Parkwood service approved despite local concerns over safety

Western Australia’s Joint Development Assessment Panel has approved a long day care service in the suburb of Parkwood, despite concerns from residents that its busy residential road location poses a safety risk. 

 

The $2.1 million application, submitted by the Lionheart Development Fund, angered local residents, with interjections from the public gallery during the meeting including phrases such as “there’s blood on your hands” and “someone is going to die”. 

 

Despite the depth of feeling from the community, which included 106 objections submitted during a period of public consultation, the panel approved the plans to transform the site – which previously held three residential homes – into a 94-place early childhood education and care (ECEC) service. 

 

Three other ECEC services operate within a 2 km radius of the development site, leaving some residents questioning the need for a fourth, however a point of difference for the proposed service (which currently has no operator) is that it will operate Monday – Saturday, providing an additional day of care compared to surrounding competitors. 

 

Central to the concerns of Parkwood residents is the position of the proposed centre, which they believe will increase traffic at the intersection of Willeri Drive and Manus Place, leading to increased risk of accidents. 

 

“A lot of the Parkwood suburb actually use Manus (Place) to get on to Willeri Drive because Willeri is a feeder into Roe Highway,” Parkwood resident Alexander Greig explained to local news source Perth Now. 

 

“What will happen is there will be a lot of traffic coming through (from the daycare) and that can sometimes cause stacking, especially when someone wants to turn right on to Willeri Drive.

 

“All you need is for somebody to see that the traffic is backed up and move out of the way (slowly) and somebody else is coming up faster behind them…you will see an incident occurring there.”

 

Other concerns outlined during the public consultation period included an increase in noise pollution, traffic congestion, and the impact on the largely residential area. 

 

In response to the panel’s decision, a group of local residents have begun investigating their rights to an appeal through the State Administrative Tribunal, hoping to have the decision reviewed by the Courts.