Community group voices concern over Ashbury Peace Park proposal

A coveted green space in the crosshairs of a major development plan to transform the site into housing has caught the ire of concerned residents who have labelled it a “money grab”.

Ashbury residents have slammed plans to redevelop 30 Trevenar St.

A coveted green space in the crosshairs of a major residential development has caught the ire of concerned residents who have labelled it a “money grab”.

Debate has continued for two years over plans by Trevenar Pty Limited to demolish 30 Trevenar St, Ashbury – a vacant block adjoining Peace Park – into a residential subdivision.

Protect our Peace Park community group said a development application lodged in September last year to subdivide the land into 13 lots was “even more outrageous than the first” proposal from 2021 to transform the 6700 sqm site into seven homes.

Protect our Peace park member and Ashbury resident Jenny Gibson called on council and the state government to strike down the plans and said it was a “money grab” to “plonk houses” in the middle of the park.

The site on 30 Trevenar Street, Ashbury, is surrounded by the Ashbury Peace Park.

“It’s not a wise use of the land, it’s a pathetic attempt to provide much needed housing … it’s a money grab,” she said.

“It’s not going to solve the housing issues and will cause a lot more problems and contribute to traffic issues in the area.”

The 55-year-old, who has lived adjacent to Ashbury Park for more than 20 years, said the plans had “no respect” for the heritage values of the suburb and the homes would be susceptible to flooding.

Save Peace Park signs posted around Ashbury.

“It doesn’t fill me with any confidence that the heritage of our suburb or the open space will be retained, which is disappointing as that parcel of land is a good access point to Peace Park,” she said.

“I don’t know why anyone would think of building a house there as it’s inundated with water during a downpour and because it used to be a rubbish tip, it doesn’t soak up water.”

The parcel of land was converted into Peace Park between 1988 and its opening in 1993 and while most of the site was transferred to the former Canterbury Council, 30 Trevenar St was not.

Instead, that site was given to a state-owned electricity provider by the NSW Government, which would become Ausgrid after the privatisation of NSW’s electricity infrastructure.

Protect our Peace Park community group. Picture: Supplied.

Canterbury-Bankstown council blocked the 2021 proposal and the Land and Environment Court denied the developer’s appeal a year later because plans were “not an orderly and economic use and development of land”.

Council then commenced a planning proposal to rezone the block as recreational to incorporate the site back into Peace Park, but the plans were later dropped in July last year.

Ms Gibson said she was disappointed council dropped their rezoning as the community was “back to square one”.

“It’s not about what will be built [on 30 Trevenar St], it’s about when something will be built,” she said.

Save Peace Park signs posted around Ashbury.

A Canterbury-Bankstown council spokeswoman confirmed the council resolved to not purchase the site last year and withdrew their rezoning proposal.

“Council was provided with the following update at its meeting of 28 November 2023, that the rezoning planning proposal has been decided by the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces to not proceed,” the spokeswoman said.

But Ms Gibson said it’s “not too late for the state government to step in” and purchase the site.

A Department of Planning spokesman said the department wrote to Canterbury-Bankstown council last year to explain funding was not available for the NSW Government to acquire the land.

Attempts to contact the developer have been made.