Council meeting chaos: Liberal Sydney councillor defends motion to “close down” Alexandria Park

By ROBBIE MASON.

City of Sydney councillors have traded barbs and accused opponents of political point-scoring in a hotly-debated motion over the use of Alexandria sports grounds.

A Liberal Councillor, Shauna Jarrett put forward a Notice of Motion before Council last night calling for modifications to noise, lighting, security and open hours for basketball courts and football pitches at Gietala Park, following complaints by local residents of anti-social behaviour and noise by youths.

In her speech before Council, she accused her fellow councillors of shirking their duty as local government councillors. Concerned Buckland Street residents, who live opposite the park, reached out to all of the City of Sydney’s councillors but only received a response from Cr Jarrett.

The proposal by Cr Jarrett suggested liaising with the Department of Education to build a higher fence, reducing the operating hours and intensity of the park’s FIFA-standard lights, enforcing earlier finishes for sports training and games – 8 PM rather than 10 PM – the erection of a sound barrier and acoustic testing by an external sound consultant.

The motion received significant pushback from councillors present and a heavily-revised amended motion eventually passed unanimously.

Councillor Emelda Davis – Clover Moore team – criticised the motion as “too restrictive” and Councillor Adam Worling – also on the Clover Moore team – advocated for better signage for the park’s toilet block.

Labor Councillor Linda Scott, meanwhile, labelled Cr Jarrett’s response as a “knee-jerk reaction” and “short-sighted”, before stating that it would detract from the years of hard work it took for the Council to upgrade facilities in Alexandria Park.

Referring to the tragic death of TJ Hickey, a 17 year old Gamilaraay youth who was impaled on a fence and died in 2004, following, many claim, a police pursuit, Cr Scott suggested that a taller fence will create safety problems for the local community and students from Alexandria Park Community School who use the sporting fields.

“We don’t need more fences,” she said at the City of Sydney Council meeting last night, “we don’t need another TJ Hickey”.

Cr Scott read out personal correspondence from local residents which suggested they both welcome public use of the facilities and they support public access to the fields until 10 PM. One statement suggested the proposed 8 PM close time is “too early, especially in summer”.

However, Cr Jarrett told City Hub that Cr Scott is taking “cheap shots”. She accused Cr Scott of framing the issue in a disingenuous way in subsequent social media posts where she has claimed local residents want to “close down” the Alexandria Park community sports fields.

“They’re not asking for the park to be closed down – no way”, Cr Jarrett said.

“In fact a lot of their concerns are about the safety of the kids in the school and the users of the playing fields.”

Residents have recorded cases of public urination, defecation, loud conversation, car revving, cannabis use and athletes changing clothes in public view.

Cr Scott expressed disappointment in the “divisive” tactics of Liberal councillors. She told City Hub this morning that “the Liberals are trying to play politics with sport in the City of Sydney and trying to escalate tensions in a way that is really unhelpful.”

“I’m for more spaces to play, not less”.

“Having fought for the City to undertake a sporting needs analysis, which revealed we need 20 more playing fields by 2031,” she said, “I’m committed to ensuring the City is growing our local sporting infrastructure for the future”.

Cr Scott told City Hub that the Council has already been working with the local community on this issue as the new facilities undergo a teething period.

“We’ve already been working on light spill, trying to reduce the noise and providing access via the school to toilets and a range of other solutions to support the community’s use of this really important playing field”, she said.

“I want to thank the Alexandria Park P&C [parents and carers association], the school community and Alexandria residents who have been working with me to find sustainable solutions.”

Cr Jarrett suggested the council has “an attitude of our way and no other way”, which makes it difficult to table proposals as a Liberal councillor. But she signalled that she remains hopeful issues at Gietala Park will be resolved.

A City of Sydney Council spokesperson told City Hub, “seventy five percent of our residents live in apartments, and public space in the City is limited. This is why we place so much importance on enhancing our sportsfields, increasing our playable hours, and making our City sustainable, healthy and inclusive.”

“We are working with clubs to relocate some of the noisier men’s teams and encourage women’s and junior teams to play and train at the facility in the future,” the spokesperson continued.

“The City has also increased security and ranger patrols of the area to discourage use out of hours and mitigate any anti-social behaviour.”