Community contests Kings Cross upgrade plan

BY EMMA KEMP

 

The imminent Fitzroy Gardens and Lawrence Hargrave Reserve upgrades could be in for a bumpy ride after a second community consultation showed some dissent from local residents.

 

At a community consultation on October 14, the City of Sydney presented the public with three design options for the two Kings Cross parks, driven by the 800 comments received at the previous consultation.

Design options for Fitzroy Gardens included replacing the large paved area with grass and moving the children’s playground under the trees for shade.
 

A City of Sydney spokesperson said that residents identified the improvement of these parks as a priority during their consultation to develop the City East Local Area Action Plan.

“Local residents have told the City that they value Fitzroy Gardens, the fountain and the trees,” the spokesperson said. “They also said they want paving improvements, more grass and trees, better management of the birds and their waste, and improved views across the park.”

But Sacha Blumen, President of the 2011 Residents Association Management Committee, said a large bloc of the community wanted absolute minimal changes to Fitzroy Gardens.

“That’s what people have spontaneously said to me, that they just want it to be maintained, for the tiles to be fixed up so they’re no longer broken and unsafe,” Mr Blumen said.

 

“If there are bits of it that need to be changed to comply with disability access requirements or any other kind of building codes then that should happen of course. Maybe the playground of Fitzroy Gardens could be increased in size, but essentially having minimal changes.”

 

Option 3 involved moving the giant Fig tree ‘ the centrepiece of the park ‘ to one edge.

 

“I haven’t heard anyone saying they want that tree to be moved,” Mr Blumen said. “People are against moving that tree, absolutely. I really don’t know why they (council) want to have a whole lot of extra grass in the area, (because) that would change the nature of Fitzroy Gardens, because it’s mostly a paved area with bits of grass.”

 

Mr Blumen said he suspects the plan may have been a “pre-determined outcome”, and felt the leaders of the sessions were asking some leading questions of the community.

 

During the first community consultation on July 1, residents recorded their suggestions and preferences on post-it notes for the council to consider during their construction of the three designs.

 

The council spokesperson said that “City Staff and consultants have used residents’ comments and suggestions, as well as technical studies to prepare a range of design ideas that were presented at the community meeting.”

 

The spokesperson said the community’s feedback will be used to develop a concept design which will go to Council to be endorsed for public exhibition in 2009.

 

Michael Gormly, editor of the Kings Cross Times, said he would like council to supply a transcript of the post-it notes for public viewing.

 

“I’m not saying it was the overwhelming majority, but the biggest identifiable bloc of opinion was people saying ‘leave it alone’, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it kind of message,” Mr Gormly said.

 

“An upgrade of a certain scope had been decided on before the first consultation, now that’s not true consultation. This has been on council’s agenda for years, they were talking about it when they did the actual street upgrade at Kings Cross in 2003.

 

“Coming into the first consultation for Fitzroy Gardens with the budget already decided means that something’s a foregone conclusion,” he said.

 

Greens councillor Irene Doutney said she did not support the proposal to remove trees and essentially create a “huge grass space”.

 

“It’s what they’ve done to Redfern Park. I think it’s a bad way to go. People go up there for picnics, they don’t go there for space,” Cr Doutney said.

 

“It’s a lovely shady space to go on a hot day and the plans are going to destroy that completely.

 

“Why upgrade something if it doesn’t really need upgrading'”

 

Designs for the Lawrence Hargrave Reserve upgrade include multifunctional basketball and tennis courts, new grassing and seating areas and new children’s playground equipment.

 

“I know that basketball courts are very useable and very popular. I did speak to a couple of people who have children who really like the idea, if it’s made useable,” Cr Doutney said.

 

But Sacha Blumen said installing the courts would be a mistake because they would alienate the space away from any other use.

 

“We would support hings that activate that space, like more facilities for kids or teenagers, maybe an outdoor cinema, a community garden,” he said.

 

Construction is scheduled to start in 2010, and comments on the current designs are invited from the public until 11 November.