Wednesday, 28 May 2025

Merri-bek City Council

Anthony CIANFLONE (Pascoe Vale) (17:10): (1175) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Local Government, and the action I seek is for the minister to provide an update on the obligations for local government authorities under the Local Government Act 2020 to meaningfully engage and consult with local communities before making major policy decisions, including for Merri-bek City Council. Following strong community advocacy, I was very proud to welcome the $2 million federal Albanese Labor government investment to develop the Coburg North sports hub master plan, thanks to Peter Khalil, the member for Wills, and Ged Kearney, the member for Cooper. The master plan aims to partner with Merri-bek council and local groups to develop a shared precinct-wide vision for upgrades in Coburg North and the Newlands corridor, including for Coburg Little Athletics, Coburg Basketball Association, Coburg Table Tennis Club, East Coburg Cricket Club, Coburg Lions junior football club, Coburg Olympic pool group and later the Friends of Merri Creek and Friends of Edgars Creek groups. After appointing consultants to conduct round tables, interviews and pop-ups – receiving 441 survey responses – Merri-bek released the draft master plan for consultation from 9 April to 11 May. After the unveiling of the draft master plan, it contained some welcome elements, including proposed upgrades and enhancements for the Coburg outdoor pool, Coburg Table Tennis Club and short-term refurbishments for the Coburg athletics track and basketball stadium precinct and further revitalisation for Merri Creek and Edgars Creek corridors.

However, sadly, locals have also raised varying concerns about the draft plan and its consultation process. No one-on-one interviews with key athletics stakeholders like Coburg Harriers, Little Athletics and other clubs noted in the 9 April council report were conducted. There were no dedicated consultation pop-ups at key sites such as Coburg athletics track, basketball stadium or during football or cricket game days, and the consultation period was launched during the school holidays, Easter and Anzac Day long weekends and ran for only four weeks or so, limiting meaningful community input. But it is the draft plan’s proposal to remove the dedicated Coburg athletics track and field precinct, the Harold Stevens track, that has created the most community concern and opposition. First established in 1896, the Coburg Harriers are one of the oldest sporting organisations in Victoria. Joined by Coburg Little Athletics in 1966, Coburg’s athletics community has been competing on this dedicated Coburg North site since 1971, and it has proudly produced many Australian athletic icons, including Raelene Boyle, Peter Norman, Herb Elliott and Alan Wells. With over 15,000 people coming through the precinct every year, including many school carnivals, the track continues to support many health and wellbeing outcomes.

However, this rich history is now under threat and under risk because the draft plan is proposing the amalgamation of the Coburg athletic precinct with the neighbouring Jackson Reserve, merging the athletics, football and cricket into one grass field proposal, removing the dedicated athletics track and field precinct with a shared grass oval and grass track, providing no dedicated space for long jump, high jump, javelin or shot-put, and providing no shade, seating or basic facilities for athletes or spectators. This means dozens of local schools across the community would miss out on many school carnivals. Essentially the plan has been received like a shot-put through the face, a discus to the back of the head and a javelin through the heart by the local community, and many others are calling for the track to be saved. 1500 signatures have been signed on the change.org petition, and the local schools, local sporting clubs are all supportive.