Wondering why there are now 'SAVE ANZAC PARK' signs and bumper stickers around Toowong? Were you one of the locals who read one of the 14,000 letters distributed on 16 and 22 February 2011, which said that BCC were looking at 'alternative' sites because last year the Coordinator-General had refused BCC's proposal to locate the Legacy Way construction workforce car park in ANZAC Memorial Park? Well you have been misled it would seem. BCC now have 2 options to destroy our park.
Two options to destroy ANZAC War Memorial Park HERE
Council moves further to desecrate Anzac HERE
Update – Yesterday’s Meeting of the Workforce Parking Consultation Group HERE
While Andrew Fraser should be congratulated for securing the resumption of the Milton Tennis Centre and Milton Bowl for a new park and recreational facility, we also need to ensure we maintain and keep safe our current local Parkland -ANZAC Park. That the BCC want to turn this beautiful and pristine part of our local environment into a workforce carpark is untenable to the local residents as the current option 4 is not respecting our ANZACs. Currently the options that are put forward by the BCC as a result of their ‘consultation’ with the community. Local communities are entitled to be empowered to engage in local affairs ensuring their participation as partners in the suburbs. What is currently happening in ANZAC park is a poor example of community consultation. The options that are currently on the table illustrates what can be described as the arrogance which is disappointing the local community. We must continue to voice our concerns. Everyone is urged to attend the upcoming “consultation sessions” to ensure we preserve and maintain what Parkland we already have
ReplyDeleteShame! Shame! – on misleading the ratepayers
ReplyDeleteIn 2010 Brisbane City Council (BCC) Northernlink announced the temporary construction of a 300 Workforce carpark in Anzac Park Toowong.
Later in 2010 Northernlink announced ‘the footprint of the temporary construction has been reduced from 300 to 200 space carpark'.The Toowong community raised their concerns and BCC ‘played the issue down’ as the carpark would only be ‘temporary’. The meaning of the word temporary is ‘for a short amount of time’. The tunnel project is proposed to take 4 years to complete!!
In 2011 the Co-Ordinator General ‘refused’ BCC’s Anzac Park Option (northern side of park). The Toowong community then thought the threat to Anzac Park was over. What wasn’t explained by BCC was that it planned to revisit options for Anzac Park as part of a new submission.
As a result – BCC have now prepared TWO OPTIONS FOR ANZAC PARK - the original option under consideration (currently listed as Option 5) that was previously ‘refused’ and Option 4 – the Off-Leash Dog park located at the western end of Anzac Park.
The latest misleading report is from Cr Graham Quirk in the Courier Mail – 5 March 2011 – stating “the cheapest and most efficient option is Anzac Park costing between $1.9 - $2.1 million” - a lot of ratepayers money for a ‘temporary carpark’ - with no mention of what is planned for it after the project is completed in 4 years! Furthermore, both options WILL require the workforce to be transported by bus to the construction site as both options are more than 300m in distance from the site and therefore a requirement of the Union that workers be transported. So please don’t mislead the public as the Anzac Park options will not save ratepayers an additional $8 million!!
More importantly, ‘cheapest and most efficient’ are two words not to be associated with a war memorial and heritage listed park especially one named Anzac Park since 1916. So as they say in the defence forces ‘Retreat’ – it’s best option for Brisbane City Council!