Cr Stewart put a notice of motion to the City’s corporate and community development committee meeting on Wednesday for the City to set aside money in the 2015-16 budget to construct a playground and include it in the City’s 2014-2017 Disability and Access Inclusion Plan.
However, a council officer’s recommendation instead suggested supporting the development of a Play Space Planning Framework to address the future need and provision of inclusive play spaces .
The major sticking point for the City appeared to be the fact that the proposal was not fully costed, making it difficult to include in the 2015-16 budget.
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READ NOWIt was not known whether the project was eligible for funding grants.
Cr Stewart said in her motion that although the City had 373 playground spaces throughout the municipality, there was no dedicated space for children with disabilities or special needs.
‘There are pieces of equipment, like the liberty swing at City Park, but there is no space that is all-access and caters for children who have disabilities,’ Cr Stewart said.
‘The officer’s recommendation is completely different from what I have proposed and I find that offensive and an insult.’
The committee reached a compromise of approving the need to construct such a playground within the City.
Councillors will vote at a meeting next week to direct the chief executive to investigate the full costs and availability of land and equipment, and then report back to council before March, 2015.