A new space designed for and with young people is coming to Long Bay. Construction on Awaruaika youth park at 1 Streamview Way starts in October, bringing the community-shaped project one step closer to opening next March.
The park will provide a dedicated place for rangatahi, ages 12, and over to get active, catch up with friends and enjoy the outdoors.
Chair of the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board Alexis Poppelbaum says it's exciting to see the project moving from ideas to reality.
"We're really excited to see this project moving into the construction phase. The community, including local young people, has helped shape the design, and it's fantastic to see those ideas becoming reality.
"This will give young people a place of their own to be active, spend time with friends and enjoy the outdoors. We can't wait to see it being used by the community."
Long Bay College student D'Angelo Maclaren says with more tamariki growing up in Long Bay, a community park for playing, sport and simply hanging out with friends is becoming a must-have.
"The Awaruaika youth park will be awesome for rangatahi from our local kura and village, as it is only a short walk down the road. I know my peers and I will enjoy having a space to chill after exams and brush up on our basketball skills on the multi-purpose court.”
Feedback has been at the heart of the project from the start. Local people wanted more opportunities for young people to get active, play sport, ride, socialise and spend time outdoors.
Plan for Awaruaika youth park.
Long Bay Residents’ Association Chair Gareth Roberts says the Long Bay community has been looking forward to Awaruaika youth park for many years and are delighted to see construction now underway.
"The engaging public consultation and community feedback have helped shape a facility that will provide young people with a safe, active and welcoming place to spend time locally, and we look forward to seeing it become a much-loved community asset that supports healthy activity, connection and enjoyment for people of all ages, in the heart of Long Bay."
Those ideas helped shape the final design, with feedback influencing everything from the sports court and pump track to the play features and colour scheme.
The new youth park will feature:
- A pump track for bikes and skateboards
- A multi-use sports court for basketball, football and pickleball
- Adventure play equipment
- Seating and social spaces
- New pathways, lighting and planting.
The project is being delivered in partnership with Ngāti Manuhiri and Te Kawerau ā Maki, who gifted the name park name Awaruaika, the original name of Vaughan Stream.
D'Angelo Maclaren says, “It is fantastic to see that a wide variety of features will be added to align with the interests of young people. It’ll be a park where even our Year 13 students won’t feel too old to have fun, since it is designed for those aged 12 to 18. That’s why I, and many others at Long Bay College, believe Awaruaika will be a very positive addition to the Oneroa o Kahu community.”
The youth park has a budget of $2,935,000.
Construction will begin with site establishment and although the reserve will be closed while work is underway, the public toilet will remain open.
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