The Balmain Road all-weather field at Callan Park has been approved and will start construction in September. A second field at Waterfront Drive has been refused over flooding and pollution concerns, and Council plans to challenge the decision.
Image credit: NSW Government
One field approved, one refused
The Inner West Local Planning Panel has split its decision on two proposed synthetic sporting fields at Callan Park. The Balmain Road Sporting Ground field was approved by majority, subject to conditions. The Waterfront Drive Field No.2 proposal was refused unanimously.
Inner West Council says construction at Balmain Road will begin in early September 2026, with the field ready for play by March 2027. It has called the approval a win for local clubs that have pushed for all-weather fields for years.
The Balmain Road Field
Council says the new field will lift ground usage by 50% and cut cancellations after wet weather. Natural turf fields across the Inner West close quickly after heavy rain, and demand for playing space is high.
The approval came with a condition that the synthetic surface be a muted green to suit the surroundings.
Image credit: Inner West Council
Why Waterfront Drive was knocked back
The Panel refused the Waterfront Drive field on two grounds. It was not satisfied the design would prevent pollutants reaching the Sydney Harbour catchment during a flood. It was also not satisfied that alternative, less sensitive locations had been properly considered.
Waterfront Drive sits beside the Bay Run on Iron Cove, which put flood performance and runoff at the centre of the assessment.
Council disputes the refusal
Council's response to the Waterfront Drive decision was sharp. It says the Panel's flooding concern does not reflect the expert advice it provided, and it will request a review.
The field was designed to withstand a one-in-100-year flood. Council says the Panel wanted protection against a worst-case event, and that a minor change, likely raising the field slightly, would address it. Revised plans are expected shortly. Council also rejected the Panel's concern about consultation, pointing to 505 submissions in 2023–2024 that identified both sites as preferred locations.
Campaigns on both sides
The fields have been contested for more than a year. Campaigns ran on both sides ahead of the decision. Sporting clubs, including Balmain & District Football Club, pushed hard for reliable year-round grounds, while groups such as Friends of Callan Park and the Natural Turf Alliance opposed synthetic turf over plastic pollution, heat, heritage and the loss of natural fields used by other sports.
Balmain MP Kobi Shetty welcomed the Panel's role. She said the issue had strong views on both sides, and that the split decision showed careful, site-specific assessment was working as it should. Shetty criticised the Mayor for being dismissive of the independent process and of residents who raised concerns, and said the unanimous Waterfront Drive refusal showed those concerns were valid.
Balmain Road moves to construction in September. Council will lodge a review request and revised plans for Waterfront Drive, so that proposal is not settled.
