City Unveils Outdoor Exercise Equipment

You had better make sure that people don't help their friends use the new equipment or else you will have to band them like you did to Mr Silver...
Maybe you could install surveillance cameras to make sure nobody breachs your absurd policy.

We have been delighted with the positive feedback we have received from the public regarding these outdoor exercise equipment facilities. Each piece of equipment is clearly sign-posted with instructions on how to safely use each one. For any further comments or queries please contact the City on 1300 635 845.

Fantastic innovation. I have been using the equipment every time I walk my dog past. There are always other people there utilising the facility and last week there was a whole gathering of people exercising, chatting with dogs etc.
A great community feel as well as a healthy benefit.

Was Willagee even considered? This is not fair for Willagee people as all areas are to far to run to. PLEASE can we have some in Willagee?

Dear past and present users of the Leeming Recreation Centre;

As part of City of Melville’s decision to cease all of its programs at the Leeming Recreation Centre (LRC), I understood that Melville planned to implement a number “Physical Activity” initiative to offset what had been lost. These included:

• Provision of interactive water playground

• Outdoor gym equipment area

• BBQ’s

• Shade structures

• Additional playground equipment.

In the two+ years that have passed since the Council’s decision, it appears that the outdoor gym equipment is the sum total of what has been delivered on the "Physical Activity" promise (one quarter of $74,000 out of Melville's forecast 2010/11 expenditure of $79.5 million).

Council does; however, appear to have the wealth to keep investing in new facilities, just not in the City’s south east region (i.e Bullcreek, Leeming, Murdoch and Winthrop).

For example:

• Kadidjiny Park (Melvillle). The City purchased the 3.8 hectares of land for $5.5 million and also contributed around $1.4 million towards construction of the park
• A $5 million upgrade to the Melville Aquatic Fitness Centre in Booragoon, including: a larger gymnasium, an interactive water playground etc.

Questions

• Why it is acceptable for the City’s south east region to be served by a privately operated recreation centre, and other suburbs in the City have available to them Council operated facilities (i.e. Melville Recreation and Melville Aquatic)?
• Has Council considered what previously delivered Melville programs at the LRC are not provided by the private operator and whether Council is willing to invest in those?
• Why doesn’t Council also cease all services at Melville Recreation and Melville Aquatic, where they are adequately supplied by private operators (e.g. Fernwood in Myaree; or Zest in Melville)?

In implementing the physical activity initiative, an interactive water playground is being constructed at the Melville Aquatic Fitness Centre; 10 new BBQ’s have been installed or replaced in the City in the past 12 months; shade structures have been installed/are in planning for LOCATIONS; and new playground equipment has been installed and upgraded at almost ten locations across the City, including Kadidjiny Park in Melville, Gemmell Park in Bull Creek and Frawley Gardens in Murdoch.

It is common for Council's to lease their facilities to private operators - this happens across a number of different metropolitan Councils, and within other services provided by the City of Melville. These lease agreements include the requirement for certain standards and services to be met in order to provide the community with adequate facilities. Decisions to do this are complex ones made in the context of wider budgetary demands.

Positive feedback indeed. No mention made of the massive negative feedback Melville City Council received from the public , particularly from the residents of Leeming and nearby suburbs, when council decided to relinquish their running of the Award winning Leeming Recreation Centre.
The proposal to install these outdoor gym equipment facilities and interactive spray areas were presented to Council at that very same time. Hardly a substitute for a fully functional supervised gymnasium, an eight lane 25 metre swimming pool and an adjacent childrens pool.
I am looking forward to voting in the October Council elections.

This type of fitness equipment has proved to be popular in other locations in Perth, well done City of Melville, being freely open to public use will go a long way to help maintain fitness and health. My son is very keen to use the equipment at Tompkins Park and I am sure the equipment will prove to be well used.

I believe it is an awesome idea but as stated above, Melville, Palmyra and Willagee are far from the chosen areas - Is there a plan for another Outdoor Gym Equipment to be installed centrally top these three areas?

Greta idea to install the workout stations at John Connell reserve. I started my workout last Thursday night and felt overcome by the putrid stench wafting across from the SMRC RRRC. I wonder how much usage the equipment will get in summer when the SMRC really ramp up their polluting activity.

Having spent so much of taxpayer money on outdoor gym equipment, what seems to be a good idea on the surface, has the Melville Council ever considered the expenses that will be incurred with vandalism and liabibity when someone gets injured? Who will pay for all these unforseen expenses? - The Melville ratepayers?

Gym equipment not used properly(i.e. Unsupervised) can easily cause injuries to the uninitiated. Are the ratepayers again being made to finance the cost of legal procedures?

It appears to me that the council is willing to throw away ratepayers money in a desperate attempt to get reelected without giving it any thought to unnecessary expenses that will follow.

Thanks for your feedback.

The equipment installed at these locations is Australian Standard certified and has been installed by many Local Governments nation-wide.

These facilities are covered under the City's existing public liability insurance - in the same way as our other infrastructure. This equipment is also for use by choice 'at own risk' with clear, safe instructions available at each station.

Thank you for your support Alfred.
For those that didn't hear of the Today Tonight story, the preview is available online.
http://au.news.yahoo.com/today-tonight/video/watch/26260594/

My kids and I love the new Outdoor Gym Equipment. Thankyou for installing them, they are a great addition to our local oval and are enjoyed by kids and adults.

While any addition to equipment that encourages people to exercise is welcome, one has to wonder how much use outdoor equipment will get in 30 degree plus weather and in winter rain - very little I would guess. The main sufferers will be women, particularly those with small children, and senior citizens, for whom this outdoor equipment is of little use. To think that this equipment is anything like a substitute for a properly run, Council gym in the Leeming area, is delusional.