Why the rush to sell parks and reserves?

Why is Gosford Council in such a rush to sell of parks and reserves on the Peninsula?

Ostensibly, this is to provide funding for infrastructure, but we are assured that Gosford's bottom line is well in the black, so why are we giving up scarce parkland that will be badly needed in the future, as the population grows in line with expectations?

The rush is particularly difficult to understand when we shall have an amalgamated city this year, and the time to decide on public-land dispositions is after the new council has had the opportunity to set region-wide priorities, rather than the short-term parochial goals that seem to be guiding Gosford Council.

If Mr Conacher is correct (PN, 25 Jan 2015) and the land sales require action to conform to the Local Government Act, it seems unlikely that Gosford Council will be able to clear the legal hurdles before it ceases to exist, so the appropriate course is to defer this exercise for more mature consideration.

It is to be hoped that the community groups examining the sell-off will be able to get this hasty action postponed.

Letter, 28 Jan 2016

Bruce Hyland, Woy Woy