Page 3886 - Week 13 - Tuesday, 30 November 2021
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when members of local communities have come to appreciate the accessibility and value of these spaces, or even to meet them for the first time.
Dryland ovals are an important part of the urban open space network, and, as Ms Clay noted, these ovals were converted from irrigated sports grounds many years ago, when the millennium drought brought persistent dry conditions, dictating that the upkeep of all ovals could not be sustained into the future. It was recognised then that these ovals had limited appeal for sporting groups. This is important because sporting groups make a lot of use of these sports fields once they are irrigated and used for community sport. Ovals often lacked the supporting infrastructure that sporting groups would like—including pavilions and lighting—and, in most cases, these dryland fields consist of a single oval. In contrast, the modern model for sporting infrastructure favours co-located sports fields. This is supported by our sports communities because it enables multiple matches or training to take place at the same time, with access to change rooms, toilets, canteen facilities, and parking and lighting, to support sporting participants, organisers and spectators. These facilities are used by the community during times when sport is not occurring.
It is now, however, very clear that the community’s expectations for our urban open spaces and how they can be used, have changed. The government is responding to that through a range of different policies and funding engagement initiatives. I continue to work very closely with Minister Steel on these matters in relation to my responsibilities are Minister for Sport and Recreation. The future enhancement of dry ovals is one important element in this response, which continues to be informed by the Better Suburbs statement, which was developed by community representatives in 2018.
Through TCCS, the directorate responsible for the management of urban open spaces including dryland ovals, the government is taking a proactive approach to meeting community requests for better facilities. The government is listening to communities. It continues to roll out programs of upgrades to a range of recreational infrastructure, including play spaces, sporting facilities, footpaths, seating, lighting and other important community facilities. For example, during COVID lockdown unofficial dirt bike tracks built by community members on public land became popular to entertain children close to home. Right near Dunlop, which Ms Clay referred to, there is a bike track like this, which was built by the younger people in the McGregor school community just across the road. It is a bike track that is regularly used by young people in that suburb, including my own as they were growing up. In response, TCCS has introduced the bumps and burn program. It reaches out now to community bike-track builders through signage, and provides guidance materials and track-building expertise to make sure that those sites are registered and that they are safe for use.
One of the key mechanisms to support community aspirations for tangible improvements to local spaces is the Adopt-a-Park program. Following the success of the pilot in 2019-20, funding has been allocated in 2020-21 and 2022 to continue this program, which will see grants allocated to registered community groups to further their local initiatives around environmental enhancements to urban open space. The government will make further announcements about the next round in 2022.
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