What should Te Puna’s new playground look like?

Te Puna tamariki and rangatahi here is your chance to design your very own neighbourhood playground.

Western Bay of Plenty District Council has $190,000 to play with to develop a playground at Maramatanga Park – on the top corner of Te Puna and Tangitu roads.

But we need your ideas to make sure it has all the cool attractions for everyone – no matter the age.

Come kōrero (talk) with us on Thursday 19 May, 3-5pm, at Maramatanga Park and share your ideas on what your ideal playground should look like. We’ll have a free sausage sizzle and games to enjoy too.

Council’s Senior Recreation Planner Katy McGinity says the $190,000, coming via a grant from the Lion Foundation, will create a space fit for all ages.

“It will be great to see what awesome ideas our tamariki and rangatahi come up with. I’m sure there will be plenty of playful ideas and we would love to incorporate cultural elements into the final design.

“Playgrounds are a vital part of our communities, providing a sense of community spirit and connection for all of the whānau.

“At our playground kōrero we’ll have some examples of similar sized playgrounds and various designs to help spark imagination and different ideas.”

The ideas we get from whānau at the playground kōrero will kickstart implementation of the concept plan for Maramatanga Park which was adopted by Council in 2018.

The concept plan features a skate park, public toilets and we would like to incorporate a cycleway/walkway through the park to improve safety and provide an alternative route for children travelling to/from school.

“Back in 2018 the Te Puna community told us they wanted a playground here and so with the Lion Foundation funding it’s great to be able to make this a reality for the community,” says Katy.

The Thursday 19 May kōrero is also a chance to hear any ideas on initiatives for our young people that could be undertaken in Te Puna through Council’s Wellbeing Plan, such as basketball tournaments or mural installations by local artists.

Adopted in Council’s Long Term Plan 2021-31 the Wellbeing Plan aims to promote the economic, social, cultural and environmental wellbeing of our communities, both now and in the future.

All ideas from tamariki and rangatahi will be used to develop the playground design which will be installed within the next 12 months.