Photo: Hobart Town Rivulet – Artists’ Impressions LINC Tasmania
All politicians with Mount Wellington at the heart of their electorate should make their views known on its future, as a deadline for a management review of Wellington Park closes tomorrow.
Public comments on a controversial new management plan for the Wellington Park close at 5pm on Friday 26 October. Anna Reynolds, Greens candidate for Denison has made a submission and calls on all politicians in the Hobart area to do the same.
For the first time, the new draft plan proposes to allow commercial development on the mountain’s summit.
“Wellington Park is a much loved feature of Hobart life, and its proper management is of great interest to this community,” says Ms Reynolds.
“In my submission I say it’s a mistake to change key parts of the existing plan. I support keeping the Springs as the place for new visitor facilities, and I support the prohibition of commercial development at the Pinnacle.”
In her submission Anna Reynolds says that:
• projects on the top of the mountain are likely to be expensive to develop because of the lack of services and the inhospitable climate and would inevitably need public subsidies to survive.
• if a cable car was the focus of a major development there is a risk that the developer would push for the closure of the road to the general public in order to make the development viable.
• development at the Pinnacle would undermine both the existing businesses at Ferntree and any new development at the Springs.
• the Springs is a better development site for a range of reasons – a more amenable climate, more days when a city view is visible, and access to more bushwalks than the Pinnacle.
“Mount Wellington’s future management is something that all current and aspiring representatives in Denison should have a view about. The community need to know where their representatives stand on Hobart’s icon.”
Anna Reynolds’ submission can be viewed here:
http://tas.greens.org.au/sites/greens.org.au/files/WPMT%20submission.pdf
