To better serve community needs, we're moving the community’s playground to Sydenham Botanic Park. The park provides more space to develop a large and diverse play area the whole community can enjoy.Perpetual Guardian, the trust that owns Sydenham Botanic Park, supports increased community use and development. An agreement will confirm that the Council owns the assets, including the playground equipment.
Lees Park will be repurposed for other recreational uses, and we will upgrade the landscaping and amenities. Over time, the old play gear at Lees Park will be removed.
This project is part of a citywide programme to provide inclusive, accessible, and engaging spaces for tamariki, rangatahi, and whānau, while also enhancing the overall reserve.
Community engagement
Following community engagement in 2025, feedback showed support for developing a new large-scale play space at Sydenham Botanic Park rather than upgrading the play space at Lees Park. The next stage of the project will focus on developing a concept design for a play space at Sydenham Botanic Park, as well as a detailed design for Lees Park, informed by what the community has already told us. We will seek the community's feedback on our proposed plans in mid-2026.
Sydenham Botanic Park
The park’s botanical character must be protected, and any play development will need to sit carefully within the surrounding landscape. Safety, accessibility, budget, and the unique ownership arrangement are all important considerations. While Tauranga City Council manages the park, Sydenham Botanic Park is owned by Perpetual Guardian, meaning any future play space must align with environmental and design principles that enhance the botanical gardens and reflect the educational intent of the original trust deed.
Lees Park
Lees Park has a smaller footprint and supports a range of existing park activities, which influences the scale and type of play opportunities that can be accommodated. Safety considerations around dogs, along with the need to balance open space and other park uses, are also important factors. These considerations mean the reserve is better suited to supporting local, informal play opportunities rather than a larger neighbourhood destination playground.
Budget and costs
A new playground at Sydenham Botanic Park is estimated at $1 million. This investment reflects the larger play space, a wider range of play experiences, and additional features such as shade, and BBQ facilities.
Sydenham Park map - proposed new play space (1.7mb pdf)
Three types of playgrounds
To help the community understand the scale and features of different playground options, we group playgrounds across Tauranga into three types, each offering different levels of play and facilities. Lees Park and the proposed Sydenham Botanic Park playground fall into two of these categories.
Destination playgrounds
These are our largest and most exciting playgrounds — attractions in their own right. They draw visitors from across the city and beyond. Examples include The Strand Waterfront and Kulim Park.
Major neighbourhood playgrounds
These playgrounds are larger than local playgrounds and offer a wide range of play experiences. They often include active recreation facilities, such as basketball courts or skate areas, along with amenities like toilets and drinking fountains. The proposed new playground at Sydenham Botanic Park would fall into this category. Other examples include Ila Park and Pacific Park.
Local neighbourhood play spaces
These are the most common type of playground, designed for shorter visits by families who walk or wheel from home. Lees Park falls into this category, along with Matua Park and Mitchell Park.