The battleground for the future of Hurlstone Agricultural High School will move to Campbelltown City Council when it holds its first 2017 meeting next week on Tuesday, February 14.
And local MP Anoulack Chanthivong is already calling on council to play its part in disrupting the State Government plans which will see 140 hectares of the school’s farmland carved up for housing and the historic Campbelltown school uprooted and moved to the Hawkesbury almost 50 kilometres away.
A development application [DA] has now been lodged with Campbelltown Council to make those plans a reality.
But the State Member for Macquarie Fields has quickly moved to signal his staunch opposition to the DA for Hurlstone Agricultural High School and the land around it.
“This development application is the beginning of the end for Hurlstone at Glenfield,’’ Mr Chanthivong said earlier today.
“I call on Campbelltown City Council to uphold its traditional position on this issue and do all it can to secure Hurlstone’s long term future at Glenfield on a farm for the benefit of the local community.”
In a letter of objection to Campbelltown City Council, Mr Chanthivong says that “now more than ever, the fight to save Hurlstone was both important and necessary, or else the community would stand to lose its educational and environmental heritage forever.
“If the Liberal Government’s proposal goes ahead, gone forever will be the Hurlstone Farm and vital green open space that provides a green buffer between Liverpool and Campbelltown,’’ the MP wrote.
“Gone forever will be Hurlstone’s proud agricultural heritage at Glenfield, and gone forever will be the opportunity for our young students to study agriculture locally at one of the best performing high schools in the State.
[social_quote duplicate=”no” align=”default”]“I’m fed up with the Government’s out-of-control spin machine telling us that this proposal is a better deal for our community.[/social_quote]
“It is not.
“If the government’s sell-off of the Hurlstone Farm goes ahead and the school moves from Glenfield, our community stands to lose and lose greatly.
“It’s nothing more than a greedy land grab,” Mr Chanthivong said.
The MP labelled the proposed destruction of Hurlstone’s agricultural heritage “shameful’’ and said the loss of 140 hectares of farmland would be an “irreversible blight on one of the last remaining green belts in Sydney’’.
Mr Chanthivong has also written to new education minister Rob Stokes, seeking an urgent meeting to discuss the future of Hurlstone Agricultural High School at Glenfield.
“Our community deserves better and I will continue to fight for Hurlstone’s future at Glenfield, where it belongs,” Mr Chanthivong said.
Good luck trying to stop this State government from flogging an asset particlarly when the State is short of some 4000 classrooms.
The community will getting a better option. It is making more housing available. Currently Hurlstone Ag is not a school for locals in Glenfield, enrolments are governed by marks received in the selective schools entrance exam.
A fully selective high school will remain behind, just no farm land, only the Hurlstone name moves on to the new school, so in reality the local community do not miss out.
I dare Anoulack Chanthivong to conduct a survey at the school to see how many kids chose Hurlstone because of Agriculture. He won’t because he knows the numbers will be stacked against him.
Just more carving up of land with profits going to developers and realtors with pockets to line
It’s a good school that does its job well
In truth the school it’s moving to should be a second offer
Two Ag schools not one for a growing Sydney
You don’t improve a city by defunding it education onto future
And offering up these pillbox micro house suburbs while desperately telling Joe public his life will get better
We seen this scam juggernaut rolling over suburb after suburb and leaving us poorer for it
Only the minority profiting are vociferously pushing this Boulder through to the detriment of the rest of us
My daughter is with the last of the alumni of Glenfield before the axe claims it 2022
Her brother may get to year 10
And her littlest brother will only see year 7 of the last decent Ag school in Sydney Proper
Shame on Sydney Gov
No wonder the city is so very disconnected from the farmer life