Campaign opposes redevelopment of Horsley Park, Cecil Park

A collective of families have launched a campaign opposing the possible rezoning of Horsley Park and Cecil Park. Their petition has more than 300 signatures so far.

Residents are campaigning against the redevelopment of Cecil Park and Horsley Park.

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A collective of families have launched a campaign opposing the possible rezoning of Horsley Park and Cecil Park. Their petition has more than 300 signatures so far.

The campaign comes as Fairfield City Council consults with residents on possible rezoning options. Currently five options are before the community.

But the residents behind the campaign don’t want the area to be rezoned at all.

“No amount of money is going to make us happy. We don’t want to go,” said Steve Pourniotis, a Horsley Park resident leading the campaign.

“It’s not about the money. It’s the lifestyle, it’s where we live, it’s where our families are, our kids, our schools.”

Conceptual drawings illustrating how Cecil Park and Horsley Park could be developed. The three images (A, B and C) correlate to first three strategies released.

In general terms, the options propose designating at least parts of Horsley Park for commercial work, while Cecil Park would be zoned as a residential suburb that could accommodate from 12,250 to 24,500 homes.

There are concerns neighbours will sell their land following the rezoning, Mr Pourniotis said, boxing the people who moved there for the greenery in new-found development.

He launched a website and petition opposing the proposed rezoning soon after the first trio of plans were announced in November 2018.

The prospect of redeveloping Horsley Park and Cecil Park has been met with mixed emotions. In a binary poll hosted on the Fairfield Advance Facebook page, which yielded 561 responses, the majority (66%) voted against redeveloping the suburbs.

This rural land could become the bustling town centre of Cecil Park, according to the current proposals.

Mayor Frank Carbone said he will act according to the community’s feedback.

“I encourage all residents from Horsley and Cecil Park to provide feedback on what they would like to see for the future of their area. Council will listen and support the residents and will urge the State and Federal governments to listen to what the people want,” he said.

The proposals are currently being publicly exhibited. Residents can make submissions until February 8.

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