The oval surfaces at Pedrina Park will significantly improve over the coming months after Council this week awarded the tender for installation of an automatic irrigation system. The upgrade of the irrigation system to a completely automatic system will improve ground management, turf cover and reduce resource requirements of Shire staff and user group volunteers.
Currently the irrigation system on the Pedrina Park Ovals relies on staff and volunteers to move large mobile sprinklers and to manually operate watering systems which are aging and failing to meet the needs of user groups. Improved irrigation was identified as the top priority when Council conducted user group engagement as part of the Recreation and Leisure Strategic Plan development in 2019.
The tender was awarded to Ted Finchett Pty Ltd for the GST inclusive price of $236,442 and includes installation of an automatic irrigation system to Ovals 1 and 2, and additional watering points to Oval 3. Oval 3 will be reorientated and improved at a later stage as outlined in the Pedrina Park Masterplan.
Southern Grampians Shire Council Mayor Cr Chris Sharples said Council were pleased that actions from the Masterplan were starting to be delivered.
“The Pedrina Park Masterplan identified that Pedrina Park should be developed and improved into a first class sporting precinct, catering for many different sports. This includes significant upgrades to many of the amenities which no longer meet the needs of the users, as well as building some new facilities to meet increasing demands of our community.
“It’s very exciting for Council, but also for our community, to see the start of some of these works and we’re particularly pleased to be ticking off the high priority items first. The automatic irrigation system will not only reduce the workload for staff and volunteers and improve surfaces but is also more sustainable solution for watering and will ensure better ground management overall,” Cr Sharples concluded.
Council also approved a resolution at Thursday’s meeting to progress with an application to Sport and Recreation Victoria for funds to complete the design and construction of the Netball/Hockey precinct Pavilion/public toilets. Applications will now be made to the Local Sports Infrastructure Funds under the Female Friendly Category ($500,000) and Community Facilities Category ($250,000). Initial estimates suggest the cost of the design and construction process for the pavilion/public toilets in the Netball and Hockey precinct will total approximately $900,000.