Clarke Reserve Play Space Upgrade

Elwood has 22 open spaces, covering around 13% of the neighbourhood, slightly below the city average of 17%. In the northern part of Elwood, there’s a noticeable gap in access to public open space, which makes Clarke Reserve an especially important place for the local community.

Clarke Reserve has been identified as a high priority for a playground upgrade, with the last major renewal completed in 2005. The current playground performs poorly in accessibility and inclusive play, highlighting the need for a more welcoming and modern space that supports children of all ages and abilities.

The reserve is also a designated dog off‑leash area. During recent community engagement for Council’s Dog Off‑Leash Guidelines, locals expressed concerns that the current separation between off‑leash areas and the playground is not clear enough. Because dogs must remain at least 5 metres away from playgrounds, improving this delineation is important for safety, comfort.

Clarke Reserve already offers generous tree canopy cover, providing valuable shade in summer. There is also an opportunity to enhance the reserve further with more understory planting to boost biodiversity, improve the overall look and feel of the space, and create a greener, more enjoyable environment for everyone.

The benefits of this upgrade include:

• Improved accessibility and inclusiveness through upgraded equipment, surfacing and paths within the play space.
• Better separation between dogs and the playground, enhancing safety.
• Upgraded play elements designed to cater to a broad range of ages and interests.
• Increased greening and biodiversity through additional understory planting.

During construction:

• The play space will be temporarily closed. The work areas will be fenced off.
• Traffic management will be in place to manage construction vehicle access, ensure public safety and minimise impacts on traffic and parking.
• Tree and vegetation protection will be in place.

• Improve accessibility and inclusiveness by upgrading equipment, surfacing, and pathways to support users of all abilities.
• Enhance safety and user separation by clearly delineating the playground from the dog off‑leash area.
• Increase play value by providing engaging equipment suitable for a range of age groups.
• Strengthen biodiversity through additional understory planting.