Works will soon start on an Eaglehawk playground in memory of Zayden Veal-Whitting and other Bendigo children taken too soon.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The $1.3 million Eaglehawk Regional Play Space will be built beside Lake Neangar and will feature a junior play area called Where Angels Play.
Construction is expected to start mid-March and will take between four and five months to complete.
Ten-month-old Zayden was murdered in his cot in June 2012 and his killer was sentenced to life imprisonment with a non-parole period of 32 years.
Zayden’s aunt Angie Whitting came up with the idea for Where Angels Play four years ago and said plans were under way to hold an open day when the project was complete.
“We’re just happy to hear that it is all going to be started soon,” she said.
“We’re pretty excited to see it all done.”
Where Angels Play will celebrate Zayden’s life and “all other angels taken far too soon” and the contract to carry out the project has been awarded to CPE Landscaping.
Estimator Geoff Lancaster said it was an important job for the Golden Square company to be part of.
“It’s not just another job to us,” he said.
“It’s something with significance to it, so you want to make sure you do it right.”
The landscaping business has been operating for 16 years and employs 15 workers. This won’t be the first playspace for the team, but it will be the biggest.
The City of Greater Bendigo unveiled plans for the project last year and expects it to be “the largest and most unique play space” in the municipality.
The play space will be shaped like an eagle and will feature custom-designed play equipment, including a tower with a seven-metre lookout and a four-metre slide.
Community groups contributed $120,000 to the project, and a further $25,000 raised by the community will be put towards the Where Angels Play area.