Parkland Principles

The Parkland Principles were adopted in interim form at the Planning Crisis Conference convened in July 1996 by the Town and Country Planning Association', and are intended to implement the requirements of the Parklands Code.

Parklands are for the common good and must be occupied by minority groups only for recreational or educational purposes, with the minimum restrictions of general access, with the minmum visual intrusion, and in a potentially reversible manner.
Any proposal to use parkland in any other fashion must be contingent upon an equal or greater area of land being added to the park in a position where it can be successfully integrated into the design.
The only buildings which should be permitted in parkland are interpretation centres directly relevant to the park in question, toilet facilities required by users, and minimal changing facilities at sports areas. Any other building should be considered a reduction of the parkland, and the site of the building, considered as the area of the structure itself plus a surrounding belt of 20m or five times the maximum building height, whichever is greater, should be compensated for as provided in point 2.
Administrative, social and other facilities are not proper uses for parkland, and any buildiong containing such uses, plus the curtilage, must be compensated as in points 2 & 3.
Parkland must not be fenced except as required to bound sports areas and ovals, and only then by a single rail not exceeding 1.2m in height. Any higher or more substantial fencing should be regardedas excising land from the park, and the area within the fence plus an area extending at least 5m beyond it should be deemed to be excised and should be compensated accordingly.
Any road, rail tram or other transport route through a park should be securely fenced and visually and acoustically buffered as necessary, and the area contained within any fences or buffers, plus an area extending 20m beyond should be compensated as in point 2.
Any sporting or other body seeking ongoing or regular use of parkland should be required to demonstrate that it has such administrative, social and other facilities as may be necessary available to it in the immediate vicinity.
Any form of carparking requiring hard surfacing, parking meters, the felling of trees, or earthworks, must be regarded as an excision frmo the park, and must be compenstaed as in point 2.
Overflow carparking onto grassed areas may be permitted providied it does not involve works (other than the creation of gates or openings in fences, and bridging of ditches), provided that it (or any part of it within a given area) is not used on more than 10 occasions per year.
Any existing building on parkland which was not constructed according to these principles must be regarded as temporary, and must not be alienated, improved, extended or enlarged, unless and until the site is compensated as provided above.