Ukraine conflict: Woollahra Council votes to remove parking from Russian Consulate

A local council has officially stripped the Russian Consulate of three dedicated parking spaces in a busy eastern suburbs street in response to the ongoing war in Ukraine.

DAILY TELEGRAPH – 12TH MAY 2022 Pictured is the Russian Consulate on Fullerton Street in Woollahra that council has approved to be renamed Ukraine Street. Picture: Richard Dobson

Three parking spaces allocated to the Russian Consulate in Woollahra has officially been revoked, amid an ongoing push for council action to protest the Ukraine war.

Woollahra Council resolved at a recent meeting to remove all existing diplomatic carparking spaces for the consulate, and to inform the NSW Police and AFP it would provide them one designated parking space.

The Wentworth Courier understands a recent inspection of the site by council found that Diplomatic and Consular vehicle parking was not well used, while public on-street parking is highly occupied.

The decision followed through on a vote by the council’s traffic committee at a meeting in May to strip the consulate of the dedicated carparking spaces and instead make them available for wider community use.

Council documents said this change “will facilitate an improved network of accessible and safe alternate transport options”.

By removing all existing diplomatic carparking spaces outside the Russian Consulate, more parking would be available for residents and visitors to the area, the documents stated.

Parking spaces allocated for diplomats outside the Consulate General of the Russian Federation, in Woollahra, today. Picture: Justin Lloyd.

The decision comes after councillors unanimously rejected a proposal to change the name of Fullerton St where the Russian Consulate is located, to Ukraine St after a barrage of community backlash earlier this month.

The proposal was designed to serve as a symbolic protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

However council was forced to back down after hundreds of residents signed a petition against the move and a community consultation generated an overwhelming 840 submissions.

Of the submissions 44 per cent were in support of the change, with 56 per cent opposed and a mere 11 per cent of Fullerton St occupants supporting the name change.

Mayor of Woollahra Susan Wynne. Picture: John Appleyard

A letter sent to the council by Russia’s Consul General in Sydney, Igor Arzhaev, and obtained by The Australianrevealed muscular pushback against the decision.

“The council is entering the delicate territory of diplomatic relations where the principle of reciprocity is applied,” the June 24 letter read.

“A number of diplomatic missions are located in the same area and all of them are provided with a parking space,” it said.

“We fully understand that Fullerton St is a residential area and there is a lack of parking space. That is why we do our best not to create problems for the local residents and visitors with a need to park their cars in front of the mission premises.”

Chair of the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations, Stefan Romaniw. Picture: David Geraghty.

Chair of the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations Stefan Romaniw told the Wentworth Courier he appreciated that the council continued to seek ways to show its support for Ukraine following the Fullerton St name rejection.

However he feared such measures would serve as a symbol of solidarity but ultimately not have an outsized impact on the consulate.

“Removing car spots shows that the council is making small signs to highlight their opposition to Russia and its representatives,” Romaniw said in a written message.

“A better sign would be to fly the Ukrainian flag on the city’s chamber offices until the war ends,” he said.

“However it would be even better for the Australian Government to expel Russian diplomats starting with the ambassador.”

Dillan, a resident of Fullerton St who lives across from the Russian Consulate said ongoing campaigning for and against measures to protest Russia by residents had become “contentious.”

The sales professional, who requested not to share his full name, said his building had been forced to put up signs asking that nonresidents not be let into the building after people entered the apartment block in a bid to persuade residents to support the renaming.

The Russian Consulate on Fullerton Street in Woollahra. Picture: Richard Dobson

He said he was personally ambivalent about the community-led campaign.

“I don’t think it’s going to make any real difference.”

However he did say parking was an ongoing issue on the street and in the surrounding area, and noted as a field worker it is often difficult to find a park during the day.

“I came home at about 1.30pm the other day and there were no parks at all in the street,” Dillan said. “Parking can be really tight here, definitely.”

He said he would welcome any extra space that could be used by residents and the community.

“Even having three, four spaces there, that would help if they weren’t being taken up by the Russian Consulate,” he said.