Lizard Rock, Belrose: New twist in Aboriginal land redevelopment bid
There has been a new twist in the push to redevelop Aboriginal-owned land on the northern beaches to allow for up to 450 homes and a cultural protection zone.
Manly
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A detailed bid for a land rezoning to allow for a controversial 450-home subdivision on Aboriginal Land Council-owned bushland on the northern beaches is set to be released to the public.
But the planning push for the massive “Lizard Rock” land redevelopment at Belrose has taken a new twist.
The owner of the 71ha site, the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council (MLALC), is now calling it Patyegarang, in honour of an Aboriginal woman thought to have been the first original inhabitant to teach an Aboriginal language to early colonists in Sydney.
“Patyegarang is a more culturally appropriate name that better represents the rich history of the site,” according to the MLALC ‘s official website set up to support its planning proposal now before NSW planning authorities.
“The site has more recently been known locally as Lizard Rock due to graffiti on the large rock to make it look like a lizard.
“The name Lizard Rock and the graffiti at the site do not represent or respect the cultural heritage of the site and the rock itself has no cultural importance or relevance to Aboriginal people,” the MLALC stated on the website.
“MLALC acknowledges that Patyegarang was a Gadigal language informant whose name translates to Grey Kangaroo, which is one of most prominent engravings on the site.”
MLALC chief executive, Nathan Moran, said recently that it had been working on the proposal for what he has described as the “Morgan Road lands”, for two decades.
“There has been a lot of misinformation about our proposal for the Morgan Road lands, which do not adjoin a national park and (is) next to sewer services, electricity and other services,” Mr Moran said.
“This land was previously farmland, agricultural land and housed an extraction quarry at some stage.”
The MLALC wants to generate hundreds of millions of dollars from the redevelopment to help support programs for Aboriginal people, including providing social housing.
It said the proposal would protect a number of ancient Aboriginal sites within its boundaries, with 19.8ha of the development kept as conservation areas.
Supporters say it could include seniors housing, an Aboriginal cultural community centre as well as shops, a supermarket and cafes.
However the name change has not persuaded critics of the plans to change their opposition to the rezoning bid.
The independent MP for Wakehurst, Michael Regan, who was mayor of Northern Beaches Council when it voted in January to oppose the Lizard Rock subdivision, said the name change did not “make the Lizard Rock/Patyegarang proposal any better”.
Mr Regan said the proposal to allow for 450 homes still result in the destruction of bushland equivalent to the size 46 football fields.
He, and the Liberal State MP for Pittwater, Rory Amon, both said the site was in a bushfire zone.
“Whether the planning proposal is called Lizard Rock or Patyegarang, it doesn’t change the substance of the issue, that this is an unsustainable and dangerous proposal, and it should simply not go ahead,” Mr Regan said.
The plans will be put on public exhibition for six weeks, beginning in late September.
For more planning information click here
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