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Parking fees plan just not sporting

Philippe Bossert, EdgewaterWanneroo Times

As a member of a local Little Athletics Centre, I fear that some parents will have to forego taking their children to athletics training and competition, as it will easily double their annual cost to participate.

Further, volunteers such as coaches will also be slapped with a cost, when they already give up their personal time.

The process of having hired a consultant is puzzling.

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Surely, a state government department is able to work out usage of car parks and associated revenue from parking fees.

Unless, of course, the consultants come up with a model that works out how many people the venue might lose by introducing a fee and how much that would impact the bottom line.

What is never considered in these instances is the cost to the community if people are unable to partake in sports because of cost pressures, but then community impact has never been important to this state government.

Clutching at straws has become too regular and it is high time that alternative measures are contemplated to balance finances.

It should not be the local communities that suffer for decisions such as spending $2.4 billion on Elizabeth Quay or a multi-storey car park at Edgewater train station at a cost of $84,000 per car bay.