Ryde Connector
a tr x E Capacity Doubled News Update from Victor Dominello MP
July 2018
Marsden High School
The decision to relocate Marsden High School to the Meadowbank Education Precinct is an exciting opportunity. However, I accept that it does come with challenges. Are we closing Marsden High School? No. This is absolutely untrue. Marsden High School is being relocated to the Meadowbank Education Precinct. The new buildings will be state of the art in design and facilities, providing students with an environment specifically catered for optimum learning results. The new high school will cater for double the capacity of students, essentially becoming two new Marsden High Schools. I am proud that we are building schools, not shutting schools. We are not allowing what happened in the past to dictate our future. Under various Labor Governments, Peter Board High School was closed in 1998 and the property sold in 2006 – we are now buying back that site to build a new high school. The Labor Government also closed Ryde High School in 1986; we are building a new primary school on the Smalls Rd site, which is due to open in 2020.
What about ongoing maintenance for Marsden over the next 3 years? Rest assured that all necessary maintenance work will be continued. How do we accommodate students from the new Melrose Park development? (old Putt-Putt Site) My number one job is to fight for and look after my constituents in Ryde. I am ensuring we accommodate the rising number of students in our area by doubling the capacity of Marsden High, and relocating it to the population epicentre Meadowbank, as well as reopening Peter Board High School, and a new Catholic High School at Ivanhoe Estate. This is in addition to currently operating high schools including Ryde Secondary, Epping Boys High School and Marist College Eastwood. Whilst the Putt-Putt area is not in our electorate, I understand that there will be around 5,000 new dwellings at the Payce Development.
A number of high schools in Parramatta will be enhanced to accommodate increased population, including major upgrades to Cumberland High School as well as the brand-new Arthur Phillip High School, which can accommodate up to 3,000 students. The Putt Putt site is also situated within the catchment areas of Riverside Girls and Macarthur Girls High Schools. In addition to the Payce Development there is speculation that the commercial land behind Payce in the Parramatta Council area may also be rezoned residential. This could realise a further 5,000 dwellings in the next 5 to 10 year period. Whilst this is not in our electorate, further development on this site will have an impact on us as it is on > > >
our immediate border. I will oppose any further densification of this area unless new traffic and educational infrastructure is provided. It is essential that the Department of Education, Parramatta Council and the Greater Sydney Commission ensure that any future development is supported by critical social infrastructure. It is clear to me that overdevelopment is the number one issue in Ryde. Our community needs more open space, not more apartments. The relocation of Marsden High and Meadowbank Public to the Education Precinct not only gives us the capacity of 2 new Meadowbank Public Schools and 2 new Marsden High Schools but provides the additional green and open space our community also desperately needs. Can we address all the traffic in Meadowbank? Meadowbank is a new demographic epicentre with all the apartments that were commenced under the former Government’s Part 3A planning laws. Rather than the population travelling to the school and thereby increasing traffic, it makes more sense to relocate the school closer to the population density in Meadowbank. We are fortunate in Meadowbank to have easy access to rail and ferry services. Students in Eastwood, Denistone and West Ryde will have much easier transport access to this new education precinct. A traffic steering committee will be established with Transport for NSW, Roads, TAFE, Education and Ryde Council to ensure we optimise opportunities to ease traffic as the Education Precinct is built. For example; Ryde Council as part of its developer contributions, can expand Constitution Rd between Bowden St and the train station, expand the walk bridge overpass to TAFE, and install the pedestrian lights on the lower side of Meadowbank station. The NSW government has already honoured its part of this agreement by installing pedestrian lights on the high side of the station. Providing more turning lanes onto Victoria Rd from Bowden Street and additional entry and exit points from Meadowbank train station can also be considered. Parking and drop off points will all need to be taken into account. Building of the Education Precinct over the next 3 years will enable the NSW Government and Council to address traffic issues holistically rather than by piecemeal approach.
