Lake Parramatta Swimming Area Upgrade

Public exhibition of the Review of Environmental Factors (REF) for upgrades to the Lake Parramatta Swimming Area closed at 5pm on Monday 11 September 2023. Thank you for your feedback.

The REF describes the project, considers potential environmental, social, and economic impacts, and outlines measures to minimise and avoid these impacts.It also assesses impacts on landform, geology and soils, waterways, wetlands, and aquatic habitats, biodiversity and arboriculture, Aboriginal heritage, and historic heritage.

Overall, the REF determines that the identified potential environmental impacts associated with the proposed works can be adequately managed provided the design recommendations and mitigation measures outlined within this REF are adhered to.

The Executive Summary and full Review of Environmental Factors can be found in Resources or learn more in Frequently Asked Questions.

Impacts on fauna are largely minimised by avoiding the removal of trees, thereby retaining a large proportion of habitat within the project area. Appropriate mitigation measures have been recommended and will be implemented prior to, and during, construction as described in Section 5. More detail can be found in Table 3-6 on p 60-61 and Table 3-8 on p 66-67.

The site-specific Construction Environmental Management Plan (CEMP) will also include instructions for dealing with orphaned or injured native animals and ensure the CEMP includes the contact details for the NSW Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service Inc (WIRES).

A Preliminary Tree Assessment (PTA) (ELA 2023b, Appendix D) was undertaken which identified potential impacts that may result from construction works (such as compaction, excavation) and recommended mitigation measures. The PTA provides a suite of recommendations to guide the retention of trees with the supervision of a AQF Level 5 arborist on site at all times. For the purposes of construction access, some trimming to overhanging branches and disturbance or removal of understorey vegetation where required is proposed. Mitigation measures for potential tree impacts can be found on p 75-76 and in Section 5.

The primary potential impacts to water quality are the mobilisation of sediment from works on land, the disturbance of sediment within the reservoir from underwater construction activities and the placement of materials within the reservoir.

The recommended mitigation measures include a sediment curtain around the in-reservoir works, appropriate storage of all chemicals (e.g. fuel, oil), consultation with DPI Fisheries prior to construction, restoration of disturbed fish habitat, adherence to “Saving our Species Hygiene Guidelines”. Further detail: Table 3-2, p53.

There is some potential for sediment, erosion, and changes to the lake hydrology to occur as a result of the proposed work. Mitigation measures have been recommended that, if implemented, will avoid, or minimise the potential for impacts to landform and soils. To read more about recommended mitigation measures, go to page 42 / Table 3.1 on p43 and Section 5 in the REF.

Yes, in the immediate vicinity of the swimming area through improved access and vegetation planting.

The design will need to be flexible to generally work within the existing site topography and landform constraints such as large sandstone rock outcrops, mature trees and native vegetation where possible.

It is not known if any tree removal is required at this stage of the investigative and design process however it is Council’s intention to retain as many trees as possible whilst meeting the project objectives.

Lake Parramatta is located in Lake Parramatta Reserve, a 73 hectare habitat popular with visitors who enjoy picnics, aquatic activities and bush walking.

The lake is 10.5 hectares in size and was officially re-opened for public swimming and water recreation activities in January 2015.

Lake Parramatta is generally open for swimming from late October to April.

For more information on Lake Parramatta including facilities, safety and operating hours, please see https://www.cityofparramatta.nsw.gov.au/recreation/swimming-at-lake-parramatta 
 

Approx. 40,000 to 50,000 per year visit Lake Parramatta.

The swimming area opens October each year for the summer and is closed April the following year.

In January 2023, Council engaged Royal Life Saving NSW to carry out a safety assessment of the proposed upgrade with a focus on the pontoon. The assessment identified certain risks and recommended removing the pontoon from the design.

Council also met with the City of Parramatta Access Advisory Committee. Council staff detailed that a ramp was not being considered as it would require mass clearing of native vegetation and removal of sandstone outcrops. Further changes were recommended by the Committee which have been included in the revised draft concept plan.

You can learn more about the Royal Life Saving NSW and Access Advisory Committee conclusions in Frequently Asked Questions.

In response to the community's feedback and recommendations in the safety report, Council removed the pontoon from the draft concept plan, modified the landscape design to complement the natural setting, included tactile surface indicators, and retained the safety enhancements.

This project aims to create an even ‘beach’ surface making it easier to enter and exit the water. It will also provide an optional entry point with steps and handrails.

In February 2023 the Concept Design was presented to the Access Advisory Committee.

