Grievance Debate

Hindmarsh Boulevard Reserve

The Hon. A. PICCOLO (Light) (15:10): I rise to speak about the proposed revocation of the community land status on an important reserve in Evanston Gardens, at the heart of my electorate. Today, I tabled before the house a 584-strong signed petition calling the house's attention to the Town of Gawler's intention to revoke the community land status on a reserve located at 180 Hindmarsh Boulevard.

The petition reads that the council is seeking to sell the reserve for housing development, which will remove important open space from the immediate vicinity that is utilised by local fauna and adds to the amenity of the suburb. The Town of Gawler has explained that the reserve is currently underutilised as open space and is not used for any structured or formalised recreation purposes. The council acknowledges that the reserve does provide a visual amenity to the neighbouring properties and includes an unformed path and a number of small trees.

However, in its written proposal, the Town of Gawler documents that it is planning to reinvest the funds raised from the sale of the reserve into other capital investments, including a neighbourhood reserve, also located on Hindmarsh Boulevard. I should stress that only a portion of the funds will go to the upgrade and that other funds will go to other capital projects, including the upgrade and renovation of the civic centre.

The house would be aware that under the Local Government Act 1999 the Minister for Local Government must approve any decision made by local council to revoke the community classification of a park or reserve before it can be sold on the open market. In this light, the petition also requests that the house urge the Minister for Local Government to refuse to approve the revocation request. I have been informed that the Town of Gawler is currently in the process of reviewing all submissions received in response to their intention to revoke the community land status of the reserve and will produce a report to be presented to the ordinary council meeting on 24 July 2018.

It needs to be emphasised, however, that in discussions with me concerned local residents have expressed their lack of confidence that the Town of Gawler will listen to their pleas. In fact, I can inform the house that over the past two years a number of decisions and actions taken by the Town of Gawler have created an atmosphere of mistrust and lack of confidence that council's consultation processes are a genuine attempt to gauge community views.

Residents simply do not believe that the Town of Gawler is listening to them. This is why I commend to the house the actions of the concerned Evanston Gardens residents. They have left no stone unturned in their efforts, and I hope that the Minister for Local Government will listen to their arguments, even if the Town of Gawler does not. This type of concern is not unique to the Town of Gawler and is an issue that local government needs to address.

Indeed, all levels of government need to consider whether their consultation processes are sufficiently robust and also ask themselves whether their residents would consider them fair and reasonable, irrespective of the outcome. Consultation and engagement processes vary from council to council, and this is an area I believe needs to be reformed. Meaningful consultation and engagement can only be truly effective when they take place on a foundation of transparency, disclosure and accountability.

Residents do not trust processes where decisions are made in secret. Residents may not always agree, but they are more likely to understand and accept a council decision when they understand the full context. The petitioners have indicated that they are prepared to work with council to develop and maintain the reserve, possibly developing a community garden to benefit the multigenerational community. Council has a unique opportunity to engage with this community and develop a positive ongoing working relationship or they can create another group of residents who feel betrayed by their local council and fuel further mistrust.

The ball is truly in the Town of Gawler's court. In my opinion, this is one of many areas where public policy is ripe for reform, both legislatively and in practice.