New community-designed youth park for Stoke

A new youth park featuring a basketball court, skate park and container stage will be built in Stoke, following feedback from Nelson’s young people.

Nelson City Council has been working with the local schools, along with Whanake Youth and Nelson Youth Council, to come up with a design for the park, which will be situated in the car park adjacent to Stoke Memorial Hall on Main Road Stoke.

“The fact that this would be a co-designed facility based on what potential users want is very special and a blueprint for how more Council projects should be delivered,” Community and Recreation Chair Tim Skinner says.

The Nelson City Council Community and Recreation Committee voted to move forward on the proposed design, at a meeting on Thursday 17 June.

Council has allocated $610,000 of funding through the 2018-28 Long Term Plan for the highly anticipated project.

This funding would also include seating, a timber deck, drinking fountain, climbing tower, seating mound, plantings and a car park for the adjacent Plunket building.

 There are also some exciting proposed additional features, which could also be included if external funding of up to $300,000 can be found, including installation of shade sails, a barbecue, catenary lighting and a deck extension.

“People of Nelson have been waiting 14 long years for this youth park,” Councillor Skinner says.

“While the Council-funded features would make for a nice venue, the extra features would elevate the park to another level and make it a fantastic facility for the community to enjoy for years to come,” Councillor Skinner says.

Construction of the park will begin before the end of the financial year, 30 June 2021.

If the external funding isn’t forthcoming, the Council-funded features with some minor modifications would still function successfully on their own.

For further details and updates on the Stoke Youth Park, go to the Shape Nelson website.