George to get outdoor gyms

GEORGE NEWS - Residents and visitors may soon be able to exercise at outdoor gyms made available by the George Municipality. Notice was recently given to establish "outdoor gym trims" on erf 464 Knysna Road, erf 3870 corner Mission and Fern streets and erf 50 Van Riebeeck Gardens.

The notice states that, among others, this is an effort to provide better health and wellness opportunities to people of all ages, abilities and socio-economic status.

This comes a few weeks after people asked on social media why George does not have such facilities, saying that there are other places in the country that do.

Municipal communications officer Ntobeko Mangqwengqwe said on Tuesday that the outdoor gym trims are built to enhance the efficiency of the city's parks and open spaces.

"These will encourage families to spend time outdoors and enjoy their public amenities at any time of the day. This promotes health and fitness as it will make exercise free and accessible to communities. These recreational facilities can be used by adults of all ages while watching their children play in the park."

He said the gym trims will include various equipment such as twin walkers, double walkers, pushchairs, pull-up chairs and tai chi wheels.

The budget for the three identified pilot spaces is R200 000. The project is anticipated to be rolled out in the next two years in other viable open spaces as well.