Residents consider legal action to stop bike path at Tennyson

ANGRY beachside residents in Adelaide’s west say they’ll consider legal action, if that is what it takes to stop a 3m-wide path from being built between their homes and nearby sand dunes.

Residents are considering legal action to stop the construction of a seaside bike path in Adelaide’s west.

ANGRY residents are considering legal action to stop a 3m-wide path being built between their homes and the Tennyson sand dunes after the State Government offered support to the proposed alignment.

Eight residents and a lawyer acting on behalf of another were primed to address a recent Charles Sturt Council meeting ahead of a vote on the council’s proposed management plan for its coastal reserves near Tennyson beach.

The new management plan would make way for a $7.5 million, 3m-wide path along the reserve north and south of the Tennyson Dunes Park, to be jointly funded by the council and the State Government.

The path would link to a proposed State Government-built Tennyson Dunes “discovery trail”, completing the council’s stretch of a 70km coast park along the entire metropolitan coastline.

Resident Geoffrey Reed, who is also president of the Wild Endangered Dunes Group, said legal action was being considered by residents.

“I think if these guys continue to brush everybody aside and skirt the issues there will be a massive class action,” Mr Reed said.

“People are already talking about it.

“This real estate was built and sold to people on the basis that their properties fronted onto a recreation reserve.”

Mr Reed said residents would suffer significant loss of amenity and reduced property values if the path went ahead.

“They will be the key drivers, but I think there’s a public safety issue and there’s a ratepayer cost issue as well,” he said.

Councillor Bob Randall said the council needed to move ahead with plans.

“Now the Department of Environment has decided that it wants to do the Tennyson Dunes, Charles Sturt Council has a responsibility to construct a path both north and south of those dunes, connecting them up to Grange and Semaphore,” Mr Randall said.

“We will have further consultation with the residents about exactly where it goes and residents are going to say they don’t want it out the front of their property, but the land in front of their property is public land.”

Earlier this month, the State Government consulted on plans for a 1.5km shared use trail through the Tennyson Dunes coastal conservation reserve.

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