New plan for park at Hornsby Quarry and Old Man’s valley open to suggestions from residents

The “largest and most exciting project” in Hornsby Council’s history has started and residents are being asked to help to make Old Man’s Valley great again.

Hornsby Quarry toboggan idea by UNSW student Sophie Randall

The “largest and most exciting project” in Hornsby Council’s history has started and residents are being asked to help to make Old Man’s Valley great again.

A $52 million project to rehabilitate Hornsby Quarry and expand Hornsby Park into Old Man’s Valley will develop about 50ha, with suggestions from the community used to shape the area’s potential.

Hornsby Mayor Steve Russell said concepts can be submitted to the council until March 29 and during this first round of consultation they want everyone’s ideas, “big and small”.

“Council has never carried out a project on this scale and we want to bring everybody along for the ride,” Cr Russell said. “This park is going to belong to the community so it’s important that the community plays a key role in its design.

“In many respects we are looking at a blank canvas and we are beginning with broad brushstrokes.”

Hornsby MP Matt Kean chats with Project Manager Michael Van Rooyen as work continues at the Hornsby Quarry site. The Hornsby Quarry will be filled with spoil from the Northconnex project and they have built a special conveyor system to get the fill into the hole. Picture: Troy Snook

Council officers, consultants and a group of randomly selected residents will review the ideas and help the council select the best ones to develop a masterplan for the site.

Submissions can be a single line asking for an activity to be included at the park or a detailed plan outlining a vision for the entire area.

The Hornsby Quarry site will be rehabilitated into a park by 2023.

The quarry is more than 100 metres deep with steep, exposed sides and has been closed to the public due to safety concerns.

Bushland on the site includes blue gum high forest, an endangered ecological community and a heritage listed cemetery with graves dating from 1875 is also part of the valley.

The quarry was operated from the early 1900s until 2002, when the council was legally obliged to buy it from CSR Limited for about $25 million. The council recovered about $9 million later via legal appeals.

The new parkland is expected to be complete by 2023 and there will be more consultation as the project proceeds, Cr Russell said.

A giant toboggan run, water slides, mountain bike trails, an adventure park, rock climbing walls, swimming holes, bungy jumping, abseiling, treetop walks and a zip line are some of the ideas put up by Hornsby Council to spark a community brainstorm for the new Hornsby Quarry area.

Turning the quarry into a series of swimming holes was suggested by UNSW student Don Do.

Fifty landscape architecture students from the University of NSW designed concepts for the new park last year. Five of them were chosen to illustrate what may be possible but none are endorsed by the council.

UNSW student Huixin Zhu’s giant water slide also floated cliff jumping to “take advantage of the site’s dramatic topography”.

Fellow student Sophie Randall designed a toboggan run and said it may “provide a source of revenue for the site”.

Hornsby Quarry toboggan masterplan idea by UNSW student Sophie Randall

One adventure tourism operator in the new park could put up to $220,000 a year into council coffers, a 2014 scoping study commissioned by Hornsby Council said.

“The general product theme would most likely be an Adventure Park (or precinct) taking advantage of the site’s distinctive Quarry, over water and natural bushland characteristics,” the study said.

Ideas can be submitted via the council or on a website outlining the project here: hornsbypark.com.au/.

$52m budget breakdown:

■ $7.3 million to fill the quarry with NorthConnex spoil, state and federal government contribute

■ $20 million to cut back the slopes in the quarry and rehabilitate the void

■ $10 million to landscape the quarry void

■ $15 million to develop new facilities in Old Mans Valley.