Mt Claremont Oval - Proposal from Westside Wolves Hockey Club

Council at its meeting on 26 March 2019 approved the recommendations in relation to the Westside Wolves proposal to build a synthetic hockey pitch and facilities at Mt Claremont Oval Reserve.

Council resolved to:

• not support the proposal to construct a synthetic hockey pitch at the Mt Claremont Oval Reserve due to lack of support from existing tenants and the local community; and
• invite the Westside Wolves Hockey Club and Mt Claremont community to provide input into the review of the Strategic Recreation Plan and development of the Public Open Space Strategy.

To view the minutes of the meeting please visit the City's website, Your Council/Agendas, Minutes and Reports (Item 13.3, Page 32).

The Council Committee meeting held on Tuesday, 12 March 2019 recommended that Council does not support the proposal from the Westside Wolves Hockey Club to construct a synthetic pitch and club rooms at Mt Claremont Oval Reserve due to lack of support from existing tenants and the local community.

The recommendation will proceed at its Ordinary Meeting on 26 March 2019.

To view the minutes and report, please visit the City's website (Agendas, Minutes & Reports).

Administration have completed the report in accordance with the decision of Council at its December 2018 meeting on the proposal from Westside Wolves Hockey Club. This report will be presented to the March round of Council meetings.

The report can be found on the City's website under Agendas, Minutes and Reports (Item 9.1, page 10) which will be discussed at the Council Committee meeting on 12 March 2019. The Council will also consider the report at its ordinary meeting of Council on 26 March.

The committee meeting is where the item is initially discussed and deliberated. The Council meeting will consider the Committee's recommendation and make the final decision.

Interested parties are able to address the Council at the Committee and Council meetings. If you intend to address the Council at either the committee or council meeting, an online form can be filled out on the City's website under "Intention to address the Council or Council Committee" page

Council resolved at its meeting on 18 December to request Administration to prepare a report for the March meeting that analyses the feedback received during the community consultation period. To read the resolution in the Minutes (Item 13.2), please visit the City's website.

The report on the outcomes of the community engagement activities has been completed and will be presented to Council Committee on Tuesday, 4 December 2018.

To read the report please visit the City's website (Council Agendas, Minutes and Reports). The report is contained within the Council Committee Agenda, Item 9.2, Page 12 (page 87 of the PDF).

Thank you to everyone who has participated in this project. The City has received approximately 1,500 online surveys plus a number of hard copy surveys and submissions. The feedback will now be assessed and will form part of the report to Council.

Questions have been received by the City in regard to the marking of the grass playing fields. This marking was not intended to be exact as all designs from the proponents are concepts only and not to scale.

The intention was to draw attention to anyone who may be walking across the Oval that community consultation was underway and that views of park users were being sought on the potential boundary of a hockey pitch within Mt Claremont Reserve.

It was an idea to raise awareness of our community consultation; not be an exact representation of the location of the hockey pitch, which may or may not use this layout should the project proceed.

Mt Claremont Reserve has a total area of 4.8ha (including 2.21ha of bushland) and the estimate for the hockey pitch/clubrooms/car park is 0.9ha, which is approximately 19% of the total reserve area.

A lot of people are only looking at the mowed grass area as the oval while the City has looked at the total area of public open space, which is Mt Claremont Reserve. The 21% estimate includes provision for additional road access.

The markings on the grass area will be removed when the field is next mowed.

The line-marking was never intended to be a definitive description of the final location of the proposed hockey pitch.

The City apologises for any confusion created.

As the City does not have scale drawings for the Westside Wolves proposal, an overlay of the Shenton Park Hockey Pitch and Clubrooms (an area of approx. 0.75ha) on Mt Claremont Reserve is provided as a reference point. In broad terms, this is generally consistent with the schematic drawings provided with the City’s community engagement/information package (see below).

A report (including attachments was presented to the ordinary meeting of Council on Tuesday, 9 October 2018 in regard to this proposal.

To view the minutes, read the report and the attachments, please visit the City's website. The report is contained at item 9.1 on page 37.

The City of Nedlands wishes to understand the level of community support for the project.

Originating from the 1930s, the Westside Wolves Hockey Club caters for people of all ages in the western suburbs and has more than 1,700 members – but no permanent home.

At the same time, the facilities will still be available for other community groups and other various community activities.

This consultation will assist with the decision-making process on whether to approve a period for the hockey club to further investigate and develop a detailed proposal and business plan.

The club has developed a concept plan for permanent hockey facilities, including a synthetic pitch, parking and clubrooms, and has been working with the City of Nedlands to find a suitable venue.

For this proposal to proceed, any future arrangements need to be negotiated with the existing clubs and organisations that currently use the oval including the Western Suburbs and Swanbourne Cricket Clubs, Claremont-Nedlands Cricket Club, UWA Nedlands Football Club, Claremont Jets and Mt Claremont Primary School.

There may also be potential impacts on people who use the oval for passive recreation such as walking and exercising dogs.

Ultimately, the City's wants to know if this is the right thing for the community.

This engagement project closes 5pm on 19 November 2018 with the community engagement outcomes being reported to Council in December.