A RESIDENT living opposite Hilton Park in Beaconsfield might finally get the fencing she’s been demanding for years to stop the barrage of soccer balls banging into her house.

Patricia Lee lives on Jeffery Street, directly behind a set of goals on the complex’s upper oval, and says her afternoons and weekends are regularly disrupted by the clang of balls hitting her garage and players hopping into her yard to retrieve their errant penalties.

She says it’s been noticeably worse since Perth Glory started leasing Hilton Park from Fremantle council, as the older players are more capable of clearing the road if a shot on goal misses.

Ms Lee says while it annoys her, the bigger problem is safety; cars often turn quickly into Jeffery Street when there’s a gap on Carrington and have little time to react to someone chasing a ball across the road.

• Patricia Lee says this goal is dangerous and needs a fence. Photo by Steve Grant

“I’ve seen many cars having to come to a screeching halt when a child has been running across to chase a ball,” she said.

“They come down the hill so fast and just don’t have time to react.”

Fremantle council recently completed public consultation for a place plan covering Hilton Park, which includes a prominent map marker directly opposite Ms Lee’s house showing a fence is in consideration.

But a City spokesperson said while they’d had several interactions with Ms Lee and advised her the situation would be resolved through the master planning processing, guaranteeing a fence that’ll stop the balls isn’t quite that simple.

“Field alignment and orientation may change as well as parking around the perimeter of the park,” the spokesperson said.

“We need clarity on this before we make a decision about the installation of any type of fence and the resident is aware of this process.

“We understand her frustration and it has been noted as part of the community engagement that we’ve been doing to develop the place plan.”

Indigenous name

The plan also flags a new moniker for Hilton Park, with many people feeling neither the overall name – nor its overly-blokey facilities – has much meaning for the community any more.

“Some older club members are aware of the namesake for some of the buildings, but this knowledge has not transferred to younger club members and the general population,” the precinct plan notes.

“Indigenous naming or dual naming, if it is deemed appropriate by local Elders, was highly regarded.”

Existing parts of the park include the Alastair Mackay and Brad Hardie pavilions, and Ken Allen and Dick Lawrence ovals.

Other recommendations include relocating Peace Grove’s gingko bilobas – seeded from a surviving tree after the Hiroshima nuclear blast – to a more prominent place, better signage and paths to make the park more navigable, and opening the Brad Hardie Pavilion toilets for non-club visitors so they stop having to go behind the trees.

by STEVE GRANT