A metro station proposed for construction under Victoria Park in Camperdown will not reduce the open green space, and all damage to the park will be restored after the five-year construction period, according to Sydney Metro and the council.
The Broadway-Sydney University station will serve Broadway, Glebe, the University of Sydney, and Chippendale. The main entrance to the station will be built on Victoria Park with an alternative entrance on the corner of Parramatta Road and Derwent Lane.
A vacant pub and four adjacent buildings would be acquired in the current proposal.
In a statement provided to City News, a spokesperson for Sydney Metro said, “once construction of the station is complete, the park will be fully restored to its current use as open space, as was the case when Museum and St James stations were built beneath Hyde Park”.
“It is proposed to be built beneath Victoria Park to minimise the impact on properties,” said the spokesperson.
“All heritage features including pathways, trees and Lake Northam will be restored or replaced and consultation with the City of Sydney is ongoing.”
But according to maps of the proposed station and information on the council website, one of the entrances to the station lies within the Derwent Street cycleway, which is due to be constructed by the council.
The council said the construction of the station would not impact the cycleway. “At this stage it is not expected the Derwent Street cycleway will be affected by the proposed metro station,” a spokesperson for the council said.
The spokesperson stressed the importance of retaining the open space in Victoria Park. “Sydney Metro needs to undertake further work to identify station entrances and platform locations that do not reduce green open space. Chippendale and Darlington have low levels of open space and any metro extension must not impact negatively on Victoria Park.”
If the Metro plan goes ahead on schedule, construction could start in 2011 and trains could be operating by 2016, according to Sydney Metro.
by Ehssan Veiszadeh
