Local News – 245

Westconnex Community Fight

The Westconnex Action group has continued organising against the proposed 10-year road development, which aims to connect suburbs from Parramatta to Bexley, with their first community meeting held last week. Over 100 residents attended. Construction of the major road project will commence in 2015, although test drilling has already commenced at 100 sites to gather geological data.

Spokesperson for the Westconnex Action Group, Emma Pierce, says that residents are most concerned about the lack of information provided by Westconnex. “There is a lot of stress around the community as it seems Westconnex is already a full-blown conclusion, and we are not being provided with any other options,” she said.

Accessible Bus Shelters

Canada Bay Council has commenced rolling out new bus shelters along Brewer street in Concord and along Victoria Road in Drummoyne, with 38 new shelters planned to be popping up by Christmas. The shelters have been designed to better cater to the needs of residents with differing abilities; all shelters will be undercover with a ramp for easy embarking and disembarking, as well as tactile ground surface for people who are blind and vision impaired to locate the shelter, and a boarding point, an allocated space for wheel chair users.

Pride Football Australia Tournament

Last weekend Leichhardt’s Lambert park was host to Pride Football Australia’s third annual tournament which aims to breakdown stereotypes of LGBTIQ people in sport.

The tournament was run by gay and lesbian football clubs, the Sydney Rangers and the Flying Bats, playing against Victoria’s Melbourne Rovers. Over $1000 was raised on the day for queer youth support service, Twenty 10.

Joseph Roppolo, the Sydney Ranger’s President said the day was important in challenging the casual homophobia often heard in locker rooms and on the field. “It was a fantastic day to celebrate the diversity in society and provide a space for gay and lesbian footballers to play in a fun and competitive environment,” he said.