Hear it from the Expert

I write to you in regard to Council's future consideration of the proposed development of the Rosny Parklands for AFL/AFLW high performance centre and ovals. I rarely write a letter to Councillors but the issues associated with this proposal warrant doing so.

I have lived in Bellerive for 40 years and engaged as a consultant in open space, recreation, sport and tourism planning projects across Australia over the last three decades.

I have been a project leader or member of various consultant teams engaged by the Clarence City Council to undertake master planning projects. These projects have included the preparation of Kangaroo Bay Urban Design Strategy and Concept Plan, Clarence Neighbourhood Parks Strategy, Rosny Hill Recreation Area Management Strategy, Clarence Tracks and Trails Strategy, Clarence Kayak Trail, Kangaroo Rivulet Master Plan, Clarence City Heart Project and Kangaroo Bay Wharf Site Plan.

As a Founder of Inspiring Place, we were asked by Council's City Heart mainland consultants to help Council with assessing how the high performance centres could fit within the City Heart Plan. We decided not to be involved as we considered it unethical and confusing having just been involved in a genuine stakeholder and community engagement process that delivered desired outcomes clearly supported by the community. We felt it was a question of integrity rather than earning fees from an ill-conceived proposal.

I am not against the AFL having grown up in a strong football family, playing the game at different levels of competition, my father being inducted in to the Tasmanian AFL Hall of Fame and being a passionate member of an AFL club since I was a child.

What I am against is undue political interference in the planning and development of local communities, construed consultation processes, lack of transparency in decision making processes, where best practice in open space and sport planning is ignored, and where expressed community visions for the future are largely ignored.

Council clearly demonstrated its capacity to make a well- informed decision about the proposed Kangaroo Bay hotel development without succumbing to these concerns. My view is that similar Council leadership should now prevail for adopting the vision for Rosny Parklands as outlined in the City Heart Plan.

City Heart Plan is exemplary plan for the future
The City Heart Plan is an exemplary project that brought together the skills, ideas and passion of Council staff, multi-skilled consultants, local businesses and the wider community. It provides a clear and exciting vision for the City Heart and the Rosny Parklands.

The project involved extensive engagement and consultation with key stakeholders and the community so as to create a plan that reimagines a more vibrant, activated and functional future for the whole of City Heart and identified precincts. In Council's own words (Stage 3 Concepts Report) the approach taken was "Council's largest engagement program ever" and "the approach was bold, visible, comprehensive and vibrant and involved a diverse range of audiences and participants."

As you are aware the community feedback on this visionary project was strongly supported by the community with all the recommended initiatives for the Parklands receiving over 75% support. These ideas referred to the opportunities for the Parklands to be an Active Park, Arts and Culture Park, Wild Park, Central Park and Play Park. The Parkland Principles of a green city heart, living cultural landscape, safe/walkable space, playful and healthy landscape, and an arts and culture at the centre all attracted majority support.

The idea for elite APL sport facilities did not get a mention by the community as a desired theme or a missing theme for the Rosny Parklands! The AFL with the State Government seek to impose the development of the high performance centre facilities within Rosny Parklands. It was known in most circles, despite not adopting a proper planning or assessment process, that the Rosny Parklands was the preferred location of the AFL. In doing so, they have ignored the results of past planning and engagement processes and placed the convenience and interests of relatively small number of their users above those of the community.

The City of Hobart had the courage to deflect the AFL proposal away from being placed within the Queens Domain and Cornelian Bay- areas where past master plans and consultations have been prepared with the community and demonstrate the important values and strong community passion for these locations. Similarly the Kingborough Council had the foresight to direct investigations to the Kingborough Sports Precinct where extensive master planning for future sport and recreational use has been undertaken in past years.

Highest and best use of the land to deliver community benefits
In my view, it is alarming and disappointing to see the Clarence City Council cast aside the desired outcomes expressed in the City Heart Plan, and subsequently put Rosny Parklands at risk. Most Councils across Australia would beg to have such a large undeveloped green space adjacent to their City Business District with the potential to activate such a space to achieve sustainable economic, social and environmental benefits in decades to come.

Most Councils would not see the development of elite training ovals as being the highest and best use of such land next to their City centre. There are other locations available within the City of Clarence that would be better suited for such facilities without degrading the long term vision of the City Heart Plan or ignoring the identified views of the community. There is no demonstrated need as to why AFL players and officials need to be located adjacent to the City Business District.

No concept plans were provided with the Council's online survey about the proposal and this means the consultation process is basically flawed as people have to image where it would be, what it would like, how it would function, what will be lost and how this fits or challenges the City Heart Plan.

How can you compare the results of a quick online survey with two years of thorough and diverse consultation with the key stakeholders and community? It appears as though the process is being rushed to meet the AFL and State Government political deadlines rather than respect a more thorough and professional planning. design and engagement process.

It was claimed on the ABC Radio that the proposed development will only use 20% of the land but this is misleading as it will take-away the most valuable usable land with the flatter grade that is most suited to community access, use and future development.

Many concerns
There are many concerns with the proposed development including:

The loss of public open space and transition to a controlled 'private' sporting space where there will always be considerable restrictions over public access and activities

The restriction over future land use options for the City Heart

Increased traffic with allocation of public land to service access and parking

Significant cut and fill required on the sloping ground to create the oval, building and parking spaces

The intrusion of high security fences into a public open space and implications for connectivity

The potential impact of night lighting and noise levels

The potential impact on natural values including existing mature trees and Kangaroo Rivulet habitat values

Increased issues with stormwater flows and hydrology

Impacts on desired public access and trails that wil1 affect connections and convenience

Unsightly visual impact of buildings, quarried-out spaces and fences at one of the main entries to the City (particularly in Charles Hand Park)

Unclear about future ownership of the land and facilities with what operational and maintenance costs will be incurred by Council

My ask is that
You assess the proposed use of the Rosny Parklands for AFL high performance facilities not on what may benefit a relatively small number of AFL players and officials but what will be the long term benefits for the whole community based on the future options and activities envisaged in the City Heart Plan.

You re-direct the AFL and State Government to investigate other more suitable locations within the City rather than place at risk the strength of the community building foundations outlined within the City Heart Plan.

Thank you for your time in reading this letter.

Regards John Hepper

This letter was first published in Clarence City Council AFL/AFLW High Performance Centre consultation Community Feedback, November 2023