Nicolle Flint (Boothby, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My electorate of Boothby contains a wonderful range of local state and national parks, native flora and fauna and significant heritage buildings. These features are some of the main reasons so many choose to live in our community. During my time as the member for Boothby, I've worked hard to secure funding to protect and preserve our natural environment, and our built heritage as well. Federal funding has supported significant projects led by local community groups and volunteers to protect and preserve flora, fauna and buildings in key heritage areas, like Brownhill Creek, Carrick Hill, Old Government House in Belair National Park and Wittunga Botanic Garden.

Federal funding has also supported important local road upgrades. The Fullarton Road-Cross Road intersection is one such upgrade that will solve a serious traffic bottleneck for our local community. However, in doing so, we must also preserve the historic 130-year-old gatehouse and as many significant trees as possible. The engineering advice is that the gatehouse can be moved, so there is no reason why the state government should not try to do so. The gatehouse, the adjacent historic Urrbrae House and the Waite Arboretum are important cultural assets that tell our unique story, and they must be preserved. Like my local community and like the member for Waite, Sam Duluk, I am calling on the state government, who are responsible for this upgrade and its design, to follow their engineering and move the gatehouse. It is possible and it should be done.