Tauranga to get $500,000 playground

By John Cousins
A new $500,000 children's playground so up-to-date that it's expected to lure families from across the city is planned for Tauranga.
The council has chosen the pony club paddocks opposite Papamoa's Stella Place, near the Papamoa Beach Holiday Park, as its preferred venue for a playground to rival the one at Memorial Park.
Nearly eight months' research has gone into finding a site to build the "destination" playground to serve Mount Maunganui and Papamoa.
Like Memorial Park, it will be built to such a scale that it is expected families will make a special trip just to enjoy it.
From a shortlist of three venues, Tauranga City Council yesterday lost no time in selecting the paddocks between Papamoa Beach Rd and the dunes.
There was overwhelming support for the beach location, which Cr Mary Dillon hinted ought to be also considered as the venue for an extreme sports park.
Mark Bruhn, the council's parks and development manager, said the play equipment would be quite different from the Memorial Park playground. New types of play equipment coming on to the market encouraged children to extend themselves while still keeping safe.
Research suggested the playground would occupy less than 10 per cent of the 20,000sq m of council-owned reserve along this section of the coast.
Public consultation on the playground's siting will be done in tandem with the review of the council's coastal reserves management plans in 2008-10.
Cr Dillon liked the location because it was close to Papamoa Domain, was just down the road from the Palm Beach Plaza Shopping Centre and the new library and from areas earmarked for major development over the next 20 years.
The site was favoured over Grenada Park and Gordon Spratt Reserve because it was open and family friendly, was visible from a busy road, allowed for a beach-themed playground and could be linked into walkways.
Council recreational planner Campbell Larking said strong interest had been shown by a city investment partner to contribute $150,000 towards costs.
The rest of the money was earmarked to come from rates-funded loans ($90,000) and Papamoa subdivision impact fees ($275,000).
The council opposed siting the playground at Grenada Park because of strong community feedback that as much of the park as possible needed to be preserved for open space. There were also vandalism and traffic issues in the area.
Gordon Spratt Reserve was not favoured because it was felt the playground would not sit easily with the reserve's future as Papamoa's sporting equivalent of Blake Park. The playground would also be isolated until the reserve was fully developed.
The main criticisms of the pony club site were safety concerns about children crossing Papamoa Beach Rd to reach the playground. Cr Dillon said issues would need to be worked through carefully.
Cr Bob Tulloch liked the site because there were fewer problems and it was starting with a clean slate.
Cr David Stewart said it was a magic area for a playground and offered the opportunity to create something unique.
Cr Rick Curach questioned whether the playground would be used as much as if it was in Grenada Park. It was less accessible, whereas Grenada Park was pivotal to the Mount and Papamoa and had Baywave and the Bayfair Shopping Centre next door.