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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-12-01 Daily Xml
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CITY WEST DEVELOPMENT

Mrs GERAGHTY (Torrens) (14:45): My question is to the minister—

Mr Williams interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for MacKillop is on very thin ice. The member for Torrens.

Mrs GERAGHTY: Will the Minister for Environment and Conservation inform the house about the impact of the Liberal's City West vision on our Parklands?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Minister for Environment and Conservation, Minister for Early Childhood Development, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister Assisting the Premier in Cabinet Business and Public Sector Management) (14:45): I thank—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: —the honourable member for her question. I think that any discussion of the Parklands in this so-called 'vision' needs to begin with the true vision for South Australia and the City of Adelaide, and that vision was of a city in a park. Those Parklands, which have been established around the City of Adelaide, provide not only the green belt but also the lungs of the city and an urban form which has been acknowledged as one of the great cities of the world. It has been acknowledged in its national heritage listing as one of the key features that separates this city from many others.

What we need to remember about the Parklands and their relationship to this city is that modern regions—

Mr Pederick interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Hammond is warned!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: —compete on the attractiveness of their capital cities, and one of the critical elements that makes South Australia attractive and Adelaide an incredibly attractive city is those Parklands. Very difficult debates have occurred ever since this colony was established about the future of those Parklands. There were deep debates, even around the establishment of rail yards on those Parklands. Every inch of that turf has been analysed and subject to a deep public policy debate in this state, because the South Australian citizens have always understood the importance of the Parklands not only for their enjoyment of their city but also because of the attractiveness of the state.

What do we see with this proposition? We see a plan which bears none of the subtlety of those debates which have occurred over decades. What we see is an extraordinary proposition where the whole of the area of the Parklands between the Morphett Street Bridge and the Adelaide Gaol and from North Terrace to the river is entirely devoted to development. Then what we see on the northern side of the river is a huge high-rise building. We are not talking about shades of grey and degrees of debate about what should be the sensitive use of the Parklands: we are seeing a completely rampant and reckless decision which pays no regard to the careful steps that have been taken over decades to protect these particular Parklands.

The so-called 'vision' here is one of massive alienation of incredibly large chunks of the Parklands. The other important element here is that the purposes for which the Parklands were established and for which they have been used consistently since the time of the original establishment of these Parklands is for public purposes. What they are seeking to do here is to alienate them for private purposes. We see a massive privatisation of our Parklands implicit in this proposition by the Liberal Party.

We have essentially gone from a series of debates about ensuring that these Parklands are carefully used and developed for the benefit of our community to an incredibly reckless plan that simply allows a group of developers and private investors to let rip on a very large chunk of our Parklands. This is utterly unacceptable to, and will be completely repudiated by, the South Australian community. I have it on very good advice from the member for Adelaide that her constituents will regard this plan with horror. We have gone from a city in a park to a city in a car park, and it is a proposition that bears no subtlety at all. It bears no sense of the connections or traditions of the Labor Party.

I will compare that with the steps that have been taken by this government to acknowledge, protect and preserve the integrity of the Parklands. A significant step forward in relation to the protection of the Parklands was the very welcome decision by the government to return the SA Water site to the Adelaide Parklands. That piece of land was alienated, albeit for public purposes, for the Thebarton depot of SA Water. That has been returned to Parklands, a decision taken by this government. We have a strong commitment to the Parklands. Those opposite seek to denigrate and destroy an incredible South Australian asset.

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