I am what’s called a “serial candidate”. Which is a nice way of saying “serial loser”.
I ran for Council in 2016 after the frustrating experience of being a stay-at-home parent and substantial user of Council services. Playgrounds were boring, booking a Council venue was hard, walking down street, after street, with a pram was difficult and access to public transport a nightmare. Council priorities seem a world away from the needs of families and children.
I have every reason in the world not to run again. As a working parent to two primary school-aged children, there are literally not enough hours in the day. There has been real progress – new parks are planned for Brunswick and the Playground Strategy raises the bar for playgrounds.
But.
Then the Balfe Park renewal plan was published for community consultation. You can see my submission below. And I realised yet again that even good policies and strategies are worthless if there is no accountability for delivery.
I am writing regarding the proposed plans for Balfe Park.
I am involved in the 5th Brunswick Scout group which is located at 213A Weston St Brunswick East. Scouts from age 5-15 use Balfe Park as the main outdoor green space for evening sessions which occur for Joeys, Cubs, and Scouts on weekday evenings.
While proposed renewal is welcome, the amount of hard landscaping in the park increases significantly. This reduces the amount of open space available for group games. You will find examples of these games here: https://www.scoutresources.org.uk/SR/games/games_wide.html
A wide open space is also used for gatherings and ceremonies such as for ANZAC Day or investitures and “going ups” (membership ceremonies).
The proposed play space itself will suit younger children but does not provide anything of interest for Cub aged kids 8+. No data is given as to the demographics of the surrounding area.
The playspace itself is merely a collection of catalog equipment placed into the existing space, with no meaningful relationships between the pieces of equipment. The “mediaeval” theme has no relevance to the place or the community it serves. The items selected are typical and could be found in any playspace anywhere and there are no challenging or unique elements. The dragon is neither aesthetically interesting nor challenging to play on. Only 1 accessible (basket) swing with no accessible pathing to access it. There is a lack of seating for adults supervising children, especially seating for older adults (park benches) or parents of younger children (flat seating pods for breastfeeding, laying out food, seating for preschoolers). The social play value of “throne” seating is highly debatable. Spring rockers are of fleeting interest to children and do not sustain any play interest.
There are many existing mature trees in the park, and so it would seem a shame not to have a design that was more appreciative of these.
The Moreland Playspace Strategy notes Diversity as one of its over-arching goals and unfortunately this is sorely lacking in this design. If budget is constrained, that a focus away from undifferentiated catalog equipment, to a more flexible designed space with one or two ‘hero’ items, is preferred (see Current trends below).
The layout of the items such as BBQ and exercise equipment along the central axis seems primarily designed to be as far away from the adjoining residences as possible, rather than in order to use the space most effectively.
The exercise equipment would seem more relevant to the users of the adjoining soccer facilities. There is a tension with it being located directly opposite a playspace designed for <8yo children, if this equipment cannot be safely used by them.
The central hard pathing does not improve playspace accessibility and is a “road to nowhere” in the sense that it does not connect with the soccer field beyond. If paved, it still cannot be meaningfully used as, say a scooter path, due to its linear design. Paving it with coloured concrete is likely to make it more ugly and not more useful.
We will of course involve our youth members in having their say on this park, which is a place they visit regularly.
Cheers, Mel Yuan
Parent, former Leader 5th Brunswick Scout Group
From “Current trends” in Moreland Playspace Strategy
– Greater realisation of how children learn life skills through play and hence the vital importance of quality outdoor play spaces.
• A move for play spaces and play experience to provide opportunities for children to re-engage with the natural environment through nature play, with less traditional, equipment-based play space designs.
• A trend towards more natural and dynamic play environments and away from modular play equipment, which has resulted in the use of the term ‘play space’ rather than ‘playground’.
• Heightened awareness of the need to provide equal access to play to children and carers with special needs.
• Recognition that play spaces should provide for cognitive, creative and cooperative development as well as physical development
Greater emphasis on whole-of-park design, which provides more accessible pathways to play spaces and a greater awareness and appreciation of environmental sustainability.
Mel Yuan for Brunswick 
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