We're renewing the Wellington Botanic Garden ki Paekākā play area, and we heard your feedback on the draft design.

This exciting play area concept was developed from a Rima survey, where we asked the community how they used the current site, what they loved about the space, and what they would change. We also conducted a workshop with Clifton Terrace Model School in August 2022 to get more detailed feedback from local tamariki. The survey had a great response, with 831 submissions. The main themes we received were asking for a new flying fox, a large tower slide, enjoying the natural setting amongst the plants and trees, and a variety of equipment to suits all ages.

From this information, we have created a concept design with a dual flying fox, a large tower with climbing options to gain entry, with three slides coming from it. We have added sensory play equipment, in addition to popular pieces like a trampoline, monkey bars, carousel, springers and swings. We have chosen a flora theme to tie in with the Garden's location, and the bees which pollinate them.

The second stage of this project is developing māra hūpara 'nature play' with Māori kōrero, using natural materials to create fun activities within the play area. We will be working with mana whenua to further develop these ideas

You can see renders of the concept plan below.

The Botanic Garden play area is a community play area with enough activities to keep children and/or youth aged people entertained for at least an hour, with play opportunities for a range of age groups. Typically, there will be a point of difference to other community playgrounds around the city. It is designed to service the immediate neighbourhood and local community within approximately 800–metre walking distance, which is ideally located in community parks or near neighbourhood centres.

We're renewing these play areas to make them an even better place to play. You can read more about Wellington City Council’s strategic vision and planning for play areas in Wellington in the Play Spaces Policy (2017).

To find out more about how we shaped the concept design from the August 2022 pre-engagement survey, read the Our Wellington Feature.

For any other queries, email matthew.beres@wcc.govt.nz