Column - Sunday Mail - 23 May 2010

Black Hill Pony Club

More than 30 years ago a group of dedicated volunteers took a piece of land in Woodforde and created something unique.

Back then there was no shortage of open space in the Adelaide metropolitan area. Some of the major suburbs around today were still a mere twinkle in the eyes of developers.

So an undeveloped piece of land in close proximity to the Magill Youth Training Centre probably wasn't a particularly desirable address at the time and the government of the day allowed this parcel to be used by horse enthusiasts to create a place where people living in the area could keep a horse, and where people without a horse could visit and learn to ride.

And so it was that the Black Hill Pony Club was born.

In addition to clearing the site, which was a rubbish dump at the time, the first club members also invested their own money and the sweat off their brows into building the necessary facilities. From very humble beginnings the club now has two arenas, a round yard arena and a short-course cross-country course. It has a clubhouse and hundreds of members and supporters. After its recent spate of publicity I suspect it will soon have hundreds more.

You see, the problem is that the State Labor Government has decided to evict the Black Hill Pony Club so it can sell off the land for a new housing development, along with the Magill Youth Training Centre. This will allow the Government to finance a new Youth Training facility in Cavan. The club has until November 30 to pack up and leave.

Now the Black Hill Pony Club isn't some sort of country club for the elite. It has a no-frills clubhouse and the facilities are basic. The membership is very diverse, with a lot of families who have children with a passion for horses but not necessarily the means to afford to buy and look after one.

This is a club about horses and horse-riding and brings together families who share that passion.

With the future of the club in doubt and the hard work that has occurred over the past few decades by the volunteers in jeopardy, it seems like the State Labor Government just doesn't care. Anyone who visits the club can see that it is well worth preserving, and would cost of lot of money and take a lot of work to rebuild elsewhere.

What this really highlights is another major issue which I have written about on these pages before. We need to preserve the open spaces in our existing urban environment, not fill those spaces in with just more housing.

As land values continue to rise, the temptation will always exist for governments and councils to sell off property for redevelopment without ensuring that a portion is preserved for community use.

But with sites like the Magill Youth Training Centre and Glenside Hospital being redeveloped, we are wasting one of those very rare opportunities to do something great with a large tract of land. Rather than only constructing more housing we could have a community vegetable garden for local schools, or playing fields and a running track. While we worry so much as a society about exercise and obesity, we seem intent on making it harder for ourselves to get outside.

What is the appeal of living in a city, which is rapidly moving away from the traditional quarter-acre block towards denser residential developments, when we've filled in all the parkland and open space with even more housing?

Losing the Black Hill Pony Club to redevelopment would be an absolute tragedy. The local State Member of Parliament, John Gardner, and I have been circulating a petition that can be obtained from either my office or from John's office. We intend to keep the fight up to overturn this decision, and there are many ways to stay informed. The Black Hill Pony Club Facebook page already has over 1000 members protesting against this move.

I would also like to see a significant part of the Magill Youth Training Centre offered to the community as a new open area rather than be completely sold off.

Preserving our open spaces is a bit of a no-brainer really. In a growing city, we need to think long term when it comes to town planning to ensure open spaces, and facilities like the Black Hill Pony Club are preserved for future generations.

Click here to download the Petition and then return it by mail to my office on 429 Magill Road, ST MORRIS SA 5068.