Ivanhoe Estate
Connecting Communities As your local Member of Parliament for the last 10 years, I have been actively fighting over-development. Ryde is a true battleground, with 2 railway lines in our electorate: the soon to be opened North West Metro through Macquarie Park and the Northern Line we access between Eastwood and Meadowbank. While not just an issue for Ryde, Sydney’s population growth is over 100,000 each year and all Governments – Federal, State and Local – must find a way to house such growth. I am proud of what is proposed at Ivanhoe Estate. Many of you will recall the area as an outdated housing commission estate of about 270 dwellings with less than desirable outcomes. About 4 years ago, I was approached by the Department of Community Services who were interested in reviewing the Ivanhoe Estate. I did not want to see an old housing estate replaced with a new housing estate. I indicated that I would support the proposal on 2 main conditions: 1) that the new development contain a mix of social and non-social housing, and 2) that the new development contain critical social infrastructure, including a high school.
co-educational Catholic high school. Catholic Education are also currently exploring the feasibility of a new primary school. In addition to the school there will be an aged care facility, 2 child care centres, open spaces and appropriate shops. This tired social housing estate will be transformed into a community with substantial social infrastructure. Again, I am proud of what we are doing and it is seen as a flagship for future social housing models right throughout Australia. As a result of the mixed housing with a school, aged care & childcare facilities, we have a real opportunity to frame a better future. This is particularly so with the vast employment opportunities which exist in Macquarie Park and Ivanhoe’s proximity to a university, a hospital and world-class metro train lines.
I am pleased to report that the new Ivanhoe Estate will deliver on these expectations. About one-third of the new dwellings will be social and affordable housing, almost a 4-fold increase on the original estate. There will be with a new
Some people have raised issues regarding loss of trees. I have been advised by the Dept of Community Services, that there will be a net increase in the amount of trees planted in the new Ivanhoe precinct.
What will happen to the current netball site at Meadowbank?
This is historic and truly game changing funding. The Education Precinct will be nation leading and it will transform Ryde into an education powerhouse for our state.
As Ryde Council owns the current netball site this will be a matter for Council to determine. The netball courts could be converted into additional playing fields (e.g. for soccer or hockey), or they could be converted into passive recreational space. Under no circumstances will I support Ryde Council putting residential development on this site. The Meadowbank Education Precinct will be part of an unparalleled investment in education, sport and recreation for Ryde. This investment will see hundreds of millions of dollars of funding for our area.
How do we integrate primary, secondary and TAFE into a safe learning environment? With modern designs, buildings can look integrated from the outside but be completely detached on the inside with separate entry points for primary, secondary and TAFE students. Safety in design will be paramount and there will be plenty of community consultation to ensure we get this right.
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What is
Station Link? Station Link is a $49 million investment in more than 120 new, fully accessible, air-conditioned buses providing thousands of extra services from 30 September 2018. High frequency Station Link services will keep customers moving while the rail line between Epping and Chatswood is upgraded for around seven months, ahead of Sydney Metro opening in 2019. Ivanhoe is also supported by the following new road connections and upgrades:
Intersection upgrades at Herring Road with signalisation to Ivanhoe Place.
In Ryde, we’re currently upgrading the intersection of Herring & Epping Roads to enable 2 right-turning lanes onto Epping Road, to be completed in the next few months. This will noticeably improve the traffic flow. In addition, $100 M has been allocated for a bus interchange at Herring and Waterloo Road. This is a significant project and once completed, it will make a substantive improvement to traffic flow in and out of Macquarie Park.
Yes, traffic is a major problem in Macquarie Park/North Ryde area and indeed a challenge throughout Sydney and all major cities around the world.
