ST George Park is to benefit from a £680,000 upgrade.
Bristol City Council has decided plough cash from developers into upgrading play equipment and a skate park.
The investment forms part of a wider £1.1 million in parks across Bristol, funded from money raised via the community infrastructure levy. The spending was approved by councillors on the public health and communities policy committee on November 21.
Speaking to the committee, local skater Jack Lilley said: “St George Park has become a wonderful hub for families in east Bristol and the skate park is a big part of what makes that special. Skate parks give children, teens and adults a fun, healthy way to be active, make friends and enjoy time away from screens. But the St George skate park is showing its age.
“What used to be a bit of a challenge has now become unsafe, and without some love and attention, it risks becoming lost altogether. With the right investment, this could be an amazing opportunity to turn the space into a destination skate park which people from all over the country would be excited to visit.”
Kat Macaulay-Thomas, from Play in St George Park, added: “The playground is a vital one for one of Bristol’s most densely populated communities. Many of the families in our area have limited garden space and money for paid activities. So they rely on the park for play, to socialise, and to improve their wellbeing.
“We’ve worked for six years raising enough to deliver phase one. This gave preschoolers safer and better facilities. But sadly it remains inadequate for the older kids, for girls and for those with access needs. If funded, the next would be transformational giving them much more exciting equipment. We’re desperate to get this finished because it’s been a slog for six years.”
The rest of the cash will be spent on upgrading other parks in the city. £200,000 will be spent on new play equipment in Bannerman Road Park in Easton; £50,000 will go towards a new play area in Purdown; another £50,000 will be spent on upgrading play equipment in Barton Fields in Speedwell; and £120,000 will go towards water and power supplies for coffee and food vans in parks.
All projects will be delivered between next year and 2028.
By Alex Seabrook, Local Democracy Reporting Service