Visitors to the Stella Young statue in Stawell's Cato Park will enjoy an improved experience following the completion of accessibility upgrades.
The bronze statue, created through the Remembering Stella Young project and unveiled in March 2023, honours the late disability rights activist, journalist and comedian, who was born and raised in Stawell.
Northern Grampians Shire Council, which delivered the Remembering Stella Young project, last year received additional funding to complete a suite of accessibility upgrades.
The council used a $100,000 grant from the Victorian Government's Council Support Package to extend footpaths from two accessible car parks to both the bronze statue and accessible toilets.
The Universal access to the Stella Young Statue project also included sign and landscaping upgrades.
Mayor Karen Hyslop said the council was grateful the Victorian Government understood the importance of the statue to the community, along with the need to create access for all.
"The Stella Young Statue is loved by locals and visitors alike and was completed with funding from the government," she said.
"It is a wonderful tribute to Stella, who was a much-loved member of the Stawell community and became a leader in the disability community. Stella passionately campaigned for more accessible spaces, so we wanted to do everything in our power to ensure equal access to her statue for all."
Cr Hyslop said the upgrades would improve the visitor experience, with signs directing visitors from an accessible car park to the statue.
"The project also includes raised garden beds along the path in a contrasting colour to the path, to provide improved access for visually impaired people," she said.
"An unexpected benefit of the raised garden beds has been their dual use as a temporary seat or resting place. Regular users of the park are often observed sitting and chatting on the garden bed edges and they provide people who do laps of the lake with a good place to rest."
Cr Hyslop said the gradient of the path connecting the accessible parking to the toilets had been levelled out and widened to ensure compliance with relevant standards.
"Sections of path where water used to pool and tree roots were pushing through the asphalt are now lovely smooth concrete," she said.
Cr Hyslop said the council funded several additional improvements, including a new section of grass near the playground beside the new path, which had struggled to grow due to shade.
"This has been replaced with new turf and provides a nicer space near the picnic table for parents to watch their children on the playground," she said.
"We have also completed new asphalting of the accessible car park, which includes the transition area to the new footpaths, plus additional garden beds.
"These extra improvements have enabled a higher quality finish to the project."
Minister for Regional Development Jaclyn Symes said the upgrades meant people of all ages and abilities could now visit Cato Park's Stella Young statue to honour the work of the late entertainer and activist.
"Accessibility and universal design are so important because they offer everyone the chance to enjoy spaces like Cato Park," she said.
"This project presented an opportunity to not only increase the accessibility of Cato Park, but also contribute to honouring the memory of the remarkable Stella Young – it was really a win-win situation."
Helping to deliver 27 projects across rural and regional Victoria, the Council Support Package is designed to help local governments deliver more tourism, sporting and cultural opportunities for their communities and beyond.
People can visit website stellayoung.com.au
