A COMMUNITY fun day has drawn over 300 people to AF Sutton Memorial Park on Mount Gambier’s north-western fringe with a skate park makeover, pop-up library and giant games among the festivities.
The event – held at the O’Connor Drive reserve on Monday afternoon – follows a series of City Council engagement activities to learn about the community living in the area.
South East artists joined youths to work on a climate change themed mural at the skate park following consultation with the community, with park users highlighting the gradual increase in graffiti appearing in and around the park.
“Users of the space expressed their disappointment in the presentation of the skate park,” council community wellbeing general manager Barbara Cernovskis said.
“They also noted it reflects poorly on the image of skateboarding in Mount Gambier and believed that a new artwork would rekindle a sense of pride and community ownership over the space.”
Artists April Hague and Charlene Riley were engaged to work alongside council to develop a concept plan for the space.
The design is planned to feature food items melting into the skate bowl, the earth and a representation of rising sea levels and climate change.
Engagement activities leading up to the event included door knocking residents to gauge what is important to the community, as well as on-site discussions with park visitors and surveys.
“Council is interested in learning more about this neighbourhood, particularly what is great about the streets surrounding the park, the community in general and what could be done to potentially make it event better,” Ms Cernovskis said.
Council recently made several improvements to the park including the refurbishment of toilet facilities and installation of security lighting, picnic tables, drinking fountains and additional rubbish bins.
Work on the skate park’s mural continues this week.