Perspective is a good thing. I compare the community benefits at Ivanhoe to those from the 60 storey residential tower that Ryde Council is supporting:
Lyonpark Road connection across Shrimpton’s Creek; Left turn in to the precinct from Epping Road; and
IVANHOE
60 STOREY TOWER
Max Height
24 Storeys
60 Storeys
Floor Space Ratio
2.9:1 per sq m
6.5:1 per sq m
High School
Yes
No
Child Care Facility
Yes x 2
Yes x 2
Aged Care Facility
Yes
No
Social and Affordable Housing
Approximately 1,128
27
Green Space Area
3.4 HA of New Open space (40% of the site)
1,300 sq m open space plus $8.2M to upgrade existing Christie Park facilities
Involvement of Mission Australia
Yes
No
Key features of Station Link include: High frequency, turn-up-and-go services to stations between Epping and Chatswood at least every six minutes during the peak. More than 110 services per hour in the busiest parts of the day. A dedicated high frequency service to Macquarie University Campus from Epping Station during university semesters. A loop service running at least every 10 minutes 7 days a week to all stations between Epping to Chatswood. Station Link bus services will be available on the trip planner at transportnsw.info, and on real time apps. A package of road and intersection upgrades, including bus priority measures, will be completed by the introduction of Station Link to improve public transport reliability. More information can be found at http://www.mysydney.nsw.gov.au/ node/3856.
RYDE UPDATES I am fighting hard to get results for our community. If you would like to be kept updated on matters in Ryde, please sign up at: www.tinyurl.com/rydeupdates
Eastwood Ryde Netball Association
Light rail
ERNA’s New Home New Route
Victor with Waratah St residents
Anne Doring OAM, immediate past president of ERNA and I have been talking, rather, Anne has been talking and I have been listening, since I became the local member 10 years ago about her “Dream” to provide a quality sporting facility for the 5000 or so netballers in our community – a facility that will accommodate all ages and state competition at the highest level. Anne also talked to Council and everybody else who could possibly join her in this task. I recently joined with the Minister for Sport, The Hon Stuart Ayers to announce that the “Dream” is on its way. More and more families are choosing to call Ryde home and we are investing in grass roots sporting facilities to keep our kids active. Netball is one of NSW’s fastest growing sports with 113,000 members playing at
Transport for NSW has now committed that Wharf Road will not be considered as a route option for Parramatta Light Rail Stage 2.
Victor and Anne with Clr Roy Maggio, a long time supporter of ERNA all levels and we are now a step closer to achieving a new facility in Ryde following a $30 million funding commitment by the NSW Government and a MoU signed to secure the projects future. This will be a state-of-the-art sporting facility that will feature four indoor courts and 32 outdoor courts. Construction is expected to commence following the relocation of Marsden High School to the new campus in 2021.
The residents of Melrose Park made it very clear to me that building the light rail down Wharf Road was not a traffic management solution. I undertook a survey on their behalf, and 98% of survey respondents said Waratah Street was the preferred route option. I wrote to the Minister for Transport urging him to consider a relocation of the route down Waratah Street. I would like to thank you all for your support in this matter. In particular, I’d like to thank Pamela Smith, Paul Henry and Charles Marendy for their tireless efforts in mobilizing the community towards this solution. I would also like to thank Ryde Councillor and local resident Jordan Lane for his community advocacy and ensuring the residents of Wharf Road were heard. Without all of your support this solution wouldn’t be possible.
West Ryde
Jobs Precinct
The Greater Sydney Commission’s Lucy Turnbull accepted my invitation to visit our area for a briefing about the growing Vision that is the Jobs Precinct in West Ryde. Situated next to the area which will soon become the Meadow bank Education Precinct this will provide the perfect opportunity to integrate education and employment within walking distance of two rail stations, a ferry wharf and excellent bus connections. The vision is one of the first in this country to incorporate this level of integration and I look forward to updating you in the future on its progress.
Victor and Lucy Turnbull discuss the Jobs Precinct
Authorised by Victor Dominello MP, Ryde, NSW. Printed by Impress Colour, 13-15 Bond Crescent, Wetherill Park NSW 2164. This newsletter was produced using parliamentary entitlements.