• The committee were advised that the construction of a mobility ramp at this location is not being considered as this would require mass clearing of native vegetation including mature endemic trees and removal of sandstone outcrops that would have a significant environmental impact; and
• Based on feedback from the community consultation it is assumed that mass clearing for an access ramp would not be supported by the wider community.

Comments and recommendations from the Advisory Committee included:

• Hand rail for existing steps
• Traction treatment for proposed steps with central handrail and step highlight for vision impaired (coloured strip etc)
• Arm rest and back rest for proposed step seating for some proportion of the seating
• Direct access to the existing steps from the grass area near the carpark.

In 2021, City of Parramatta commissioned a concept plan for improvements to the Lake Parramatta swimming area and began the process of applying for NSW Government grants to fund the project.

The aim of the project is to:

• Improve user safety
• Improve swimming capacity
• Improve access to the designated swimming area
• Reduce Council's ongoing yearly maintenance costs

Council's grant application was successful, and the concept plan was approved under the NSW Department of Planning and Environment (DPE) ‘Places to Swim’ Program 2021/22.

What features were previously included in the draft concept plan?

There were two zones in the drawings:

• The onshore section is the main element of the project and stage one in terms of construction. The proposed design included:
  • New concrete retaining walls that double as seating
  • Shade umbrellas
  • New concrete pavement at water level to provide improved water access
  • Separate water entry point with steps and handrails
  • A new underwater retaining wall to be filled with imported smooth fine rock to create an even ‘beach’ surface making it easier for people to enter and exit the water
  • Native groundcover infill planting and mulching embellishment.
• The proposed offshore section included:
  • An overwater pontoon for bathing and swimming subject to available funds and risk assessment.

The Lake Parramatta swimming area upgrade project was open for consultation from Monday 5 December to 5pm on Friday 23 December 2022. Thank you to everyone who participated.

The draft concept plan was viewed 3,413 times on Participate Parramatta and 370 submissions were received.

Sentiment

• 233 people indicated they were happy with the draft concept plan (via Quick Poll) and 25 supporting comments were received.
• 51 submissions indicated strong opposition to the proposal (20 via Quick Poll and 31 via Comments)
• 22 submissions indicated they would like to see some changes to the draft concept plan and 27 'neutral' comments and requests were received.
• 12 submissions were found to be invalid (multiple entries made in error).

The top three topics mentioned in comments were:

1. Preserving the natural quality of Lake Parramatta
2. Suitability of the pontoon
3. Parking and congestion at the site and in surrounding streets

Feedback also raised the question of providing a ramp into the water.

Council spends approximately $17K per year to top up the beach area with sand and gravel to maintain safe entry. This will not longer be required once the project has been completed.

Some features from the original draft concept plan were removed to minimise impact on the natural area and improve safety:

• Some seating, benches and shade umbrellas - to reduce pressure on the water's edge
• Optional floating pontoon - due to risks identified in the Royal Life Saving NSW safety assessment

The Concept plan was commissioned in August 2021 and completed in November 2021. The Places to Swim grant application was submitted to DPE in March 2022 and was finalised through contractual agreement in June 2022.

In January 2023 Council engaged Royal Life Saving NSW to carry out a safety assessment of the proposed upgrade with a focus on the pontoon.

Risks were identified as:

• Users swimming out to the pontoon and into deeper and colder water
• Climbing onto and diving off the pontoon (e.g. running, jumping, bombing, collision)
• the potential use of drugs and alcohol and the pontoon may act as a platform for congregating after supervisory hours

To reduce risk, the Royal Life Saving recommendations include:

• Remove the pontoon from the design
• Increased hours of supervision
• Increased signage warning of risks
• Restriction or prohibition on the use of alcohol at Lake Parramatta

The revised concept design includes:

1. Coloured concrete pavement to improve accessibility to waters edge
2. Coarse river sand ‘beach’ for improved level water access
3. 2.0 x 2.0m raised mod-wood lifeguard platform
4. Concrete water access steps with central stainless steel handrail and tactile surface indicators
5. Proposed sandstone rock outcrops / boulders
6. Sandstone coloured concrete steps to match existing
7. Planted native bush regeneration works
8. Sandstone block seating / retaining wall
9. Underwater retaining wall to 1.8m depth with depth markers to retain coarse river sand ‘beach’ material
10. Backrest and armrests placed on sandstone block retaining wall
11. Coloured concrete access pathway with steps and tactile surface indicators along pedestrian desire line improving accessibility to existing shelters and swimming area
12. Tactile surface indicators placed at the top and bottom of existing deck steps for improved accessibility

Some features from the draft concept plan were removed to minimise impact on the natural area:

1. Some seating, benches and shade sails
2. Optional floating pontoon