Inner West Council says Transport for NSW is hampering its progress in finalising an agreement for the care, control and management of the Rozelle Parklands, more than a year after the park was opened to the public.
The Council has adopted the Rozelle Parklands Masterplan and says it is ready to take control of the site, but says Transport for NSW is “needlessly dragging the chain” in formalising a handover of the site.
The agreement is to be based on Council managing the Rozelle Parklands, including recurrent maintenance costs, in return for a grant from Transport for NSW of $20 million to improve facilities at the parklands and nearby parks.
Inner West Mayor, Darcy Byrne said that despite the deal having been made more than a year ago, the transport agency was still delaying community access to the site.
“It’s beyond ridiculous that 12 months since the park opened, Transport for NSW is still preventing local kids from kicking a soccer ball or having a hit at cricket on the Rozelle Parklands,” Mayor Byrne said.
“We have been continuously trying to have this escalated within the Transport bureaucracy but keep meeting with endless red tape and needless delays.
“Now we have finalised and adopted a masterplan for the parklands but Transport still can’t provide us a with a complete and final agreement to sign.
“After the asbestos saga and all of the other problems at Rozelle Parklands, you would think Transport for NSW would get their act together so that we, as a Council, can start managing and improving the Parklands for our community.
“After all, this park is meant to be the compensation for our community following nearly a decade of impacts from WestConnex construction.
“We’ve discovered now that the agency seemingly wants to transfer liability and risk for the contaminated ground underneath the parklands to our community and there’s no way we will be agreeing to that.
“Worse still, it seems that Transport officials are using local children as negotiating chips to try to force Council to sign on to an agreement that would rip our community off.”
“I call on Transport for NSW to prioritise the health and welfare of local kids and let them on to the parklands for sporting use immediately.”
