Marrickville Recreation Needs Research Strategy – part 3

Showing one of the ‘forests’ of Tempe Reserve. It is very small & has a pedestrian path through the middle impacting on its ability to offer real habitat

Marrickville Council has released its Recreation Needs Research Strategy for public comment.  Only 1.27% of the population participated in the community consultation opportunities. The results are now up on ‘Your Say Marrickville’ & the community is being asked to comment by the 6^th June 2012. 

Following on from Part 1
http://bit.ly/K54Jvr
& Part 2
http://bit.ly/LB9QO4
I also found the following points in the report interesting.

“Implement a design and place-making pilot program to convert under-used pocket parks into a cohesive network of urban green space.”  This sounds great.  Some of the pocket parks are underused because they are ugly spaces with broken seats.  I know that there are many in the community who would like them fixed up.

“Investigate options for additional sustainability projects – including the redeployment of under-used pocket parks as urban forests or community gardens; the use of permeable pavements in parks and public domain areas and the use of vegetated roofs on park buildings.”  I think all of these suggestions are terrific.  I have always been a fan of green roofs & was sorry that they were not included in the LEP.  I’d also like to see Council negotiate to have empty Railcorp land planted with trees or shrubs to increase the urban forest & add beauty where there is little.

“Need for clear distinctions between public and private space.”  I don’t really understand this point & can only think of one potential place where the distinction may not be clear; that is the open space for the potential new library development if it appears to be part of the potential residential development.  The new park was to be on the corner of Marrickville & Livingstone Roads opposite St Bridget’s Church & in front of the library building. This makes it clear that the open space is connected to the library & for everyone’s use.  I would like this issue to be considered if any new plans place the park in another location that would make it look like it is connected to residential units.

“Inclusion of sensory stimuli (including elements that delight the eye, hearing, taste, smell and touch) in public places.”  More attention needs to be paid to landscaping.  While woodchip is good for birds to forage for food, it seems to be the main feature in many locations.

“Upgrade landscaping and shade provisions at the water play park in accordance with issues raised in the community consultation.”  I would like any shadecloth structure to be a temporary measure only & trees planted around the WaterPlay area to provide natural shade for the future.

“Increased social interaction.”  This is a great suggestion.  There really needs to be tables near the entrance to Mackey Park & not in the playground for the older people to be able to get together as they used to. They used to meet here most days. Now they stay at home because there is nowhere to sit & as they told me, they don’t want to sit in the playground.  I wrote about this issue in January 2011.  See - 
http://savingourtrees.wordpress.com/2011/01/19/mackey-park/

“Need to orientate buildings to streets, plazas and parks to create ‘eyes on the street.’”  “the widespread adoption, over the past ten years, of crime prevention through environmental design strategies to minimise crime in public places by enhancing the perceived risk of detection and apprehension.”  I think sightlines are over emphasised in our parks. It is very hard to get away from the sounds, smell & visibility of the traffic.  You can see from one side of the park to the other even in our largest parks.  Drive along Victoria Road Marrickville & you can look through Enmore Park right across to Black Street.

Another view of Tempe Reserve. There is so much unused lawn in this section of Tempe Reserve. It would be nice to have many more trees, including Sydney Blue Gums & Fig trees, which are quite appropriate for parks. The Princes Highway is just visible in the background & the noise from traffic travels right into the park.

Noise is also a big issue.  In Tempe Reserve you get unbuffered noise from the airport, the airport highway & from the Princes Highway.  It is unprotected from the wind as well.  Sydenham Green is worse as the heavy traffic is closer.

I think the emphasis on crime & injecting drug users is overdone to the detriment of the community.  Fear of crime should not be used as an excuse to avoid planting a decent quantity of trees and shrubs in parks. If fear of crime is over-emphasised in park design, the community & wildlife end up losing a great deal of beauty & amenity.

I give two very popular parks in two other municipalities as examples where the Councils have created a private green oasis without emphasising sightlines.

Rockdale Park in Rockdale – This is an incredibly beautiful park. So beautiful in fact that Rockdale Council’s website says that it, “is the City’s most popular venue for outdoor wedding ceremonies and/or wedding photography.”  Understandable. It was the first place I thought of when discussing a friend’s upcoming wedding of their daughter.

So what makes it beautiful?  It has hundreds of trees of many different species. The majority have been allowed to grow naturally so they have side branches often just above the ground.  There are seriously good landscaped gardens & lots of flowers.  Large garden beds full of flowers are mass-planted twice a year – Petunias & Pansies. There is at least one pond & a man-made stream that curves around the park that I presume can be filled on request. A red Chinese-style bridge crosses the stream while a wooden pagoda stands nearby in front of a lawn area. There is lots of attractive seating placed in areas of dappled shade, full shade & sun.  Importantly, the busy road can’t be seen from most places inside the park & the traffic noise & smell is buffered by the trees & landscaping. This is a park where you can get away from the madding crowd, yet it still feels safe because there are always people using it.

