A good year for Glebe parks

The planning and creation or upgrading of a park is a slow business. When the final stage of the Foley Park upgrade is achieved this year it will be seven years since the process began, as Bobbie Burke reminded me. Even so, 2014 will be a good year for seeing a number of park projects completed.

Foley Park

The upgrading of Foley Park began in 2007 and has been undertaken in several stages. Last year saw the refurbishment of the Diggers Memorial, with the final piece, a new gate to protect the internal space, to be added soon. The final stage of the upgrade was approved by Council late last year and mainly commemorates the original building on the site – Hereford House (1829, demolished 1929). Michael Woolley, project manager Open Spaces, described the main works involved thus:

The works include a paved area on the upper terrace to demarcate the outline of the veranda of the former Hereford House. A timeline engraved in the paving and precast concrete seating elements with interpretive signage including text and historic photographs. Picnic tables, paving strips and areas of decomposed granite gravel paving on the upper terrace to demarcate the footprint of the former Hereford House and the pergola on the eastern veranda of the former Hereford House.

According to the papers which went to Council, the work should commence in February and be completed by June.

St James Park

Work on the upgrade of St James Park has commenced and is expected to be completed by 2015. An outline of the work involved was given in a press release by the City in November. See http://www.sydneymedia.com.au/a-more-playful-and-accessible-st-james-park/.

Key points are: replanting of tea tree and bottlebrush grove; open grass terrace; upgraded park furniture and lighting. The children’s adventure playground is described thus:

The new adventure playground is aimed at children aged up to seven and includes a timber tree-house deck built around an existing celtis tree with a ‘play servery shopfront’ where children can play shopkeeper. Interpretative drawings by local school children about the natural environment will be incorporated into the timber deck.

Upgraded toilet and amenities building described thus:

The tennis facilities will have improvements for people living with disabilities, including the introduction of an accessible toilet and change rooms. The timber filigree and brick amenities building provides a sheltered seating area for tennis groups, parents and carers, and will be oriented towards the tennis courts to improve viewing.

Waterfront Walk – Sydney Secondary College extension

Locals will have noticed the major earthworks underway beside Sydney Secondary College (formerly ‘Glebe High’). Plans were available for consultation last year and can still be seen in Glebe Library. This final section of the Glebe Waterfront Walk will mean that the whole of the Glebe waterfront will be accessible to pedestrians and cyclists. There will still be the barrier of the section at the head of Blackwattle Bay, along Bridge Rd, to negotiate before a complete connection to the Fish Markets. The current extension will be completed by the end of this year.

Harold Park

The final stage of planning for the new park, beside the cliff in the Harold Park development, will go to Council as a development application in the next couple of months. Construction of the park is expected during the second half of the year.