Here are some extracts from public submissions on the Budget & Community/Council Plan –

Centenary Park Car Park

#1 – The plan will have little effect on the number of cars which park on the roadside. The proposal to turn the northern car park into a garden area will to a degree isolate the childrens playground and the barbecue area. The removal of mature eucalypts which are an integral part of the park is an unattractive and environmentally unfriendly proposition. In conclusion I put it to you that the expense ($600,000) cannot be justified and it is in everyones interest to leave things as they are.

#2 – currently it is only during. the football season that there is insufficient parking space. This is on Sunday between 9am and 5pm when up to fifty or more cars are parked at any one time in brady road and leonie avenue. this amounts to about 25 days in the year. the cricket activity does not attract as many cars. the increased parking capacity in the proposed development of 63 to 75 (12 cars} will have little effect relative to the current situation,…. currently having two separate car parks – each with two exitientry points and separated by the wooded area, the traffic flow is better managed…..i agree that pedestrian safety is paramount however to date i am unaware 0 f any incident involving injury. with this background i put it to you that there is no perceived benefit in spending $600,000- to accomodate twelve more cars (which equates to $50,000 per car space.)

Caulfield Park

sports Ground Tolerant Grasses- by far the largest sum is allocated for this item which is purely to serve the purposes of active sport. An equivalent sum should be allocated to serve the needs of the many thousands of non-active sport users of the park. However. by our reckoning the sum of all the other budget items for Caulfield Park is at best $291.500.

Park Pathway lighting. We assume that this is to light the perimeter path. We also assume it includes the removal of the now redundant lights which used to light the central pedestrian pathway until it was relocated. These lights are still illumined every night and serve no useful purpose. The unsightly poles should be removed and the area planted with more trees to enhance vistas, provide more shade and increase habitat for birds across the centre of the park.

6. Playground Shade Sails Oval Number 2. This is another puzzling item as there is no playground near Oval No.2. so more explanation is required about this item. If money is to be spent on playgrounds it would be preferable to install some more play equipment at the main Park Crescent playground. on the large area recently created adjacent to Park Crescent and covered with unsightly wood chips. This area could be greatly improved by the addition of some play equipment to suit the 5-10 year age group. which is generally lacking in the park. This would be a better use of the $30.000 than installing shade sails at a non existent playground

A proper study to identify and secure an altemative location for the depot. Unless a specific study is carried out nothing is going to happen and the relocation of the depot is crucial step to providing more open space in this area of North Caulfield.

An in-depth study into the impact of climate change upon the trees in the west end of the park. Studies undertaken by the Melbourne Cify Council (Urban Forest strategy) indicate that within in the next decade 27 per cent of the current tree population in the cify’s parks are expected to die and 44 per cent in the next 20 years

Biodiversity/Sustainability

Biodiversity protection is an important part of Glen Eira’s Sustainable Living Plan, and it should be acknowledged with an accountable budget allocation. All decisions and measures taken by council should include an assessment of impacts on our local biodiversity and its sustainability.

Child Care

Year after year, we are presented with child care fee rises as a fait accompli. It would be respectful-and an act of good public relations- to present parents with the reasons for the increases. I would like to see a justification for not being be/ow average of the 38 centres in Glen Eira. As a community-based and notfor-profit service, I would not expect to see these fees on par with the plethora of privately run child care services in Glen Eira. Being average amongst profit-driven businesses is not a good thing.

Is the staff at Glen Eira’s centres any better qualified? Is more money put into their professional development? Do our children have better equipment or grounds? • How are these fees justified when other services provide meals and nappies and Glen Eira does not?

I believe that price increases and indeed, any fees at or above average, needs to be explained and justified: we are entitled to know where the fees are spent and to either rest assured that this service has an advantage over others- as perhaps an explanation might show- or to choose an alternate service that supplies nappies and meals for the same fee.