Open Space and Public Place Plan - City of West Torrens - SA.Gov.au

4 Existing Supply and Condition of Open Space
4.1 Setting the Scene
The character of a local government area can have a substantial
influence on the value and use of open space and public place.
Therefore, it is important to consider the character and quality of
existing open space to provide a context for future planning and
enhancement. The main features and the potential implications for
open space and the public place in West Torrens are:
• Total Council area of 36 square kilometres, roughly bounded
by the City of Adelaide Parklands to the east, the River
Torrens to the north, Anzac Highway and the Adelaide -
Glenelg tramline to the south, and the Gulf of St Vincent to
the west
• Predominantly suburban in character having experienced
urban development for the majority of European occupation
of South Australia, resulting in limited remaining areas of
indigenous habitat
• Industry is a significant land use, particularly in the eastern
and central portion of the Council area
• Adelaide Airport is a dominant feature of the region – the
large area of land and associated infrastructure is managed
independently, creating a planning hole within the Council
which affects open space provision and connections
• Many suburbs' (especially in the central and eastern
portions of the City) useable public open space is located
greater than 400m from many houses
• The City contains the River Torrens Linear Park and
Westside Bikeway which provide east to west connectivity
• Low quality public places given existing streetscapes
(Henley Beach Road, Sir Donald Bradman Drive and Anzac
Highway) predominance for vehicle movement, however
potential good access via a traditional grid street network
• The urban fabric of the City is extremely segmented with
private land, administrative boundaries or transport corridors
separating the residential population from access to open
space, and inhibiting connections between open space
• Large areas of commercial land offering potential for urban
regeneration and increased residential density
• Good distribution of district sports and recreation reserves
and facilities
• Good distribution of open space and playgrounds to the
Council's western suburbs, particularly Fulham and Novar
Gardens.
4.2 Provision of Open Space in West Torrens
Table 1 indicates that the City of West Torrens currently has 150.27
hectares of open space that is either owned or under the care and
control of Council. With a residential population of 56,960 1 people,
this equates to 2.63 hectares per 1,000 people. Other forms of open
space, such as golf courses and school ovals are excluded from
this equation as they are generally not freely available to the public
and, generally, are beyond the scope of Council’s influence.
1 Australian Bureau of Statistics (2011) Regional Population Growth, Australia
(3218.0)
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