North East Link: Councils war of words over Freeway Golf Course plan

TWO councils have engaged in a war of words after a proposal to extend a popular golf course across city borders due to the incoming North East Link.

Manningham Council fears sport in Bulleen Park could be under siege. Picture: Hamish Blair

MANNINGHAM Council has teed off at a bold proposal from its Boroondara counterpart to expand its golf course into Bulleen Park.

Multiple holes on the Freeway Golf Course in Balwyn North are set to be removed in design plans from the North East Link Authority, and the Boroondara Tennis Centre will be replaced by a park.

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The proposal from Boroondara would install holes from the golf course on Manningham land in Bulleen Park.

Sporting grounds in Bulleen Park are under threat. Picture: Hamish Blair

The tennis centre would then be relocated onto land currently occupied by the course. Both the centre and golf course are owned by Boroondara Council.

Former Manningham mayor Andrew Conlon said his council didn’t want to lose any of its open space and it had concerns for sporting clubs in the park, including the Bulleen Lions, which is run by the Veneto Club.

“There are currently five golf courses within 10km of Bulleen Park. We want to know why Boroondara Council thinks that golf, a fee-paying sport already well catered for in the region, should be prioritised over our community’s needs,” he said. “We want to make sure that we don’t lose any open space as a minimum and ideally we gain open space.”

Boroondara councillor Jim Parke said the proposal was part of discussions with NELA and would be beneficial to the community.

“Boroondara is somewhat confused by Manningham closing the door on discussions that would mean pursuing opportunities for vital open space,” he said.

Veneto Club secretary Frank Freschi said it couldn’t afford to lose any space given it expected to cater for about 2000 children in the next three years.

He said the club was hoping a tunnel from the link would exit out of an AFL-sized oval, leaving enough space for a soccer pitch.

NELA is still taking feedback on designs that are to be completed by mid-2019.

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