Parking and toilets needed at Sea Cliff Bridge

Kathleen Bearsby at the Clifton School of Arts. Inset:? A notice on the school of arts advising tourists of the closest public toilet facilities.

INFRUSTRUCTURE around Sea Cliff Bridge continues to be stretched to the limit despite a predicted fall in visitor numbers.

A reduction in traffic volumes on Lawrence Hargrave Drive expected with the end of the holiday period has failed to appear as the area's popularity with tourists grows after the iconic bridge's opening in December last year.

Clifton residents are planning a public meeting to highlight their concerns over a lack of parking and toilet facilities in the village.

Resident Kathleen Bearsby, who is on the Clifton School of Arts committee, said coach loads of tourists have been turned away from the historic building's toilet facilities.

Clifton is un-sewered and the $180 septic tank pump-out fee was becoming a financial burden to the voluntary organisation.

"We cannot continue to provide public toilet facilities. This is not a public building," Mrs Bearsby said.

As a result the committee have placed notices on the building directing tourists to nearby amenities at Coalcliff or Wombarra.

"What we really need is toilet facilities here at Clifton. But we are not connected to the sewer system, and we can't put septic tanks in the park because of the instability of the land," Mrs Bearsby said.

Residents of Clifton also believe that an accident is inevitable if parking is not improved.

"People are illegally parking on footpaths and in the park," Mrs Bearsby said. "It is only a matter of time before there is a terrible accident."

A Wollongong City Council spokesman said Council were aware of infrustructure problems around Sea Cliff Bridge and were looking at measures to address the problem.

Council support for additional amenities at the School of Arts was not possible because the building was not connected to the sewer system the spokesman said.

"However, we have set aside funding for a partial rebuild of the existing facilities (at Leeder Park Coalcliff)," he said.

Council said funding would not be available until next financial year and they were unable to indicate when the project would proceed.

Meanwhile Council were still in the process of transferring Rube Hargrave Park at Clifton back into community ownership.

The park was reclassified by Council from community land to operational land in 2003 to allow the joint venture partnership, building the bridge, to operate a concrete batching plant on site.