Not one, not two, but potentially three 'destination' children's playgrounds for Dunedin
A trio of “destination” children's playgrounds similar to Christchurch’s Margaret Mahy playground could be built in Dunedin.
The Dunedin City Council will meet next week – via audiovisual link – to debate options as part of its draft plan as it tries to keep a 6.5 per cent rate rise for 2022-23.
In May last year the council decided to support, in principle, the development of a new destination children’s playground.
A consultant was commissioned to assess Dunedin’s current play spaces – defined as having playground amenities and supporting infrastructure – and to provide examples of other relevant New Zealand destination play spaces.
Marlow Park, Woodhaugh Gardens and Mosgiel Memorial Gardens were identified as the parks that best fitted the definition of a destination play space, but all had some deficiencies.
Marlow Park, more commonly known as “the Dinosaur Park”, was considered old and outdated compared to modern standards, while lacking equipment for older children.
Woodhaugh Gardens had a lack of all-weather surfaces, while Mosgiel Memorial Park had an inefficient use of space.
A new destination would require a larger financial investment, and that was not recommended.
The report noted that Christchurch’s Margaret Mahy play space was completed in 2015 at a cost of $4 million, while Auckland’s Kopupaka play space, which opened last year, cost $6m.
The council were presented with three options, including either using a new greenfields site, making one destination playground, or investing in all three current destination play spaces.
That last option would result in each major city catchment area receiving investment in a destination play space.
The council’s current 10-year plan includes budgets for minor renewal and upgrade work at each of the three destination play spaces.
Maidstone Max is being touted as a regional attraction for Upper Hutt following its rebuild, that includes accessible features so it can be enjoyed by wheelchair users.
But to raise the quality of the facilities to an appropriate standard, the report estimated a capital investment of $4m to $6m spread across the three destination play spaces would be required.
The council will also discuss funding options for kerbside recycling after it previously resolved to adopt targeted rates funding for collection bins, plus an opt-in garden waste bin funded via fees and charges.
That led to a report outlining options for a flat and progressive targeted rate for kerbside collection.
The report noted that Dunedin’s proposed kerbside collection plan was similar to that of Auckland, which limited the volume available for general waste while increasing access to diversion services.
A key component to that plan would be “pay as you throw” technology, effectively meaning residents would only pay for bin collections when needed and incentivised the reduction of household waste.
No options were presented to the council.
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Today’s Mind-Bender is the Last of the Year! Can You Guess It Before Everyone Else?
You have me today, Tomorrow you'll have more;
As your time passes, I'm not easy to store;
I don't take up space, But I'm only in one place;
I am what you saw, But not what you see.
What am I?
Do you think you know the answer to our daily riddle? Don't spoil it for your neighbours! Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm.
Want to stop seeing riddles in your newsfeed?
Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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60.7% Summer
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37.1% Winter
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2.2% Other - I'll share below
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