Multimillion-dollar upgrades to Dunedin’s “beloved” dinosaur park have swung into action.
Plans to redevelop St Kilda’s Marlow Park into a destination playground are under way after the Dunedin City Council issued a notice of an opportunity for detailed design and building work on Wednesday.
During nine-year plan deliberations earlier this year, councillors approved $11.22 million to redevelop playgrounds in Marlow Park ($4.62m), Woodhaugh ($3.53m) and Mosgiel ($3.07m).
Under the concept plans released for public consultation in 2023, Marlow Park would receive a range of new equipment, including in-ground trampolines, a parkour course, explorative fossil sand area and carousels.
Features such as the dinosaur slide and whale would be retained and refurbished.
Playing at Marlow Park on Thursday, Jackson Duffy, of Dunedin, said his dream park upgrade included bigger basket swings “to fit more people in”.
He would keep some existing features, such as the pump track and mountain/tunnel mound, and “I’ll fill up the whale pond”.
His mum, Nicole, said the park was “pretty run down” from how she remembered it.
“When I was a kid … you would spend an absolute day here, really.”
The council notice said there was a “rare opportunity to be involved in the upgrade of a beloved play space in Ōtepoti Dunedin”.
“This is an opportunity for you to use your knowledge and experience to have a lasting effect on Dunedin by creating a safe and exciting new destination playground for the community to enjoy for generations to come.”
It was working with mana whenua partners through Aukaha, which was part of the co-design team.
The council’s consultation document described destination playgrounds as large, catering to all ages and abilities and offering something “unique” to attract large numbers of residents and visitors.
A detailed design would go to councillors for approval.
The design was expected to be completed next year and the playground built in 2026-27.
Designs for Woodhaugh and Mosgiel were expected in 2029 and 2032 respectively.