East Metropolitan Greens MLC Tim Clifford has welcomed the news the Department of Local Government will review the process followed by the City of Swan when spending $32.5 million buying land for the Midland Oval Redevelopment, to ensure there has been no breach of the Act.
In answer to questions on notice in Parliament yesterday the Local Government Minister confirmed he was aware of what the city’s spent in land acquisition for the Midland Oval redevelopment project and that the city had completed the business plan after the land was purchased.
Mr Clifford said he supported a review of the process and he urged the minister to take into account all the information that has been put forward.
But he said the burden of proof shouldn’t be on the community and there needed to be more accountability for councils.
“The department and the minister are the gatekeepers of the Local Government Act and that needs to be enforced.”
He said residents would continue to fight for better public open green space in the design.
“The City of Swan’s sketches are really misleading and the green space shown in the diagrams are disproportionate to what has really been approved by council,” he said.
“The details are so vague and the goal posts on what the city considers to be public open space moves all the time.
“Residents don’t accept median strips, paving and car parks as acceptable definition of public open space, they want the oval to be transformed into a beautiful landscaped park”