Fitzpatrick Park playground upgrade

I agree that we need more for the older children 7+ years including more junior swings. Love the idea in the comments of the basketball hoop or wall to hit balls against. Thank you!

Fitzpatrick Park Consultation - thank you for the upgrade.
Comments:-
1. Socialising within the fenced playground.
This is a regular occurrence and new friendships form as well as nurturing existing. Definitely needs the table with seats. Other seats around good too. Consider more opportunity to sit or congregate together whilst being able to watch children plus sufficient free play between and around equipment.
2. Socialising/recreation/free play/adults without children outside the fence.
Carers/Grandparents having a picnic with children before/between/after play, family gatherings, adults seeking outside space etc need a table with seats and more seats generally - not considered in design and those activities likely to increase with park upgrade. Design has removed the existing table. Please replace. Seats built around the large tree trunks are an additional option. If necessary, the new playground fence could go back a bit to accommodate.
3. Trees, garden beds and grassed area
Tree roots are a huge consideration for any new trees. Deciduous trees likely to be a safety hazard with leaves/twigs/flowers on the ground especially wet.
Pretty flowers in garden beds.
4. Playgound equipment
Well thought out but some considerations are:-
• Timber ages quickly and splinters.
• Children need to also be able to use equipment on their own. Ground equipment, such as the existing 2 rockers, is excellent for that as are the existing monkey bars and even a bounce mat. Please include.
• Equipment height – existing platform height to swirl dipper is 1.7m but reduced in new design. Children need challenges and existing works well.
• Suggest swirly dipper orientation be reversed so children can be better supervised.
5. Shade
No shade cloth please but something.
6. Bubblers/Water fountains/bike racks considered unnecessary.
Not a high energy park and RCC Survey showed majority stay 30 mins to 1hr; 83% walk to the park.
7. Regular Programmed Maintenance Schedule
Decline noticed over the years.

Love this upgrade design. Would be great to get more seating, as well as bike parking and a water bubbler to support a rest stop.Thank you.

Thank you for the upcoming upgrade of the park! Here are some suggestions:
- a concrete path connecting Day/Eastern avenues to the playground (at this stage it is just grass)
- a small bike track around the perimeter of the park
- a sandpit
- instead of trees (which make the park very messy & wet), perhaps a shade cloth would be more appropriate
- a round/donut/wheel swing
- constant maintenance/cleaning because it becomes very wet & dirty with lots of leaves which is a hazard
- trim the trees back because it gets very dark & uninviting

Thank you again! Please seriously consider the above. They would make for a great space.

We live in one of the nearby streets.
Our section of the street which would include around 50 households would not have a single child under 5. All the children are over 5, the average around 10.
The demographics of the local area is all houses. The children in these houses are going to have older children. All the adjacent homes around eastern avenue, Day avenue etc are all established houses which have older children.
Can council please reconsider the design.

An excellent concept and plan, some suggestions:
1. Addition of at least 6 benches for adults in the park and/ or near the playground
2. Addition of 2 water fountains/ water bottle refill stations
3. At least 2 bins for rubbish near play area
4. A fence and gate around the play area
5. Addition of bicycle parking area near playground
Best of luck and thank you!!

It’s great you are upgrading our local parks however none seem to be catering for the older ages 7-10yrs. Please provide examples of what you are installing to entertain these age groups - basketball hoop, handball courts, a wall to hit a ball against etc??

Looks great!
Agree more seating would be useful.
love the boulders under the fig tree for more free play and potential makeshift seating. Is there any opportunity to add more 'free play' natural, open elements too? e.g. balancing logs
Thanks

The design looks great and it’s fantastic it caters to the younger child demographic- as there aren’t many of these parks around
I think there could be more seating for supervising adults included.
Another request would be if one of the toddler swings could be a twin swing? Enabling two small children to be pushed (back to back) at the same time? Thanks

is there a fence around the playground and signs stating 'dogs are NOT allowed with 10 metres of a chlidrens playground' for health and safety reasons

Improving overall drainage needs to be considered in the improvement works as the site remains relatively damp for a long period of time following rain events. The plan to modernise the park is great though!

Love the idea of modernizing this park as I have lived here all my life--77 years.
Now love to take my grandchildren there from time to time.
I hope all the large trees are safely maintained as they have very large limb branches.
Recent rains have caused many tree branches to snap off throughout our suburbs and this can be extremely dangerous to all--particularly children.
The park offers plenty of shaded areas but can be a bit damp and cold in winter months, cant be helped.
My main request would be sufficient seating and park tables to have some food or lunch while kids are playing to extend the stay in the park..

JohnS

Although I don't use this park, I have a few comments. The seating provided for supervising adults (especially grandparents) looks a bit scarce, and not much of it is in the shade. Secondly, is it wise to put boulders under a tree that kids are likely to climb? Where are the rubbish bins?

Thanks so much for the upgrade - there is no doubt it will get plenty of use! The only thing is that it needs more picnic tables - the many families who will bring their kids to play will need seating, and the new equipment will encourage people to stay for picnics/socialising etc (a great use of community space). So great to offer this opportunity for the community. Thanks!

Hi, lovely to see an upgrade to the park.
A few thoughts, could we have native trees instead of deciduous trees for shade in summer, albeit it less sun in winter but selection could be species with a thinner canopy? Rubber softball makes sense under the play equipment but could it be minimised so that children inside the play area can play on grass as well? Is the swing set a bit close to the main gates.
Best wishes

Excellent idea, but needs more trees for shade

COMMENT from RANDWICK COUNCIL: Thanks for the comments so far! Good news, the twirly slide lives on and is included in the proposed design! It is on the other side of the play equipment, opposite the double slide.

Great upgrade is happening and thank you.
1. Outside of the playground the park is also used by adults with or without children e.g. catch ups, picnic lunch, reading, workers having lunch, quiet time. Existing table and seats outside of the playground needs to be retained. I eating table for the whole park is not enough.

2. While it is important for the equipment to have a young focus like existing (about toddler to age 10), the proposed equipment will not cater for this group but only the very lower end of that age group. Proposed seems to have less challenges than existing so not encouraging development. Hard to know without actually viewing the equipment but I feel the main structure is not quite there.

3. Trees along the fence were removed years ago so there must have been a reason for that. Tree roots perhaps?

4. Overhead shade cover would be better, particularly at the north end.
5. Swings should be reversed to 1 toddler, 2 junior. Some sort of monkey bar similar to existing suggested. Some other child seated equipment at ground level would be good. Not sure there is enough room for children to ride their little scooters or trikes. Retention of room for free play inside and out of the playground is important.

Other residents apart from families also use this park and you have made no allowance for their needs. You have significantly encroached on the green space.

Also it would be useful to have a water fountain.

Its amazing to get an upgrade of a local playground. This has been a favorite of ours forever due to the twirly slide. Slightly sad to see this is not in the new model a its why this playground is so fun and different to the ones in the area.