Keep Coburg’s ‘lungs’ for public: MP
Kate Lahey, The Age, February 18, 2009
A RARE slice of parkland in Melbourne’s north should be given to the public, not sold for profit as planned by state authorities, a federal Labor MP says.
Kelvin Thomson has written to a state inquiry saying VicRoads must be prevented from selling the “lungs” of Coburg — 10 hectares of land along Edgars Creek — because open space is more important than the profit from its sale.
VicRoads should ensure the parkland stays in public hands by giving it to Moreland Council — on the condition it is kept as open public space, Mr Thomson says.
The council has made a similar submission to the Victorian Environmental Assessment Council’s inquiry into metropolitan Crown land.
But VicRoads says it must sell the land at market value under State Government policy.
The roads authority has previously offered a direct sale to the council for about $10 million. Negotiations are continuing.
“Government policy requires that all surplus land is to be sold by public process at market value as assessed by the Valuer-General,” VicRoads director of property services Bernard Toulet said.
A Government spokesman confirmed the policy but declined to comment on Mr Thomson’s submission.
VicRoads bought the land in the 1970s for use as a freeway, but the plan has since been abandoned.
Some locals fear at least part of the land could be sold to developers.
In a written submission to the inquiry, Mr Thomson says Coburg is largely built up and needs all the parkland it can get.
“The land is the largest open space in Coburg and acts as lungs, pumping the oxygen throughout the veins of our community,” his submission says.
Councillor Jo Connellan said it would be “a nonsense” for ratepayers to have to buy the land, as the public had already paid for it once and the council could not afford the purchase.
“Public land is so precious, we shouldn’t sell it. If the agency who’s got it doesn’t need it, then put it back into the public land estate and reallocate it to a public purpose,” Cr Connellan said.
The council has allowed increased development in Moreland, including at large sites such as the former Kodak plant and Pentridge Prison.
Mr Thomson says Moreland’s population growth of 0.9 per cent over five years has put pressure on local infrastructure and the parkland’s value cannot be measured in monetary terms.
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This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/national/keep-coburgs-lungs-for-public-mp-20090217-8a9z.html
May 20th, 2009 at 10:52 pm
Good on ya KT