Image: Harris Creek Reserve. Image: Supplied
The NSW government has announced major funding to turn Sydney greener. The $3.25 million investment, announced by the government, for enhancing parks, community gardens, wetlands, and active transport trains, is expected to benefit over 30,000 residents across eight council areas.
“Building communities means making sure people have a place to live, gather, and play,” Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said in a statement.
“The Government has introduced extensive planning reforms to deliver more homes and this funding will go a long way to make sure those homes are supported by green and open spaces. Providing a diversity of housing is important and continued investment in more green public spaces is also needed so urban communities can thrive,” said Scully.
Metropolitan Greenspaces
The councils that will receive funding include Blacktown City Council, Camden Council, Cumberland City Council, Campbelltown City Council, Georges River Council, Hornsby Shire Council, Inner West Council – and the City of Parramatta.
The investment is part of the Metropolitan Greenspace program, which has provided $56 million to metropolitan and central coast councils since 1990, to create new and upgrade existing green spaces.
Among the green spaces that will receive the new funding include Church Street Cycleway ($446,217), Foothills Bike Park ($518,650), Mimosa Street Parklet and Seventh Street Parklet ($643,633), Heart of Scenic Hills Varroville Reserve ($352,500), Peakhurst Park Adventure Play Space ($110,000), North Epping Fitness Trail ($150,000), Gumbramorra Swamp Wetlands ($639,000) and $140,000 for a Cultural Heritage Plan for the Parramatta River.
More Houses
The government said it had already allocated $250,0000 in funding under the Places to Roam Community Gardens program to Cumberland City Council, Fairfield City Council, Lane Cove Council, Waverley Council, and Wollondilly Shire Council.
According to the government, the funding for green spaces and community gardens will support its planning reforms “to unlock more homes with a network of open spaces that will be significant to their region.”
“It’s vital that we keep investing in amenities that support increased housing supply and plans for not just tomorrow but what communities will look like five, ten, and twenty years into the future,” said Scully.
