Blackheath Soldiers Memorial Park

Update: Garden improvements underway

Garden improvement work is now underway at Blackheath Soldiers Memorial Park.

The primary purpose of the garden works is to open up views between the barbecue area and playground. This will improve sight lines across the park and allow families to better supervise their children at the playground while enjoying visits at the park.

The garden works will also help to ensure the future health of the wonderful variety of plants within the park.

Starting 4 February 2022 and continuing into the next week:

• One of the current garden beds at the ANZAC gates park entrance (Prince Edward Street) is being cleared and removed. Individual, established plants such as tree ferns and an oak tree from this garden are being retained.
• A new garden bed will be established at the same time to extend along the fence line at this entrance. The location of the new garden bed has been carefully designed to open views of the park to visitors as they enter through the ANZAC gates. Many mature azaleas will also be relocated into this new garden bed.

Relocated plants will be replanted immediately to maximize their chance of success and allow them to continue to grow in a healthy and beautiful way, with the space they require. Trees within the site of the new garden bed will be retained for their landscape values, including Japanese Maple and a variety of other ornamental trees.

To allow for a new fully accessible path to be constructed (from the ANZAC gates to the corner of the pool enclosure) we are unable to re-establish a large box hedge currently at this location.

While we anticipate that these garden works will cause minimal disruption for visitors, Council thanks the community for their patience as we work to improve the safety and amenity of this beautiful District Park

On Monday 15 March, contractors will be doing some investigations at the park by drilling shallow holes into the ground.

This is not the start of works but will help us understand the soil structure better as we plan for construction later in the year.

Construction of New Toilet Block and Accessible Path in 2021

Construction of the new toilet block is an essential step in maintaining this park as one of four district parks across the Blue Mountains. Our design consultants listened to the community about the importance of reflecting the heritage of the Blackheath Pool architecture and ensuring any new building would complement the overall style of the park. The local community has played an important role in shaping the design and we thank them for their input.

Click here to see the final toilet block concept design or view it in the document library on the right hand side.

Masterplan Adopted

The Masterplan was adopted at the 25 August 2020 Council meeting. This guiding document has had a significant contribution from the local community with consultation taking place over the last two years. Council has also sought specialist advice from architects and engineers on best practice.

The Masterplan centres on the four main elements of the park: Community, Heritage, Water and English Garden Landscape Style. It provides direction for the landscaped section of the park as well as the bushland and it will be managed in line with the Plan of Management. Council continues to look for funding to undertake identified future works.

Click here to review the Masterplan or you can find it in the document library on the right hand side.

With extensive community consultation over the last year, the Masterplan has been available on Have Your Say, in various ‘earlier’ versions for the community to provide feedback on. This has helped to shape the final ‘draft’ Masterplan that went to the April Council meeting this year.

We understand that it has caused some confusion as to which document to comment on with previous versions still online. There is now only one ‘draft’ Masterplan available to view on Have Your Say and we have extended the exhibition period to Sunday 5 July. You can look at it by clicking here or in the document library.

If you have looked at ‘earlier’ versions, you might notice some minor changes throughout the document, and in particular, pages 11, 36 and 37 are additional pages that you may not have seen before. However all submissions already received are still important and will be included so there is no need to provide a new submission unless you wish to add extra comments. After your input from this current consultation, the Masterplan will go back to Council to be considered for adoption.

No. The draft Masterplan focuses on how we can enhance the park and improve the experience for everyone who uses the space, There are four elements through which the park with be managed – Community, Heritage, Water and English Garden Landscape Style. These are described in detail on page 8 of the draft Masterplan, and referenced throughout the document.

There are also six areas of focus for you to comment on – Rhododendron Lawn, Pools, Community Hub, Swamp Precinct, Menin Gates, Amphitheatre.

Council manages 105 parks and 56 formal playgrounds across the Blue Mountains.

Not every park and playground is the same. We have different kinds of parks and playgrounds, which people use differently, and need different equipment and management.

Blackheath Soldiers Memorial Park is one of four district parks in the Blue Mountains. District parks are large and high quality parks that cater to the needs of the broader Blue Mountains community. They offer a wider variety of activities and settings and are often the most popular parks and playgrounds.

In addition to the different types and levels of parks, Council provides a range of different play types across our playgrounds and parks, to ensure there is something to suit children’s diverse needs and ages.

• Read more about our parks and playgrounds

Thankyou for your continued interest in Blackheath Soldiers Memorial Park Masterplan. Before the Masterplan is presented to Councillors in early 2020, we are seeking input from you on three aspects:

· The alignment of the accessible paths,

· The location of new amenities, and

· Risk mitigation of the timber lined stormwater drain

Two documents are now available on https://yoursay.bmcc.nsw.gov.au/blackheath-memorial-park for you to review;

· The Preliminary Draft Masterplan – showing the draft masterplan minus areas where we are seeking further input to preferred approach for the proposed accessible paths, amenities and the timber lined drain,

· The Path and Amenities Feasibility Report - exploring options for the paths, amenities and the timber lined drain,

A feedback survey form is available on this page for you to let us know your thoughts on the various options and the Preliminary Draft Masterplan.

We are seeking further feedback from all those who have a strong interest in planning for Memorial Park. After your input has been received, the preferred options will be incorporated into the draft Masterplan with the aim to present to Councillors in March 2020 to adopt for exhibition. This exhibition period will seek additional community comments and suggestions.

Please read the documents and provide your feedback by Friday 14th February 2020. We appreciate being able to draw upon your knowledge of Memorial Park and look forward to hearing from you over the coming four weeks.

For further information please email council@bmcc.nsw.gov.au

Blackheath Soldiers Memorial Park Master Plan – Additional Community Consultation

Date: Monday 13 May 2019 (6pm – 8pm)

Confirmed Venue: Blackheath RSL Sub-Branch Hall, 2 Bundarra Street, Blackheath

This venue is accessible. Some light refreshments and tea and coffee will be available.

Please RSVP via email ntaylor@bmcc.nsw.gov.auby 9am, Monday 13 May .

As part of the master plan process for Blackheath Soldiers Memorial Park a workshop was held in Blackheath on 4 April 2019 to share and explore ideas of how the draft master plan can unfold. A preliminary draft master plan was tabled, plus a range of other material to stimulate discussion.

The workshop was attended by twenty locals, one dog and three Council staff. The range of ideas expressed on a variety of topics is summarised into the tables below. Consensus was not sought so contradictory ideas are recorded.

See Documents Library for full report.