News Release: Campaigners double down on fight to Save Victoria Park
Tuesday 13 November 2025
SAVE Victoria Park campaigners have pledged to double down on the fight to save the historic inner-city green space, with a special event tomorrow morning (Wednesday November 12) marking 150 years since the park’s establishment.
“This is just one pivotal moment in Victoria Park Barrambin’s long and storied history,” said the group’s president Sue Bremner.
“As we celebrate the ongoing custodianship of our First Nations and the vision of our forebears, we pledge to continue fighting the short-sighted, destructive plans of those currently in power.”
The event follows recent comments from the head of the state government’s authority in charge of Olympics infrastructure, Simon Crooks, who last month stated that stadium earthworks could commence mid-2026.
This premature approach would mean carrying out substantial works before even key planning documents such as the precinct masterplan have been finalised.
“These comments are the act of a desperate government,” said Ms Bremner.
“They know how risky this project is. It’s built on a house of cards - on broken election promises, an abandoned Host City Contract, the trashing of 15 acts of parliament and mounting disquiet about Olympics spending.
“Now they appear to be planning to ignore key commitments in the Olympics Intergovernmental Agreement with the Commonwealth.
“This agreement makes it clear that the state must engage in genuine consultation with First Nations and affected communities in order to maintain federal funding for their Olympic projects.
“How are they going to ensure this if they plough ahead with earthworks so early? By taking a scorched earth approach and ensuring that consultation or heritage protection are no longer relevant?
“We are seriously concerned that the bulldozers will move in even earlier, potentially over Christmas when they think our guard is down.
“Well, we are watching and will take every legitimate recourse to protect the park.”
There are currently multiple legal applications relating to Victoria Park Barrambin being assessed under the federal Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act. It is worth noting this Act provides additional emergency levers that First Nations applicants can use to protect culturally significant sites if the threat of desecration is imminent.
“There has never been the mandate, nor the time, for the government to carry out this ill-conceived idea,” said Ms Bremner. “The red flags and short cuts will just keep on coming.
“It’s time the Premier outlined his Plan B.”
ENDS