Public consultation would help determine the most suitable site for a proposed new lakeside playground in Wanaka, the Wanaka Community Board decided this week.
The Rotary Club of Wanaka wants to buy used play equipment from Wanaka's ABC Early Learning Centre and erect it at the western end of Roys Bay near Stoney Creek, near where the Wanaka Rowing Club hopes to build its clubhouse.
Queenstown Lakes District Council parks manager Gordon Bailey recommended the board accept in principle the Rotary Club's offer to install play equipment on the Wanaka foreshore, but advised public consultation be undertaken to determine the best location for the playground.
The debate surrounding the placement of the rowing club facility reinforced the need for public consultation on the playground proposal, Mr Bailey said.
Playground maintenance costs, averaging $1700 per year, and weekly inspection costs, estimated at $3000 per year, should also be considered, he said.
As of 2009, the Queenstown Lakes district already had New Zealand's second-highest ratio of playgrounds to children aged 15 or under, he said.
The Wanaka lakeside reserves and lake shore management plan indicated the proposed playground area was to be used "exclusively for bathing", while the Queenstown Lakes District Council's 2006 playground renewal report suggested an alternative site for a playground facility in the reserve at the end of Morrows Mead.