Beauchamp Park in Chatswood – It is lined on one side by Canary Island palm trees & filled with very tall trees throughout the park.  Beauchamp Park makes me wonder why none of our parks have trees of this density or of this height.  This is a park where you can sit with your back against a tree without having to sit in woodchip.  There is tons of seating, some with tables scattered all around the park. There is also public art, a playground, memorial trees & garden beds of flowers & other flowering plants & no grasses, except for lawn. While you can see through the park, there is a strong feeling of privacy.  This is an extremely popular park because it is so people-friendly & beautiful. It is also filled with birdsong.  You can watch a short video here –

This & the last 2 posts on the Marrickville Recreation Needs Research Strategy are what I paid attention to in the report & I will be contributing on Council’s Have Your Say webpage.  While this is just a study with recommendations, without public feedback Marrickville Council can be forgiven for thinking that the community approves of the suggestions included & decide to put them up for decision at a Council Meeting.  If the Councillors vote to approve some of these recommendations then there will be great changes in our environment, some good, some excellent & some I consider disastrous.

This is a Google map of Maluga Passive Reserve in Sefton & a view into the park from Woods Road. As you can see sightlines have not been emphasised at all. This is a fantastic park that is very well used by the community. It offers peace & tranquillity for people & is a haven for wildlife as it offers real biodiversity & habitat. Compare this with any of our parks in Marrickville LGA & the differences are stark.

Sharing a secret

The Chinese style bridge in Kogarah Park is very picturesque as are the trees that are everywhere throughout this very pretty park

Not really a secret, but I bet many people in Marrickville LGA don’t know of this stunningly beautiful park in Rockdale.  Aptly named Rockdale Park, it reminds me of a small Botanic Garden.  Trees are not just planted around the perimeter as is usual in our LGA, but all throughout the park.   If you take a walk around, you wander into ‘rooms,’ all with a different view & feel.  It’s a landscaper’s delight.

There are trees everywhere. Big shade trees like Figs & Flame trees. There are also Conifers, Eucalypts, Jacarandas, Grevilleas, Olives, Tulip trees & a hoard of other trees that I can’t identify.  Amazingly their side branches have not been removed so they have been able to retain their natural beautiful shape. It’s true you do need to look where you are going because tree branches are from ankle to eye height & above.  I doubt however, that anything bad has happened because of the way the park has been set out.  The trees of Rockdale Park are how trees looked when I was growing up.

An Olive tree planted as a memorial tree for International Day of Mourning. Marrickville Council removes Olive trees in public places.

Rockdale Council has created areas of understory habitat with groups of trees of all different species, shapes & sizes planted together in areas where one would have to push through to get across the undergrowth. These are perfect places for urban wildlife to live & forage for food, yet be safe from people.  To see this in a park is wonderful. It has been created for both people & wildlife & the amount of birds is evidence that they like the place.

There is a man-made stream no deeper than 15cms curving through the park with numerous concrete stepping-stones so that children can play over the water.  Unfortunately the stream is turned off these days, perhaps because of the drought or perhaps issues of public liability. Crossing the stream is a Chinese style red bridge reminiscent of a Monet painting. The park is a very good setting for artists as there is beauty wherever one looks.

There is a rotunda, barbeques, a bubbler & public toilets. There is no shortage of seating with park benches everywhere taking in the different views.  There are memorial trees as well.  Seems Rockdale Council has understood how trees can be living memorials & meaningful to the community.

There are spaces to throw a ball or play touch footie, but it isn’t a sporting park.  It’s a park to relax, contemplate, read a book, meditate, have a family picnic or barbeque or quiet time with a loved one.  It’s a romantic park that changes with the seasons, but doesn’t lose its secluded feel.   I went in autumn so there was lots of colour. Late spring, early summer would see the Jacarandas come into flower & create purple carpets.  It’s also a great park for a child’s birthday party as there are plenty of things that kids would find interesting & the bridge & stream make perfect, safe areas to play.

Parking is easy on Bryant Street.  You can still hear the traffic of West Botany Street, but no matter.  This is the kind of park that allows you to feel that you are away from the madding crowd, yet close enough to houses & people to feel safe.

So if you wish for somewhere to go on the weekend or after work before the sun goes down, Rockdale Park on the corner of West Botany Road & Bryant Street Rockdale is well worth a visit.    I have made a YouTube video so you can have a look for yourself –

I'm looking down to this branch of a tree in Kogarah Park. Rockdale Council has planted deciduous as autumn features throughout the park & leave the leaves when they drop.