Powerful Owl Park

To allow for construction of North East Link, some sports clubs will need to relocate to new grounds.

The new facilities at Templestowe Road will replace two soccer fields at Bulleen Park and the use of Bulleen Park Oval 1 for soccer, and will be used while work is undertaken on the soccer fields at Bulleen Park.

Existing local clubs will be relocated from Bulleen Park to the new facilities, and the new soccer fields will also be open for the community to use and enjoy.

Development Victoria is delivering the new facilities in conjunction with North East Link Program. The lead contractor is 2Construct.

NELP undertook an assessment of land within the local area that was both large enough to accommodate displaced local clubs, and that could be publicly acquired for the project.

Through our search, the Bulleen Golf Driving Range on Templestowe Road in Bulleen and Parks Victoria land (immediately west of the driving range) was identified as suitable for redevelopment for the new soccer facilities.

Due to the sloping nature of the site, the soccer fields will be terraced to minimise earthworks and also keep them away from the nearby transmission lines.

To facilitate the construction and operation of North East Link, some sporting facilities around the Eastern Freeway Interchange will need to be relocated, including two existing soccer fields located at Bulleen Park.

To ensure all local clubs can continue to thrive, North East Link Program is relocating soccer users to the new site on Templestowe Road, and will upgrade Bulleen Park to retain the three ovals for AFL football and cricket.

The design for the new soccer facilities in Bulleen includes:

• Three new soccer fields, including two natural turf pitches and one synthetic pitch.
• A brand-new sports pavilion, with inclusive facilities and spectator seating.
• A 176-space car park
• Improved pedestrian and cycling access in and around the facilities, and connections to the Yarra River.

As part of the development of the new facilities, a planning scheme amendment (PSA) process took place in 2020. A total of 53 submissions were received from local residents, businesses and community groups.

The feedback received helped inform the final design in several ways, including:

• increasing the number of car spaces delivered to 176, 26 more than the 150 recommended by the Traffic Impact Assessment associated with the Master Plan
• development of a Traffic Management Plan to address traffic issues during construction
• development of a signalised intersection at the car part entry, subject to approval from the Department of Transport
• designing the new facilities to accommodate soccer for all ages and for both men and women.

A signalised intersection will be built by the time North East Link is open for operation and more information regarding the treatment of Templestowe Road will be available as the project progresses.

In the interim, traffic islands will be built on Templestowe Road to better manage the new intersection with Rosemont Drive and the new soccer facility.

Works on the new interim intersection will begin November 2023 and finish early March 2024.

Site investigations and construction began in early 2023, with the soccer fields expected to be ready for play in the first half of 2024.

There will be some increased noise, dust or vibration near the work site.

These impacts are closely managed during works and must comply with several strict requirements, including adhering to applicable noise limits.

Works have been carefully planned and designed to avoid tree removal as much as possible, but some trees will need to be removed. Areas identified as home to threatened fauna species will be protected and not impacted by the final design or construction.

We will be planting a replacement tree for every tree removed during construction of the facilities.

Our design team have worked to ensure the retention of the Red Spotted Gum tree near the entrance.

Manningham Council will manage the new facilities which will be used by local sports clubs and open to the community for use outside of training and matches. Usage of the facilities will be in line with council policy.