Perth Voice Interactive

‘I’m a bit concerned about taking down the fence which exposes the kids to the street’

TWO Dianella families are celebrating after Stirling city council backflipped to allow four kids to keep their play space.

The council had wanted to tear down the play space built on the vacant lot beside the Terranova family house because of rules over unauthorised structures. The landlord had given his blessing for the families to use it.

The play space is used by Ms Terranova’s young children Sophia and Sam and young neighbours Daniel and Anthony Donatelli.

A neighbour’s noise complaint in March last year had initially sparked the council’s interest.

Gina Terranova fought to keep the cubby house, swings and sand pit by appealing the council’s edict to the powerful but unelected state administrative tribunal.

After the SAT asked the council to reconsider, it voted to approve the play park subject to conditions including the removal of the front fence, repositioning of a sail shade and reapplying for approval every 12 months.

“I’m a bit concerned about taking down the fence which exposes the kids to the street, but on the whole I’m okay with the conditions of approval,” Ms Terranova says.

“We just wanted our two kids, and our neighbours’ kids, to get out and play rather than sitting in front of a TV.

“The owner of the vacant lot says we can use it for around three years and the neighbour who initially complained retracted the objection after we explained we weren’t running a day care centre.

“Before we built the play space there was kids on the lot at 2am, people dumping rubbish and loiterers—it was a total mess.”

Council staff noted a 2012 inspection had found builders’ materials, including sea containers and a large skip bin, on the lot.

They were subsequently removed.

There are three local parks within 400 metres of the Bencubbin Crescent block.

by STEPHEN POLLOCK