By Eryk Michael Smith / Staff. Images via KH City Govt.
KAOHSIUNG — A former railway maintenance complex in Kaohsiung is being transformed into a large indoor-outdoor children’s recreation area that city officials say will open free to the public in June.
The Liberty Times reports that the area is part of a large-scale redevelopment of the former TRA Kaohsiung Railway Workshop (台鐵高雄機廠) site, located near the border of Lingya District (苓雅區) and Fengshan District (鳳山區). The facility once played a key role in Taiwan’s rail industry but has remained largely unused since operations were relocated to Chaozhou (潮州).
Kaohsiung Deputy Mayor Lin Chin-jung (林欽榮) inspected the construction site on Thursday and said the “Kaohsiung Family Playground Park” project is already about 68 percent complete, slightly ahead of schedule.
Covering about 1.5 hectares, the park will reuse the former freight workshop structure, preserving its industrial character while creating a semi-indoor activity space protected from sun and rain.
Planned features include rope climbing systems, bouldering walls, inline skating practice areas, parkour training zones, and several other bicycle-related sports areas.
According to the Kaohsiung Public Works Bureau (高雄市工務局), the renovation will remove the old asbestos roofing and install solar panels as part of the redesign.
Additional entrances will be added near Wuchang Road (武昌路) and the nearby light-rail station, along with parking for 229 cars and 75 motorcycles. City officials say the park will be fully open to the public by the start of summer vacation.
