The Devonport City Council has unanimously approved plans for a permanent memorial to honour six children who died in the 2021 Hillcrest Primary School jumping castle tragedy.
The Coles Beach memorial will feature six sculptural pillars set within a wildflower garden on the Don Head foreshore.
Each pillar will honour one of the children killed when a jumping castle was lifted into the air during an end-of-year celebration in December 2021.
Chace Harrison, Jalailah Jayne-Maree Jones, Zane Mellor, Addison Stewart, Jye Sheehan and Peter Dodt all lost their lives in the incident.
At Monday’s meeting, councillors gave their full support to both the design and the location.
“This site has been selected for an appropriate celebration of the children rather than a place of mourning,” Councillor Damien Viney said.
Councillor Leigh Murphy described the memorial as “a lasting tribute to the children”.
“The memorial will stand as a place of remembrance, reflection, celebration, healing and unity for the entire community,” he said.
The design, created in close consultation with families, will see each pillar personalised with the children’s favourite colours, family messages and their names etched in their own handwriting.
“I would like to say to the families, your children will always be in our hearts. Through this memorial, their memory will live on in the community,” Councillor Stacey Sheehan said.
“It will be a beautiful nature space. It will be joyous, full of life,” Councillor Gerard Enniss added.
“It will be available for activity and reflection, a space that we should be privileged to have here to serve as something we all should remember.”
The memorial will be built on Crown land leased to the council, with construction jointly funded by the state and federal governments.
The council will take over ownership and maintenance after a two-year establishment period, at an annual cost of between $30,000 and $35,000.
