By Andrew Paloczi
THOSE at Foster & District Agricultural & Pastoral Society remain certain that a planned skatepark in the showgrounds will have a detrimental impact on the town’s annual Show, given space is already tight.
However, the organisation’s secretary, Den Gilheany, concedes that as far as hopes of locating the new facility elsewhere in Foster go, “That ship has sailed.”
That follows the recent South Gippsland Shire Council decision to lock in the showgrounds as the site of the skatepark.
At the October council meeting, councillors voted to endorse Foster Showgrounds and undertake further stakeholder consultation to determine the final site within the grounds.
The local A & P Society must now determine where in the showgrounds the skatepark would be best situated to minimise negative impact on the Show, so that the organisation can advocate to council for that location and additional improvements to the grounds through the new consultation phase.
While the Society put in a formal submission to council expressing concerns about whether previous consultation adequately reflected community views, that hasn’t led to any joy.
Lack of space is already the biggest challenge confronting Show organisers, meaning that planning new entertainment, competitions or other activities for Show Day poses the question, ‘Where are we going to fit that?’
With the loss of space likely to be comparable to two netball courts, and the skatepark area not able to be used for other purposes, Den said some of those at the A & P Society are concerned about how the development might affect the Show’s future.
Council’s current preferred skatepark location within the Showgrounds is particularly concerning, Den explained.
“It would impact the woodchop, one of the mainstay attractions of the Show,” she said, noting the working dogs would also be affected, as would access to the loading ramp used for livestock delivery.
While conceding she understands council’s reasons for choosing the showgrounds, Den said the prospect of locating the skatepark at the Foster train station offered potential long-term benefits despite substantially higher initial cost to put in amenities and improve access to town.
She argues that developing the station area and linking it to town would provide tourism benefits, encouraging rail trail users to venture into Foster.
“It’s not necessarily a step backwards for Foster to develop another area,” Den said.
The extra cost to place the skatepark in the station precinct has been put at $500,000, due to the lack of supporting infrastructure.
While council points out the A & P Society is just one of the user groups at Foster Showgrounds and the Show runs on only a single weekend each year, Den stressed the event attracts three and a half thousand people to town and is a significant day for the community.
She also noted the many months of hard work volunteers contribute to make the event happen.
Sentinel-Times will advise when it is determined how and when further consultation will occur.
