Keeping High Cross Park (fingers crossed!)
Despite the fact that Randwick City Council is one of the major stakeholders of the State government's Light Rail project, they haven't had much luck with their design preferences so far, e.g. the preservation of High Cross Park. But they're not giving up (although we'd like to see some more effort being made to save our heritage trees along both Alison & Wansey roads).
It is because of groups like ours, encouraging residents to speak up about this issue that council continues to push for some positive changes to be made to the project.
So let's keep the pressure on!
Here are their latest ideas to improve the situation for Randwick's trees.
Here is Randwick Council's much improved design for the Randwick Light Rail interchange. Environmentally, culturally, and even economically (bonus!), it is just better (better than what? See below).*
Now it is up to the State government to approve the preservation of our heritage High Cross Park by approving this alternate interchange. And it is up to us to actively support such ideas so that they do not just get thrown away!
(Pictures in the Southern Courier)
These artist impressions show a great start to preserving our trees in High Cross Park. However, we urge our Council to fight for the preservation of all of Randwick's trees (including the lovely Bottle-brush that is missing from the next picture - it should be in the foreground, to the left. The Rainbow Lorikeets love that one).
It might look small, but the bottle-brush in this photograph at the top of High Street provides much-needed shade on an otherwise shade-less corner (it's kind of fun to watch people huddle under it waiting for the lights to change). Plus, there's no over-head wiring! So it's free to grow as it pleases (as long as it is allowed).
Come on Randwick council & NSW State government, let's go all out!
Save all of our healthy trees!
If private construction companies can do it,
so can you.
* Here is the Transport for New South Wales approved design for the destruction of High Cross Park (the trees they have included are deceiving - the construction as seen here would result in the loss of all of High Cross Park's significant trees out of a total of around 30 trees, some of which are over 120 years old - like the towering Cook Pines you see in the picture above, which provide excellent habitat for a number of our birds. The official documents cite only 3-4 of the existing trees in the park would be preserved, so this must be an impression of 'replacement' trees, a decade or so from now).
It's no wonder the entire community is all for
throwing this senseless design away!
