If a politician is going to make brash claims, it’s best they get their facts straight, especially when taking aim at the home of a cricket legend and Mother Teresa.
The vociferous mayor of Fairfield, Frank Carbone, might do well to remind himself of that, after managing to appear both racist and ignorant in the same sentence, not to mention painting himself as a cricket ignoramus.
Fairfield City Mayor Frank Carbone said increasing density would turn “western Sydney into Kolkata”.Credit: Nick Moir
A one-time Labor heavyweight who spectacularly fell out with the party, Carbone has never shied from battle. His latest duel – along with councils on Sydney’s leafy north shore and increasingly the inner west – is over the Minns government’s bold housing push. It’s a fight that will endure until the next state election. But before that, it will be the No. 1 issue in September’s local government elections.
There are two major – and hotly contested – tranches to NSW Labor’s housing policy. The first is its transport-oriented development which will allow six-storey buildings within 400 metres of 31 train stations in Sydney and the regions, including Roseville, Lindfield, Killara and Gordon on the north shore. Last week, Ku-ring-gai Council launched the first salvo, holding a community meeting where council staff showed residents photographs of apartment blocks in Meadowbank and Burwood. This was the north shore’s future under the government’s policies, staff warned.
The second is allowing terraces, townhouses and two-storey apartment buildings in all “low-density” residential zones near transport hubs and town centres in Greater Sydney, and dual occupancies such as duplexes in all low-density zones across NSW.
Carbone, a popular independent mayor and also a thorn in Labor’s side, on Wednesday came out swinging, warning on Radio 2GB that the Minns government’s plans for greater housing density would end one of our most beloved pastimes. “It’s the end of the backyard. You won’t be able to put a Hills Hoist in the backyard; you certainly won’t be able to play backyard cricket,” Carbone told Ben Fordham.
Worse, Carbone bellowed, increasing density would turn “western Sydney into Kolkata”. Blaming surging migration, Carbone’s dig would not have been lost on the 350,000 Indians in Sydney, many of whom live in the city’s west.
While Carbone was busy warning about the impending dismissal of backyard cricket, he missed the irony of his comments. Kolkata has produced some cricket greats, not least Sourav Ganguly, popularly known as the Prince of Kolkata and considered one of India’s finest ever batsmen and captains. Cricket is the lifeblood of the Indian city, where children don’t need backyards to play their beloved sport. They play in the streets or anywhere they can hit a ball.
If you’re going to sledge Kolkata, at least do your homework
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07.02.2024
If a politician is going to make brash claims, it’s best they get their facts straight, especially when taking aim at the home of a cricket legend and Mother Teresa.
The vociferous mayor of Fairfield, Frank Carbone, might do well to remind himself of that, after managing to appear both racist and ignorant in the same sentence, not to mention painting himself as a cricket ignoramus.
Fairfield City Mayor Frank Carbone said increasing density would turn “western Sydney into Kolkata”.Credit: Nick Moir
A one-time Labor heavyweight who spectacularly fell out with the party, Carbone has never shied from battle. His latest duel – along with councils on Sydney’s leafy north shore and increasingly........
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