If you can’t play nice … Backyard billabong brawl backfires

The Advertiser has published an article by Darren Chaitman titled If you can’t play nice … Backyard billabong brawl backfires.

The group’s effort has now partly backfired after the council agreed to act against properties claimed to be encroaching, but simultaneously said public access would be blocked for safety reasons – stopping people from enjoying the view residents fought to restore.

After SPRA became aware of the issue and verified using a council boundary identification survey part of documents obtained via a Freedom of Information request by Ralph Bleechmore that the fence appears to extend onto the Linear Park.

After 3 years of enquiries, a petition and enquiries from residents, this is all the council staff have started blocking access and on the subject of encroachment:

NPSP governance manager Lisa Mara said the council had “endorsed a process to rectify the issues surrounding the encroachments”.
“Staff are currently working through these issues to commence discussions with the relevant property owners,” she said.

Readers are invited to form their own opinion on how this relates to a Letter from Cressida O'Hanlon MP for Dunstan - 4 March 2026

"In relation to the fencing installed by some adjoining property owners, I have raised the issue directly with Council on behalf of residents and sought clarification regarding the property boundaries in this area. Council has advised that legal property boundaries are determined through formal land surveys undertaking when properties are brought and sold, and that it does not consider the current situation alters the legal ownership of land."

There is an animated discussion about the article in the City of Norwood Payneham St Peters Residents Group in a post from Travis Cox.