Parramatta River Masterplan Launch
Despite a week of wet weather, the sun emerged just in time for the launch of the Parramatta River Masterplan on Thursday, 18 October. The damp conditions required a change of venue to The Connection at Rhodes which offered stunning views of Homebush Bay in the Parramatta River.
The event was well-attended by more than 120 people with representatives from all of our member agencies and other related community groups. The Master of Ceremonies was gardening guru, Costa Georgiadis, who added his customary levity to the formalities and spoke passionately about the importance of making the river swimmable again.
Speakers included:
- PRCG Chair, Clr Mark Drury
- PRCG Deputy Chair, Clr Penny Pederson
- Member for Parramatta, Dr Geoff Lee
- Sydney Water General Manager, Liveable City Solutions, Paul Plowman
- City of Ryde Mayor, Jerome Laxale
- City of Canada Bay Deputy Mayor, Clr Charles Jago and
- PRCG Coordinator, Sarah Holland Clift.
Finally, the moment arrived to announce the location of the three new swimming sites to be opened by 2025! Mayor Laxale and Clr Pederson revealed the new site at Putney Park, Putney, and Clr Jago unveiled the sites at Bayview Park, Concord and McIlwaine Park, Rhodes East.
Guests were entertained by the dynamic Junkyard Beats who provided a high-energy routine using recycled items. The comical duo from Circus Solarus added a whimsical touch the event with their colourful Hawaiian shirts, flippers and floaties.
There was strong media interest on the day with more than 20 news articles across all platforms, including coverage on the evening news bulletins of all four television networks.
The launch was a great celebration of this important milestone in making the river swimmable again. A huge thank you goes to everyone who helped make the launch such a successful and memorable day, and particularly to City of Canada Bay for hosting the event at short notice.
Tell us what you think
The Masterplan Report is now on public exhibition until 5pm, Thursday, 29 November. We would love everyone to read the plan and tell us what you think either via a submission, our Masterplan survey or a short comment.
