Located 19 kilometres west of Melbourne, the Shire of Melton recently launched two synthetic surface reserves, thanks to funding from the Federal Government’s Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program (RLCIP).
On 25 March, the Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard joined Melton Mayor Justin Mammarella at one of the reserves to officially open the facilities.
The extended drought has had a significant negative impact on natural turf sports surfaces and has forced Council to closely assess programming, levels of use, management, and maintenance practices to balance risk against demand. Ongoing water restrictions are also exacerbating the detrimental effect on the provision of community sport, as natural turf surfaces can become unplayable.
The approach of investigating and implementing sustainable alternatives, such as synthetic surfaces, provide additional positive benefits for participation in sport and physical activity. The recently converted fields complement existing surfaces previously installed in one of Council’s larger towns, Caroline Springs.
Councillor Mammarella said it is pleasing to see that the facilities are already being used by a variety of clubs and groups.
“Since being completed earlier this year, the fields have been used by Aussie Rules, soccer, walking and running groups, as well as schools and many more general community users,” he said. “We are extremely proud of these pitches, which give all Shire of Melton residents access to high quality playing surfaces.”
Council received $1.5 million through the Federal Government’s RLCIP towards the pitches, which were both delivered within the $2.2 million budget.
“Council is grateful for the funding provided to us by the Federal Government and we look forward to further projects in which we can work together to provide valuable community outcomes for our residents,” Councillor Mammarella said.
