Maribyrnong City Council to determine McIvor Reserve masterplan

A rare council motion is set to decide the longstanding battle for prized Yarraville parkland this week. See the details here.

Friends of McIvor Reserve do not want an indoor stadium built at the parkland. Picture: Supplied

The controversial and longstanding battle for prized Yarraville parkland is set to enter its final stages with a unique council motion set to determine its fate.

Maribyrnong councillors Bernadette Thomas, Jorge Jorquera and Simon Crawford have moved a rescission motion to undo the council’s endorsement of the McIvor Reserve Masterplan which was ticked off last month.

“A southern site option exists for placement of an indoor sports stadium, as outlined in the McIvor Reserve Master Plan Project Plan, March 2023. This was not presented to the community for their feedback,” the motion states.

“This option should first be reviewed by council, then explored with the community via a consultation and feedback process, and a report provided to council for consideration.”

The suggestion to present the southern option to the community has “no standing nor obligation” to be acted upon by the council according to chief executive officer Celia Haddock’s statement.

A councillor could submit another motion requesting specific action on the masterplan at a later date if this one is approved.

The matter will defer back to Ms Haddock to determine “next steps, if any” in progressing the matter if it is approved.

Friends of McIvor Reserve’s spokesperson Miles Parnall-Gilbert believed the rescission motion could get up.

“The majority of our councillors are listening to the wishes of the community and have indicated they can’t support building on green space, or a plan that severely impacts the amenity of existing and future parkland users.” he said.

“We are confident the vote on the rescission motion will provide a reset and give us pause to consider how to deliver a proper park masterplan for McIvor while finding a brown site for sporting infrastructure.”

The masterplan was adopted in a tight vote but residents raised their concerns over Cr Simon Crawford’s absence from the vote in the aftermath.

“Last November, Mayor Sarah Carter said council wouldn’t vote on such a crucial project without all seven councillors present, and yet that is exactly what they did,” Mr Parnall-Gilbert said.

“They chose to try to push through this unpopular plan by scheduling a special vote on a day when they knew the Greens Councillor who‘d already voted against endorsement of the draft masterplan would be away.”

Cr Crawford – who represents the Yarraville ward – was out of the country and Mayor Sarah Carter said he did not request to attend the meeting online.

If the rescission motion was lost, a similar motion could not be moved for at least three months.

It would pave the way for the council to advocate for state and federal funding for the multimillion-dollar project and begin “schematic design, site planning and due diligence” as well.

The motion will be voted on April 18.

A note: A previous version of this article noted one of the signatories as Cr Michael Clarke. This was incorrect, it was Simon Crawford.