As the weather warms up, excitement levels are rising in the inner west as the City of Canada Bay begins the transformation of an idyllic foreshore park into a swimming and recreation destination – for the first time since 1969.
Inner west residents will no longer have to battle traffic on the way to Bondi, instead they’ll be able to swim in their own backyard when the City of Canada Bay opens a swim site along the Parramatta River at Bayview Park in Concord this November.
“After years of hard work, I’m thrilled we’re finally able to see visitors safely swimming at Bayview Park again for the first time since the 1960s,” City of Canada Bay Mayor Angelo Tsirekas said.
“The completion of this project is a significant milestone in improving the water quality of the river. Bayview Park will be the first reopening of a closed swim site in the past six decades.
“Our older residents have fond memories of taking to the Parramatta River on hot days, and younger residents would have heard the stories of their grandparent’s days. This summer, we are taking these moments out of the old black and white photo albums and bringing them back to life.”
Bayview Park had been a popular swimming spot from as early as the 1930s before its closure in 1969.
Since then, local Councils including the City of Canada Bay have been working with Sydney Water and the Parramatta River Catchment Group (PRCG) to help revitalise the river.
Sydney Water and the City of Canada Bay have been testing the water and sediment at Bayview Park with the data collected over the last few years showing that the site is safe for swimming.
Once the swim site opens, visitors will also be able to get daily water quality updates through the PRCG's Our Living River website before diving in.
As part of the $700,000 project, which is proudly funded by the NSW Government’s Places to Swim Program, the City of Canada Bay will be installing a netted swim enclosure, an outdoor shower and improving access to the foreshore.
The park itself is also scheduled to undergo a facelift in 2023 with upgrades to parking, picnic facilities and landscaping. Works will also include an accessible pathway that reaches all the way to the shore so people of all abilities can easily access the water.
The swimming area at Bayview Park is set to open in November 2022. It will join four other swim spots on the Parramatta River, including Cabarita Park Beach and Chiswick Baths.
This project is part of a larger Masterplan led by the Parramatta River Catchment Group (PRCG) which aims to make the river swimmable by 2025.
PRCG Chair, Cr Mark Drury, said the reopening of Bayview Park is an important step in the delivery of the Masterplan.
“The Parramatta River Catchment Group is proud to be working with the City of Canada Bay, Department of Planning and Environment, and Sydney Water on this project as well as all our other member Councils and State Government agencies on the broader mission to make the Parramatta River swimmable again by 2025.
“This project is opening up the Parramatta River and improving liveability for the community.”
For more information about the project visit collaborate.canadabay.nsw.gov.au/bayview.
