By ALESHA CAPONE
RESIDENTS have both rejoiced and raged after a momentous decision on the future of the former Sunvale school site in Sunshine was announced last week.
Brimbank City Council’s administrators have voted to spend $3.025 million across two years to purchase part of the former campus, at 20 Neil St.
The council plans transform to 2.03 hectares into a public open use zone.
The other portion of the old school has been zoned as a residential area and will be sold off by the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD).
Save Sunvale member John Hedditch said although residents welcomed the council’s decision to purchase part of the land, he was disappointed the entire site would not become open space.
Mr Hedditch said the State Government promised to devote the entire site to open space before the last Victorian election and with Sunshine’s fast-growing population, a bigger recreation area would be needed.
“Everyone agrees the whole site would be needed for Sunshine’s future,” he said.
Despite the official decision on the land, Mr Hedditch said Save Sunvale members still hoped the State Government might yet sell Brimbank City Council the entire plot at an affordable price.
Mr Hedditch said another option discussed during negotiations would be for the Government to gift the land to council.
“We’re looking to the State Government to go and put some of the options to council before they (the Government and DEECD) try to sell it under our nose,” he said.
The former Sunvale principal, Alan Dash, said he welcomed the council’s decision but would have preferred the entire site to be retained for the community.
“It’s great that council decided to improve the amenity of Sunshine with a public park,” he said.
“It would have been nice to see the whole area as a park, but it’s a bold step forward.”
A spokesperson for the Education Minister Martin Dixon has said the DEECD decision to sell part of Sunvale was in accordance with government requirements.
They said proceeds would be “prioritised towards creating, maintaining, improving and extending assets that are core to current or future service delivery, including educational provision”.
