After over a decade of dodgy deals behind closed doors that saw the Paddington Bowling Club traded from one investor to another like a commodity, this significant land has been transferred to traditional owners under the La Perouse Aboriginal Land Council.

The approval of their Aboriginal Land Claim finally takes this important site out of the hands of private commercial interests. That outcome has been a long time coming but is very welcome news.

This is a win for the community which has suffered from both commercialisation and neglect of the land. I understand that the local Aboriginal Land Council intends to use the site as a cultural centre. See the Sydney Morning Herald report > HERE.

My questions and speeches in Parliament over a number of years helped expose the impacts of poor oversight and management of Crown land, and I’ve lobbied successive ministers about the site with Woollahra Councillor Harriet Price. I look forward to a new approach under the Aboriginal Land Council.