The article in the Stirling Times (15 August) gives the impression that SHOSAG has given in and agreed to the rezoning and subsequent sell-off of the Scarborough High School land – THIS IS NOT CORRECT!

We have consistently opposed the rezoning of the high school site from Crown Reserve to Urban. If the rezoning occurs the State Government and the City of Stirling will sell the whole site for subdivision. We have all seen the Education Department’s plan for 151 housing blocks (most block sizes are around 450 sq metres).

The sale of the land can only occur if the rezoning is passed by State Parliament. We have the support of the ALP, the Greens, the Australian Democrats and the Independents Mark Neville and Tom Helm to ensure this will not happen.

The Mayor of the City of Stirling has publicly stated that he supports a maximum of 20% of the land for public open space (and thinks this is a concession!). What he doesn’t say however, is that part of this public open space is a drain (corner of Grand Prom and Jackson Ave) and the remainder is not on the high school site but is the former Education Department District Office site on the corner of Jackson Ave and Wilding Street. All the high school site is (apart from the tennis court area which is set aside for the Newborough Primary School) to be a housing estate.

MAKE NO MISTAKE – the City of Stirling is as determined as the State Government to see the school site sold. The City is keen to continue its "building boom" which has seen a 15% increase in building approvals over the past twelve months. This building frenzy alone should ring alarm bells and reinforce the need to keep what little open space that remains in our suburbs. Some of the additional revenue from this building boom (including $12m from the sale of vacant land in the City of Stirling) should be spent on community facilities in OUR area.

Local residents have not only lost the high school, gymnasium/hall and swimming pool, but if the Government and Council have their way, we will also lose our public open space and playing fields on the school site. We have received support from many local sports groups who used the high school grounds and would like to continue to do so into the future.

Don’t forget this is the State Government that promised the school gymnasium/hall and swimming pool would remain for the community and then broke that promise. And to "rub salt in the wounds" the first building to be demolished was the school gymnasium! What a waste!!

Don’t forget this is the Council that rejected the offer of the retention of the school/gymnasium, swimming pool and public open space. And now will not make a commitment to a new basketball facility unless the SHS site is sold despite the unconditional offer of $1.3m from the State Government for the facility.

Both the Government and the Council are now using the sale of the land as a bargaining chip to blackmail SHOSAG into abandoning our position.

Our survey (and we are the only ones to have carried out a survey) found 93% of respondents (all local residents) wanted the SHS site to remain in public ownership. The local residents want this land to remain a public asset for the future.

The State Government and the City of Stirling are attempting to divide and rule. The current jargon is "wedge politics", to pitch one group in the community against another. We condemn these tactics and will not play the Government’s game.

We are presenting over 1500 signatures to the State Parliament next week on a petition calling on the Legislative Council to reject the rezoning of the land for the following reasons:

We reject the "wedge politics" of the State Government and the City of Stirling. The facilities that were promised to the community to compensate for the loss of the high school were not contingent upon the sale of the high school site. By "moving the goalposts" they are deliberately attempting to divide the community.

We support: