Gipps Road and Hyland Road Regional Parklands
| Gipps Road and Hyland Road Regional Parklands | |
|---|---|
 Entrance sign to the Sporting Complex urban park | |
| Type | Urban park, sports ground, nature reserve, urban forest |
| Location | Greystanes |
| Coordinates | 33°50′17″S 150°55′24″E / 33.8380°S 150.9232°E |
| Area | 63 hectares (155.68 acres) |
| Opened | 1985 |
| Operated by | Cumberland City Council |
| Status | Open all year |
Gipps Road and Hyland Road Regional Parklands is an urban park system and nature reserve situated in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, which incorporates Gipps Road Sporting Complex, Hyland Road Park and Hyland Road Reserve.[1] Situated on Gipps Road, Greystanes, the parklands are bordered by residential and industrial zones.[2]
The Sporting Complex is the most popular urban park in the system, which contains sportsgrounds and a picnic zone in the Jack Ferguson Recreational Area, on a large, flat landscape along Prospect Creek. Also known as Gipps Road Park,[3] the Sporting Complex is used for AFL, baseball and athletics. Hyland Road Reserve and Hyland Road Park are mostly remnant bushland with very few recreational facilities.[4]
History
[edit]The area was first settled in the 1790s when land grants were given to emancipated convicts for agricultural activities. Ownership of the lands constantly changed when, in the early 1800s, Irish convict Matthew Hyland coalesced the abutting lands, where he constructed a large homestead. Due to its agricultural inheritance, the parklands remained grazing lands further into the 20th century when a water pipeline between Prospect Reservoir and a pipehead was constructed in 1934. The land was purchased by Holroyd Municipal Council in 1939. Holroyd Council began to modify the Hyland Road Park field into a landfill that ran until 1985 when it became a landfill for clean fill. Jack Ferguson Recreational Area was opened in 1986.[4]
Geography
[edit]Gipps Road Sporting Complex
[edit]
In Gipps Road, to the south, is Gipps Road Sporting Complex which, on its western side, chiefly consists of grassland and undulating scenery that includes hills, depressions, and walking tracks, providing elevated vistas in all directions, particularly of Prospect Hill to the north. The eastern portion is primarily flat, so it can conform to the sport fields and parking zone, in addition to having good levels of natural surveillance with visual modality from Gipps Road and the adjacent carpark.[2]
Historically, it was cleared for vegetation since the 1800s as it was used for agricultural purposes. Today, the park comprises of turf with sporadic clusters of trees and it still features native woodland such as Coastal Swamp Oak Forest on the banks of Prospect Creek, though a flood control construction has affected a portion of the creek near the baseball field. Two zones of remnant bushland still exist in the northwestern corner that connects to Hyland Road Park to the north and the riparian zone on both sides of Prospect Creek on the southern bounds. Moreover, the Sporting Complex is contiguous with Rosford Street Reserve to the south, in Smithfield, via an underpass beneath Gipps Road.[4]
The Jack Ferguson Reserve, situated at the corner of Gipps Road and the Liverpool–Parramatta T-way, features a picnic zone and children's playground, in addition to a retention basin which is filled up by runoff from Hyland Road Park and Gipps Road Sporting Complex. The overflow of the pond is transported by pipe and grass swale to Prospect Creek.[4]
Hyland Road Reserve
[edit]In the north, Hyland Road Reserve sits on the sloped base of Prospect Hill and spans from the defunct water supply canal in the west to the reconstructed waterway in the east. It features remnants of Cumberland Plain Woodland, blended with open grasslands and a periodically filled wetland area. The Reserve is broadly cleared with some zones of regenerated planted vegetation. Though the most thick-forested areas are found near the waterway on the Reserve's eastern hem, which connect to the waterway in Hyland Road Park in the south.[4]
Hyland Road Park
[edit]Hyland Road Park, which is to the south of Hyland Road, is a former landfill planned for development as a sportsground that features an elevated point in the northwest corner. Since 2013 it has mainly been an undeveloped landfill site, with the exception of its boundary where a large part of the Cumberland Plain Woodland encircles the stream that meanders along Gipps Road, extending from the northern boundary of the Parklands to a pond in the northwestern nook of the Sporting Complex.
