This week Nillumbik councillors unanimously endorsed the community’s view that the location of the new Eltham North Adventure Playground and the car park on Wattle Tree Rd be switched to keep young people safe.
Nillumbik Shire Council and the community are united in their push for safety first for children after the park was destroyed by fire in the early hours of Saturday, December 16, 2017.
Nillumbik is “committed to rebuilding the Adventure Playground as quickly as possible and in partnership with the community.”
Earlier this week, shire residents voted in favour of building the playground on the southern end of the site closer to the Edendale Community Environment Farm and constructing the car park on the original playground site.
Council recently conducted community consultation on the playground location with a
survey completed by 172 community members and showed 62 per cent preferred the new, safer playground site; 33 per cent preferred the original location and five per cent had no preference.
Councillor Bruce Ranken is delighted common sense has prevailed.
“Over the years, many mums and dads have told us they were concerned about kids running across the road when they move between the playground and the oval.
“And as a dad, I worried that a kid might get hurt. The right decision has been made,” Cr Ranken, a father-of-two said.
Feedback was also gathered at drop-in sessions, where the public shared their thoughts and ideas on the playground location.
Edendale Ward Councillor John Dumaresq is pleased that the views of the community have been heard.
“The new location has other benefits too. It has a closer connection to Edendale and the playground will be more visible from the road for passing traffic. The new car park will benefit playground users, as well as the local school and sporting clubs,” Cr Dumaresq said.
The new car park will be constructed during the July school holidays, to cause minimal disruption to the school and sporting communities.
