Lighting proposal: Northern Beaches Council’s bid to increase hours on sportsgrounds
Northern Beaches Council’s sportsground lighting plans are on public exhibition for John Fisher Park and Passmore Reserve. What do you think?
Manly
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Sportsgrounds could soon be used into the late hours of the night if council plans are approved for upgrades including the installation of more lighting posts.
It comes after the 2017 Northern Beaches Sportsground Strategy flagged a lack of sporting fields in the area.
The council is looking into revitalising John Fisher Park and Passmore Reserve through improved lighting, drainage and the reconfiguration of fields so it can meet demand and be used for extended hours.
According to details on the Northern Beaches Council website, lights are set to be erected at six locations surrounding John Fisher Park in Curl Curl.
Frank Gray Oval and Mike Pawley Ovals are used for a range of sports, such as, soccer, AFL and hockey at both junior and senior levels.
A development application was also submitted for the installation of lights at Passmore Reserve in Manly Vale, where there is no existing lighting infrastructure.
Documents reveal the council seeks to install eight lighting poles of 25m to 30m high, which would allow soccer, football and cricket players to use the park up until 9.30pm.
So far the lighting plans have received a combined 1221 submissions with overwhelming support from sports clubs.
Geofrey Pridgeon president of the Club Weldon Committee said the lights at John Fisher Park would “relieve the pressure on Weldon because during Winter it gets pretty worn out.”
He wrote a submission to council, representing the Warringah Cricket Club and the AFL junior and senior clubs.
“AFL is going to grow even more, therefore you need the training and games spread over the three ovals, not one little oval,” Mr Pridgeon said.
“The other big advantage of having lights would be to split training, allowing women and girls to have more space. You can’t have senior men kicking footballs when junior girls are training.”
Andrew Varasdi, president of junior AFL club Manly Bombers said it was a “critical project”.
“The reality is we don’t have enough sporting facilities to accommodate kids who have the desire to play sports,” Mr Varasdi said.
“This is a significant boost to the local community and its going to get kids out and about. We have 700 members and we’ve had to knock back people wanting to play AFL because we don’t have the facilities.
“In winter it gets dark at 5pm. By the time kids finish school and get home we’re stuck. This would be able to train kids from 5 to 7pm a couple of nights a week.”
He said he didn’t see it being “invasive to local residents”.
“It will be managed well, this is the best thing that could happen for local junior sport.”
Joy Leaper, Manly Warringah Wolves President agreed.
“The level of interest in AFL is continuing to grow on the beaches, especially among our women’s teams,” Ms Leaper said.
“The new lights will not only help get more players involved in our game, but it will also create another valuable, safe space in our community.”
David Mason, CEO of Manly Warringah Football Association said the lighting plan for Passmore Reserve is “a win for everyone”.
“It’s part of a long-term strategy the council worked on with all the clubs a few years back that identified lack of facilities for community sport,” Mr Mason said.
“That’s why these projects are important, to be able to give locals the opportunity to train, exercise and play the sport of choice all year round. It’s not just for football, it’s all the sports.
“With the lights going up on those fields instead of having to stop at 5pm, they will be able to train right off until lights would be turned off around 9.30pm.”
He said at the end of the year sports clubs will get a bill for the lights.
“It’s part of the fees that players pay for when they register at the start of the season.”
The sports clubs will be charged for the lighting system, which could be controlled remotely using a mobile phone.
Members of the public have the opportunity to submit feedback until May 31.