A community group has questioned the significance of consultation Newcastle council conducted about the future of National Park given it is installing four new basketball courts before a plan of management is released.
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Friends of National Park, a group formed in late 2018 in response to the state of the park's north-western corner and the need to preserve open space for the city's growing population, believes the council has gone against community feedback.
The council cleaned up that section of National Park in late 2019 after a fire in the old bowling club building.
At the time, the lord mayor said the land "should be preserved for recreation and open space, given it is going to be one of the larger spaces adjacent to what is the CBD".
The council turfed part of the area and last September installed two basketball courts. It then commenced consultation about the broader park's future.
Friends of National Park spokesperson Sue Outram said her group participated and advocated for more open space and greenery.
But while it was waiting for the consultation results and a draft plan of management, the council announced in July it would build four more courts.
It had previously been told by council staff there would be no permanent structures installed before the POM was completed.
Ms Outram also said the council's summary of the community consultation made little mention of more basketball courts.
In a survey question about what people would like to see more of, the most selected options among 354 participants included trees (60%), pop-up activities (47%), exercise equipment (39%), sports courts (36%), markets (32%) and open spaces (27%).
The group is not against having "some, informal" courts, but it is aggrieved by the process and believes it is reflective of council's approach to consultation.
"Council is seeking to engage the community through surveys and other consultative processes, but sadly is increasingly seen ... taking decisions in line with their own priorities," Ms Outram said.
"Consultation is only meaningful when people are consulted, not told what is going to happen, or has happened. We're disappointed."
The council did not answer a question about why it is building the new courts before releasing a draft POM.
It said re-purposing the space for basketball rather than tennis was consistent with the existing POM, a 2012 document, which "categorised" the site as a "sportsground".
The lord mayor added council had "significantly increased" open space and "protected" the subject area from development.
"Two years ago none of this area was accessible to the community," she said.
"The positive impacts are clear to see from the high number of people who use the facilities every day, during a time when access to open space is more important than ever. The four new basketball courts will rejuvenate old unused asphalt.
"Around the new courts, we will provide new turf. We're also providing shade, seating and amenities like water bubblers to further enhance the space."
