City of Greater Bendigo, Media Release, 10 May 2021
Residents will be able to be active at night under light from May 17 up to the start of daylight savings on September 25 as part of a pilot Lighting Up Ewing Park activation project by the City of Greater Bendigo.
Through the initiative the City will turn on the new Ewing Park LED training lights from 6 pm to 8pm seven days per week to provide opportunities for residents to be active at the reserve at night under light.
To support the Lighting Up Ewing Park activation project, Healthy Heart of Victoria, through its ‘Our Outdoor Spaces are Open’ campaign will also hold a range of free exercise sessions over three weeks commencing May 17 at Ewing Park to demonstrate to the community that the space can be used safely for longer.
The exercise sessions will be guided by qualified instructors to help encourage people to be active in outdoor recreation spaces. For more information on the free exercise sessions or to book your place into a session please visit www.bendigo.vic.gov.au/outdoorspaces
City of Greater Bendigo Active and Healthy Lifestyles Manager Lincoln Fitzgerald said the City has invested in some great infrastructure at Ewing Park and the Lighting Up Ewing Park activation project aims to encourage residents to take advantage of it.
“Not everyone can exercise during the daytime and this is about providing options for people to exercise at a time that suits their lifestyle. So, if you have been thinking about getting more active don’t put it off any longer, bring along a friend or family member and try it out at Ewing Park under lights,” Mr Fitzgerald said.
“The 2019 Healthy Heart of Victoria Active Living Census told us that the largest barrier to being physically active for local residents was being time poor so it is hoped that this initiative will support residents to be more active at a time that is convenient to them.
“At Ewing Park the City has installed a new oval and synthetic walking/jogging track around the inside of the oval and new training standard LED lighting as part of a recent $1.6 million staged redevelopment of the reserve.
“The new 430 metre track is three metres wide with two lanes. It features a blue synthetic turf and shock-pad system that is easy on the body, especially the knees, hips and ankles when exercising.
“The work we’ve done to date has greatly improved Ewing Park and has expanded on the range of recreation activities available to the wider community within the precinct for the future. It’s a strong investment by the City and we now want to see as many people as possible using the reserve at all times of the day and evening and the year.
“As part of the Lighting Up Ewing Park project the City will survey users of the space as part of a dedicated effort to continue to provide active opportunities for residents into the future.
“If successful, the project could be continued into future years at Ewing Park and expanded to other local reserves.”
