panel on Slope 45° 2 x 2 in White (6329696)
• 1 x Cash Register on Slope 45° 2 x 1 with Bottom Pin in White (6329697) - also appears in the Shopping Street set
• 1 x Tile 1 x 2 with Groove in Light Bluish Gray with Gauges in Light Bluish Gray (6329585)
• 1 x Tile 1 x 1 with Gauge print in Light Bluish Gray (6329584)
• 1 x Minifig Head, Dark Orange Eyebrows, Red Glasses, Red Lips, Beauty Mark Print (6329613)
• 1 x Torso Safety Vest, Lime with Reflective Stripes over Jacket with Orange Stripe Print, Blue Arms, Dark Bluish Gray Hands (6335812)
• 1 x Torso Fire Jacket with Dark Red Collar and Reflective Stripes / Fire Logo on Back Print, Black Arms, Dark Bluish Gray Hands (6332022)
• 1 x Minifig Head, Trans-Orange Glasses Print (6329589)
• 1 x Torso Shirt with Belt with Pouches, Handset and Police Badge / 'POLICE' Belt with Pouches and Radio on Back Print, Bright Light Blue Arms, Yellow Hands (6335898)
• 1 x Minifig Head, Black Glasses Print (6329612)
• 2 x Torso Armor, Dark Blue with Orange Panel over Robes Print, White Arms, Dark Blue Hands (6335834)
• 1 x Legs and Dark Blue Hips, with Dark Blue Kendo Armor Print (6329616)

It’s great to be getting some more options for printed pieces here, notably the two gauge tiles, cash register and control panel, which should provide inspiration for all sorts of MOC details.

Other rare pieces are:

• 1 x Minifig Hair 2 Ponytails in Dark Brown (6312730 | 35701) - has only been seen in the 2020 Main Square (60271) release previously
• 1 x Minifig Neckwear Baby Carrier in Dark Tan (6233539 | 37822) - making its third appearance here
• 1 x Brick Special 1 x 4 with 3 Layers Curved in Black (6301371 | 66955) - its second outing (I had already applied the sticker to this piece before taking the photo)
• 1 x Tile 2 x 3 - Green (6288100 | 26603) making its second appearance after 123 Sesame Street (21324), again with the sticker applied
• 4 x Brick Special 1 x 1 with Scroll with Open Stud in Medium Stone Grey/ Light Bluish Gray (6211917 | 20310) - this is its third appearance

Additionally, the Bicycle Frame in Dark Blue seen in Skate Park also appears in this release. 

Town Centre - the build

This is the largest and most expensive set in the wave, costing £89.99 / $99.99 / 99.99€ for 790 pieces. It is one of the two sets aimed at the slightly higher 6+ age group in this CITY selection. The price seems a little bit steep here, especially when compared to last year’s equivalent CITY release, Downtown Fire Brigade (60216), which contained 943 parts for the same price. 

Having said that, I’m sure CITY fans will be pleased that they are getting two substantial structures in this set as well as 3 vehicles and a bike. The instructions are spread over 5 easy to follow booklets. There aren’t any earth-shattering build techniques here, but I did enjoy the lightly sprung spinning brushes in the car wash, which also has movable jets of water hanging at the entrance.

The lady supervising the recycling truck seems very competent at her task, but I’m not sure why the only villain included in the set has decided that stealing a pizza is his most lucrative career move!

A small fire in the bins next to the pizza shop can be extinguished by the intrepid firefighting lady who arrives on a shiny red motorcycle. The stud shooter takes a bit of practice to aim correctly at the flames, but it’s fun giving it a go.

I also really like the man being guided by his service dog, setting a great example for inclusion and representation for the visually impaired.

Noteworthy parts in 60306 Shopping Street

The Shopping Street set contains two 16x16 road plates, one 8x16 crosswalk road plate, four end ramps, four yellow double slopes for speed bumps and seven 2x4 printed tiles for centre road markings, from the common list.

The set does not contain any new moulds, but there are some unique recolours to be found:

• 1 x Brick Round 1.5 x 1.5 Dome Top in Red (6337734 | 20952)
• 2 x Wheel 15 x 6 City Motorcycle in Yellow (6338002 | 50862)
• 1 x Brick Arch 1 x 6 x 2 - Thin Top without Reinforced Underside [New Version] in Orange (6337195 | 15254)
• 2 x Slope Inverted 45° 6 x 2 Double with 2 x 4 Cutout in Yellow (6146800 | 22889)
• 4 x Tile 2 x 6 in Dark Azure (6337197 | 69729)
• 1 x Bicycle Frame in Medium Azure (6338007 | 36934)
• 1 x Bicycle Frame - Hollow Stud in Magenta (6341328 | 65574)
• 1 x Minifig Bike in Bright Light Orange (6338955 | 50015)

Other rare elements in the set are:

• 5 x Plate 1 x 2 in Glow in Dark White (6331687 | 3023), which also appears twice in the Road Plates set (60304)
• 1 x Minifig Hair and Cap, Ponytail Bright Light Yellow Print (6264042) - previously only in People Pack - Fun Fair (60234)
• 1 x Minifig Hair Smooth Combed Sideways in Light Bluish Gray (6310479 | 99930) making its second appearance after Privet Drive (75968)

As for printed elements, the following are all unique unless otherwise stated:

• 3 x Tile 2 x 4 with Groove and Bicycle Print in Dark Azure (6329620)
• 1 x Minifig Torso Female Race Suit 'S' in White (6223896) - its third outing
• 1 x Minifig Head Child, Big Open Mouth Smile Print in Yellow (6328341) 
• 1 x Road Sign Clip-on 2 x 2 Square [Thick Open O Clip] with Computer Screen Print in Black (6329579)
• 1 x Road Sign Clip-on 2 x 2 Square [Thick Open O Clip] with Pedestrian Crossing on Blue Background Print in White (6329595) - with a minifig silhouette rather than a person, also in the Road Plates release
• 1 x Tile 1 x 2 with Computer Keyboard with No Letters Print (6329575)
• 1 x Tile Round 1 x 1 with Gauge Print in Light Bluish Gray (6329581)
• 1 x Tile Round 1 x 1 with Silver Background and Outlined Number 5 Coin Pattern in Flat Silver (6329581)

Shopping Street - the build

We do not currently have a price in Euros, but this set will retail for £59.99 / $79.99 and contains 533 pieces. The five instruction booklets break up the build into manageable chunks which should keep the 6+ audience engaged in their task. 

Much like the other buildings in this range, the shops are open-backed for ease of access during play. I think this is my favourite set of the selection I received, due to its good looks, variety of building styles and the inclusion of a couple of interesting vehicles. The price point seems about right here too. 

It has not escaped some AFOLs’ attention that this set also features a designated cycleway and a cargo bike. It’s great to see LEGO encouraging a more green mentality in its young audience. Equally, the printed 2 x 4 cycle lane tile will surely find its way into many AFOLs’ brick cities around the globe.

Conclusion

The five new CITY sets offer a selection of scenes to suit a variety of budgets, with some imaginative play features. They can also form the basis of new ideas for children and adults alike to build upon, customise their cities and make them unique. They embrace diversity with their new minifigure characters, and encourage young minds to consider the environment with features like a dedicated cycleway, recycling facilities and electric vehicles. 

The buildings integrate seamlessly with the new Road Plate system to provide stylish looking roads with amazing flexibility, while not taking up too much room on your tabletop.

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READ MORE: LEGO® Technic 2021 review: 42122 Jeep Wrangler has several new panels

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