Arataki Park might get a new bike pump track if council gives the project the green light by dedicating $125,000 of funding into the track.
Volunteer group Mount Maunganui Pump Track Society made a submission to Tauranga City Council's draft 2019-2020 Annual Plan last Wednesday requesting for the council to contribute $125,000 to the project, which was one-third of the estimated $375,000 cost.
Society spokesman James Petterson told the council last Wednesday the a similar track in Grey Lynn, Auckland bought together a range of different ethnicities, ages and socioeconomic groups.
He said that the Mount track would help "create a safer and more accepting community down at Arataki".
He said that council had already had allocated 15,000sq m for the pump track, which was described as "an undulating ribbon of asphalt on which riders pump to propel themselves around the track".
It would be an all-weather and low maintenance facility that could be used by bikes, skateboards and scooters, he said.
The design of the planned Mount Maunganui Pump Track. Graphic / supplied
Based on observations of the track created by the members of the Society in Grey Lynn, it estimated that a track at the Mount would draw 20,000 users per year, who would do 200,000 laps of the track.
Councillor John Robson asked how fast the track would deteriorate and need replacement and Petterson responded that it would be an estimated 15 years before it would need work.
Petterson told the Bay of Plenty Times yesterday the track would accommodate all ages and skill levels and encourage the whole family to get involved.
"You can be at a learner level or you could be super skilled ... girls, boys, mums and dads can get out there together."
While he did not wish to dismiss skate parks, he said it was more accessible than a skate park for most users.
He said the society had requested a third of the cost as the other two-thirds of the cost would tentatively be met by charities if the council granted the rest of the funding.
He hoped that the park would be in place by February next year.
Spokeswoman Jane Asbury said the pump track would be a free but valuable community asset for the decile-three area.
"It's free, it's something the kids can use by jumping on any old bike and get fit."
She said that sporting activities could be expensive and time-costly, especially for lower-income parents, and the track would offer young people a place to hang out without getting into mischief.
In its submission, the Society included letters of support from Sport Bay of Plenty and the principals of Mount Maunganui College, Mount Maunganui Intermediate School, Omanu School and Arataki School.
The Society would start a Givealittle page for the project.
