A $115,000 grant from the Lion Foundation has pumped up plans for a new bike skills park in the Ashburton Domain.

The money means the group of community members charged with building the park have tentatively pencilled in a construction start date in March next year.

Mayor Liz McMillan is on the working group and said was thrilled the Lion Foundation application had been successful.

“This is great news and a massive boost for the project, which is gathering funds and already has a lot of support in the community and from local businesses.”

The project has been estimated to cost around $400,000.

The Mid Canterbury Community Wellbeing and Safety Enhancement Trust was formed last year to apply for funds for the project and it has already received $75,000 from the Mid and South Canterbury Community Trust, as well as donations from local services clubs and benefactors.

“These grants give us confidence that we’ll get there and we’re planning a major announcement in the next few weeks about the park’s name and who will build it, plus there’ll be some sponsorship opportunities for local businesses, groups and people,” McMillan said.

“We’ve been blown away by the expertise and skills offered to us for this road safety project and we’re indebted to our generous community who want to make it happen.”

The Ashburton District Council approved the Ashburton Domain, at the existing pump track next to the children’s playground, as the location in 2023 and then approved the initial concept plans in May 2024.

The design and construction of the bike skills park will be paid for by the local service clubs and community organisations driving the project.

The concept plan shows a roading network with a railway crossing, traffic lights, a roundabout and give way and stop signs.

The park is aimed at teaching children, young people and adults how to ride a bike/scooter and about the road safety skills they need when moving around urban areas, on wheels or on foot.

Council granted resource consent for the project earlier this year, and will take over maintenance of the park once constructed.

What is the plan for the bike skills park?

The bike skills park in the Ashburton domain if for the community to learn cycling skills and road safety.

It will have a flat street circuit, a 3m wide asphalt ‘road’ with line marking to enable two-way traffic, that will feature a range of road signs and crossings reflecting common Ashburton traffic features – including a rail crossing.

The street circuit connects to the existing pump track that will be reformed, with, an elevated lookout and seating area.

There will also be an off-road woodland trail circuit, located around the existing trees, connecting to the street circuit over a cattlestop.