Thanks for having your say

Earlier this year we asked for your feedback on the proposal for a small reserve at 14 Reid Street, Fitzroy. Thank you to everyone who provided feedback at the various stages of the consultation.

We've prepared a final design for the park.

This is what we heard:

• There were concerns raised about the urban agriculture planters not being well maintained. If they are not used and maintained for vegetable/herb growing by locals, council will maintain them as raised planters.
• There were concerns about the park being used by dog owners as a dog toilet. The park will have a bin with a dog bag dispenser to encourage responsible dog ownership. The grassed areas will be irrigated to promote grass growth and limit the damage to the grass.
• We should look at creating more of an edge with the footpath to prevent the use of the park for bins. The footpath edge has some furniture and a garden bed to help delineate the park. Once the park is established there will be further maintenance attendance at the park and addressing of illegal dumping.
• We should provide some constructed shade. The park is a small space and the main deciduous tree has been selected to provide natural shade to the park.

How we’ve responded to your feedback

Generally, the park design has not changed significantly from the concept design, except for refining the details and plant selection.

More small native trees have been included in the design to give the effect of a tree grove, allowing filtered views and screening at the south boundary of the park.

What’s next?

The construction of the park is scheduled to start Wednesday 3 November 2021 and will take approximately one month to finish. The park will be inaccessible during this time, but access to properties and crossovers will be maintained.

The park design

With your great feedback, we've developed a design for the park. The main features are:

• a grassed area under a large deciduous tree, to provide a cool place in summer and allow sun in the winter
• raised planter beds for growing herbs and vegies
• a native garden bed and trees at the south end of the park, to provide native habitat and give a sense of privacy to the space
• seating opportunities amongst the gardens and trees, for sitting alone or with friends.

The design considers your feedback, size and location of the space, and facilities offered by nearby parks. For example, Edinburgh Gardens (about a five-minute walk away) provides playgrounds, barbecues and off-lead dog areas.