KidsTown has long been a drawcard for both locals and visitors to Greater Shepparton, but these days it is looking a little worse for wear, with maintenance needed.
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Shepparton resident Kevin Saxton visited the attraction with his grandchildren at Easter time and was shocked at the state of the facility.
“It looked neglected,” Mr Saxton said.
While his grandchildren loved the slides and “there were kids running around having a ball”, Mr Saxton said he felt the facility “needed attention”.
He cited that things made of metal were starting to rust, and seats in the area needed to be sanded and be given a fresh lick of paint.
Some parts of the facility, including mazes, were also closed to visitors, and the café was not open despite it being a long weekend, Mr Saxton said.
The amphitheatre could do with some sprucing up.
The miniature train that used to operate at KidsTown has not run since the 2022 floods.
Mr Saxton said KidsTown was a tourist attraction that helped bring people to the town.
“If I was from Melbourne and staying in the area, I would make a point to go there,” he said.
However, he said work needed to be done by the owners, Greater Shepparton City Council, to spruce the place up.
KidsTown playground needs some TLC, according to Kevin Saxton.
“There are plenty of opportunities for improving it without spending a lot of money,” Mr Saxton said.
“It just needs some maintenance.
“The general aesthetic appearance about the place wasn’t good when we were there.”
Mr Saxton said he had probably not been to the playground for about 12 months, but it was enough to notice the difference.
The first play area at KidsTown initially opened in 1995, with a team of locals joining together to make it a reality.
Geoff Allemand was the playground’s originator and project manager.
He said businesses and service clubs helped fund the playground. A treehouse was sponsored by Rotary and the fruit bin climbing pit set up by Mooroopna Apex Club.
Ardmona Foods was one of the big sponsors in the early years, contributing $100,000 to the project.
Some areas of the playground were fenced off.
Council also contributed $50,000, which was matched dollar-for-dollar by the community.
Since 2005, it has been a council-run facility.
Mr Allemand, who was the manager at KidsTown until council took it on, said he hoped it was “not too late” for council to rectify what he called “continuing neglect” at KidsTown.
“KidsTown has been a wonderful asset for local families and a drawcard for tourists since 1995 when the first play area opened,” Mr Allemand said.
“Since that time, many organisations, individuals and corporate sponsors, including council, have enabled it to grow to be one of the most unique playgrounds in Australia.
“It saddens me to take my grandchildren there these days and witness its deteriorating state.”
The News asked council a range of questions, including when the last time a lot of maintenance work was done at the playground, how much money was allocated in the coming budget to be spent on maintenance, the running costs for the facility, and what council’s plans were for KidsTown into the future.
Wooden seats are cracked and the paint is peeling.
Council did not answer these questions directly.
Instead, council infrastructure director Gary Randhawa said since taking over the management of the site in 2005 council had “balanced the site’s challenges while accommodating the community’s ever-changing needs”.
“Council is in the process of investigating and determining a way forward for KidsTown and its operations,” he said.
“Council acknowledges that the community has a real connection with KidsTown and understands the significance of the site.
“The community will be kept informed and engaged where appropriate on the future development of the site.”
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