Mataura Marks New Era of Play with Splash Pad Opening
It’s time to make a splash in Mataura as Stage Two of the Tulloch Park redevelopment is celebrated at a grand opening on Saturday 5 April.
A state-of-the-art Splash Pad and Exeloo toilets have been added to site, joining the full-sized basketball courts and pump track installed last year as part of Stage One.
The Gore District Council Parks and Recreation Manager Keith McRobie said the Splash Pad and accompanying toilets make an exciting addition to the redevelopment.
The splash pad is an area fitted with a non-slip surface and various nozzles and features that can shower, spray, rain, mist, and shoot streams of water.
Sometimes called a zero-depth pool, the play space includes a shower dome, water arc, splash buckets, a water helix and rocket streams, all designed for safe, inclusive, watery fun, he said.
“The Splash Pad is a safe and fun way of enjoying water for all-ages,” McRobie said.
Water from the play area would be recycled and treated on-site, making water-usage sustainable.
With the addition of new fencing along the main road families will be able to enjoy the space without worrying about children wandering off, he said.
The Splash Pad and accompanying toilets have been built in Matuara following the closure of the swimming pool in 2017. Funding from Better off Funding scheme, the Tourism Infrastructure Fund and the Lotteries Community Facilities Fund have paved the way for a “gold -standard” water play area, he said.
“We’ve been extremely fortunate with the support this project has received from outside agencies. What we’re getting is Rolls Royce. The Splash Pad is gold standard, the toilets are gold standard and the basketball courts are gold standard.”
“The Mataura Community Board have been working on this for almost a decade and we’re pleased that everyone’s hard work has paid off.”
The Splash Pad would be opened on Saturday 5 April with a family fun day from 1:00pm - 4:00pm.
A barbecue and activity trailers from Active Southland and the YMCA would be on-site, along with the Eastern Southland Basketball Tournament taking place on the courts.