The park has a natural drainage line on its eastern end that empties in the retention basin at the Jack Ferguson Reserve to the south. Several modifications have caused the establishment of an sporadic overflowing wetland area that covers the central component of the bushland area. The zone between Gipps Road and the drainage line still maintains a species constitution which is typical of the natural vegetation that was present in the Sydney area prior to European settlement. Although the vegetation has been disturbed, there is ongoing robust regeneration in the area. Although fencing aids conservation of the species, the nearby traffic from Gipps Road and the waterway have become a source of weed invasion.[4]
Ecology
[edit]
Vegetation near the Sporting Complex primarily consists of Casuarina glauca, with sporadic areas that feature Angophora floribunda (rough-barked apple) and Eucalyptus tereticornis. Other plant species also found include, Melaleuca styphelioides (prickly leaved paperbark), Hardenbergia violacea, Acacia parramattensis (green Wattle), Pittosporum undulatum and Eucalyptus amplifolia (cabbage gum), which is found near the creek. Introduced species include Lantana camara, Ligustrum sinense (small leaved privet) and Ligustrum lucidum (large-leaved privet). Ground layer features dense growth of Pennisetum clandestinum, Typha orientalis, Phragmites australis and Tradescantia albiflora, which are found in the wetter parts of Hyland Road Park. Eucalyptus fibrosa (narrow-leaved ironbark) and Bursaria spinosa (blackthorn) are the most widespread species in Hyland Road Park, with Indigofera australis (native indigo), Pultenaea sp. and Acacia falcata.[4]
The waterway features several weed species, such as, Myriophyllum brasilence and Isolepis prolifera, with native aquatic plants that include Persicaria decipiens and Schoenoplectus validus. In addition to a small community of reptiles and amphibians, Cumberland Bird Observers Club have recorded around 130 species of bird in the area. The vegetation near Prospect Creek vegetation has been affected by major degradation, mainly due to direct disturbance of the soil from neighboring land uses which resulted in high amounts of nutrients from the Creek and discharges from urban modification upstream of the park. Despite the disturbance, the residual vegetation still has enough native species and vegetation pattern for it to be considered as a genuine bushland remnant. Furthermore, the large grass area requires frequent maintenance and the trees in the grass area are arduous to maintain.[4]
Features and facilities
[edit]
Gipps Road Sporting Complex features toilets, over 70 parking spaces, change rooms, athletics amenities block (which has a gym), a demountable AFL clubhouse, a shared walking and cycling path, long jump pits, shotput rings, hammer throws, discus rings, two sets of goal post, a multisport field, a playground, barbeque facilities, baseball dugouts, groundwater tanks, seats, and general fencing. Ten major sports groups and clubs use the park on a regular basis. AFL usage runs from April to September (generally autumn-winter), athletics usage runs from September to March (spring-summer) and baseball in winter months.[4]
Hyland Road Park features a heritage house, Holroyd Youth Services, a rifle range and a pigeon club building. Hyland Road Park is currently devoid of any sports facilities, but an indoor centre, an outdoor sports court, cricket and soccer fields were proposed in 2013. The park also feature remnants of Cumberland Plain Woodland in the eastern border, with bicycle and pedestrian access from Hyland Road. The visual attraction of Hyland Road Reserve is defined by minor vegetation amalgamated with open grass zones. The pedestrian access to Hyland Road Reserve is limited to a dirt track from the neighboring cycleway and Hyland Road.[4]
In 2013, there was a proposal to build a marae (a cultural centre for the Maori people) on the northern area of Hyland Road Park. If built, it will be the first of its kind outside of New Zealand.[5] In 2022, Cumberland City Council put in place a 20-year lease with the Sydney Marae Alliance to construct the marae in Hyland Road Reserve.[6]
Gallery
[edit]-
Riparian bushland -
AFL field looking towards the clubhouse -
Picnic zone at Jack Ferguson Reserve -
The pond in the north -
A commemorative plaque in Jack Ferguson Recreational Area/Reserve -
Long jump runway -
The bushland and pipeline at Hyland Road Park/Reserve with Pemulwuy residential zone in background
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Landscape Masterplan, Hyland Road Reserve" (PDF). Cumberland City Council. 16 August 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
- ^ a b "Council Meeting". Cumberland City Council. 3 February 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
- ^ "Gipps Road Park". Cumberland City Council. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Environmental Partnership NSW Pty Ltd (September 2013). "Gipps Road and Hyland Road Regional Parklands Plan of Management" (PDF). Holroyd City Council. Retrieved 22 November 2024.
- ^ Elias Jahshan (4 September 2013). "First traditional Maori community centre outside of New Zealand could be built in Greystanes". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 23 November 2024.
- ^ "First traditional Maori community centre outside of New Zealand could be built in Greystanes". Cumberland City Council. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2024.