A children's playground featuring two pieces of equipment never seen before in New Zealand will start construction next week on Tauranga's downtown waterfront.
The $300,000 playground will be built beside the children's water feature and will become even more irresistible when the Hairy Maclary storybook statues are installed nearby.
TaurangaCity Council project team spokeswoman Nathalie Massa said the design was guided by input from 1000 school-aged children and others about what type of playground and play equipment they wanted.
"Slide, spin, swing and climb, the playground will be an exciting addition to the waterfront and city centre," she said.
Construction begins on Monday, when local schoolchildren arrive with a digger for the "turf-turning" event. It is the next stage in the council's $625,000 transformation of the waterfront into a place where people can rest, relax or have a bit of fun. It will be followed by upgrading the Spring St railway crossing.
The area surrounding the playground will be landscaped to create an interesting play environment.
A contest will give someone the chance to cut the opening rope and allow their class or friends to be the first ones to use the playground. Whoever takes the best photo of themselves in front of the playground under construction will also win a $100 shopping voucher. Construction is due to be completed by the end of June.
