Council has announced a decision on the future of KidsTown.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
The future of beloved Shepparton and Mooroopna playground KidsTown has now been assured.
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City of Greater Shepparton councillors voted at the August council meeting to approve a $650,000 budget allocation for this financial year to undertake rehabilitation work at KidsTown.
Council will also develop a master plan for the facility.
The announcement ends months of uncertainty for the community, with concerns being raised about the state of the playground by some community members in two separate articles in The News in May.
The playground was tired and needed sprucing up, with paint peeling and rust appearing, while other sections had been completely blocked off for use by the public.
A miniature train at KidsTown had also stopped running after the October 2022 floods.
A report tabled at the council meeting said that currently an estimated average of 1000 people visited the site every month.
The report showed it cost $215,437 a year to operate KidsTown, according to figures from June 30.
The daily cleaning and grounds maintenance cost about $48,000 a year.
The income at the facility was $89,593.
At the council meeting, all councillors voted in favour of rehabilitation work at the site and the development of a master plan.
Parts of the KidsTown playground are currently not able to be used because they do not meet safety requirements.
Cr Sam Spinks said the development of the master plan was “incredibly exciting” and she was pleased to be able to be a part of breathing new life into the site.
However, she warned that some of the equipment at KidsTown would need to be removed because it was now unsafe.
The timber dairy maze, the amphitheatre, tree house and giant slide are at the end of their lives and don’t meet current Australian standards, according to the report tabled at the council meeting.
These large sections of the playground have been closed to the public for some time.
Cr Anthony Brophy said when KidsTown was built by the community in 1995, there was no master plan or renewal plans for the playground.
He said damage from the 2022 floods pushed the playground “over the edge”, with many of the “landmark features” now off limits.
He said that community consultation as part of the master plan process would allow community members to have their say about what sort of things they would like to see there into the future.
“Do kids today want the same adventure base?” he asked.
“I don’t know. That’s why we are asking the public.”
Both Cr Spinks and Mayor Shane Sali spoke of their own memories of playing at KidsTown when they were young, followed by now taking their own children there to play.
The amphitheatre is nearing its end-of-life and no longer meets Australian standards.
“It’s important to refresh this site,” Cr Sali said.
“Every kid loves playing on good playgrounds.
“KidsTown is more than a playground, it is a well-known and much-loved community asset that has served our region for decades.
“This revitalisation ensures it will continue to inspire and entertain future generations.”
Community consultation will start on September 12 and run until October 31.
Council said more information on the consultation process would be shared in the coming weeks.
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