City of Nedlands accused of ‘bloody minded’ behaviour after blocking PCHF hospice rehabilitating Allen Park

Perth Children Hospital Foundation boss Ian Campbell has accused Nedlands council of acting like a “dog in the manger” after it voted to reject a bid to restore a green space ahead of a planned hospice for sick kids. The PCHF had offered $4 million to cover consultation, design, construction and maintenance of 3000sqm of green space at a patch of cleared land in Allen Park, Swanbourne, near the hospice site. “The only reason I’m interested in putting some greenery on that dust bowl is because I want the kids to be able to look out their windows, or go outside and see something green and lush and nice,” Mr Campbell said. “There are also side benefits for the community, because they will have that dust bowl re-vegetated and have a nice place to go to and from the beach.” But the council rejected the idea at its Tuesday meeting, with deputy mayor Kerry Smyth adamant that A-class reserves such as Allen Park were a responsibility for local government. “It’s not up to another entity to front up and say ‘we think you’re doing a bad job, how about we step in and do it for you’ for the next 40 years,” Cr Smyth said. “The management, use and promotion of class-A reserves is the function of this managing body and no other entity.” It comes after the council decided last month to continue developing its Norn Bidi Trail, which will be built across Allen Park, despite urgings from the PCHF, which is building the hospice, to shelve the project for two years. “They are knowingly and willingly making it harder to build the hospice,” Mr Campbell said. “They have been told by their own executive that if they go and build that ridiculous insult of a path, that they are going to make it harder to build the hospice. “I find it exasperating and quite frankly upsetting.” Last year, the WAPC unanimously backed a recommendation from the State Development Assessment Unit to approve the $33m hospice which will support children and their families from the time of diagnosis through to end-of-life-care. It is expected to take two years to build and will contain seven children’s bedrooms, three family suites, a hydrotherapy pool, health therapy rooms, playrooms for activities including art, music and therapeutic toy play, communal dining and lounge areas.