Plans of Management

Bulga Stock Reserve is located in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, in the Singleton Local Government Area approximately 24 kilometres south-west of the Singleton township. It is a 5.3 hectare Crown Reserve (No. 170159) located on the south-eastern edge of the village of Bulga, off the north-east side of the Putty Road. Singleton Council is the Reserve’s Council-manager (under the Crown Land Management Act 2016). The site and surrounds was originally a location for resting, holding and watering stock – and was possibly part of the historic main thoroughfare for travelling stock from the northern districts of NSW to Sydney, dating from the early 1800s. The site was formally gazetted as a “water reserve” in 1884 and as a “travelling stock reserve” in 1888. 

With a diverse historical context, Burdekin Park is an iconic much loved park for residents and visitors to Singleton, as well as providing a unique urban wildlife camp for the Grey- headed Flying Fox. This plan of management aims to protect the cultural heritage of the park, and provide increased recreational, community and cultural activities for the Singleton Community, now and into the future. It ensures that the 1.25 hectare park will remain a vital green recreational asset for Singleton.

The aim is to provide a Plan of Management for Heuston Lookout that fulfils the requirements of the Local Government Act 1993. The planning process is to promote community comment and the completed plan is to provide guidelines for the planning, development and care of the park. 

Howe Park is one of Singleton’s major, and oldest, parks and sporting venues. Howe Park was initially reserved as a public park in 1887. The site covers a total area of around 17.3 hectares. Much of this area (approximately 13.5 hectares) is Crown land managed by Singleton Council – comprising the oval, Howe Park Tennis Club and courts, and much of the Singleton Golf Course (including the Singleton Golf Club building). The remaining area (approximately 3.8 hectares) is Council-owned “community land” and makes up the northern portion of the Singleton Golf Course.

The Howe Park Oval has a turf wicket, and features a historic timber grandstand. It has been used for cricket matches since the early 1900s and today is the town’s premier cricket venue used primarily by Singleton District Cricket Association in summer. In winter, the oval is used for football by the Singleton Strikers Football Club.

Howe Park is Singleton’s regional tennis venue. The Howe Park Tennis Club offers eight grass and six synthetic courts (most floodlit) and two synthetic junior courts, plus a small club building and ancillary facilities. The courts are used for social and competitive tennis, as well as coaching and school sport, and croquet.

The Singleton Golf Club occupies much of the Park, under an agreement with Council, and manages the 9- hole Singleton Golf Course as well as a clubhouse (which includes a barbeque area, beer garden and children's playground), a Pro Shop, adjacent car park (only part of which is on the Council-managed Crown land), and associated maintenance areas and out-buildings.

Beyond these organised sports, Howe Park is used by the local community for casual activities such as walking, informal games, fitness training, dog-walking, socialising and relaxing. Howe Park is also part of the Singleton Heritage Walk.

Council now manages Howe Park as guided by an earlier “generic” plan of management, adopted for all of Singleton’s sportsgrounds. Recent changes to Crown land legislation in NSW requires Council to prepare a new Plan of Management – as a guiding document for the area’s future.

The Lake St Clair Park is a popular camping, fishing, water sports, picnicking and day-visit attraction located a scenic 30-minute drive north of Singleton in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales. The recreation area sits on the north-eastern foreshore of Lake St Clair, the impoundment created by Glennies Creek Dam, on land owned by Water NSW. The 130 hectare area has been leased to, and managed by, Singleton Council since 1986.

Council has developed, and continues to manage part of the area, as a primitive camping ground and pay-to-use recreation area. The recreation area offers nearly 20 hectares of attractive managed camping grounds and day use space (as mown grass, beneath scattered or grouped trees, and foreshores), several powered campsites, numerous wood-fired barbecues, picnic furniture/settings, two toilet/shower blocks; a camp kitchen with two barbeques, a kiosk (operated part-time), a concrete boat ramp (useable at almost all water levels) and associated boat- trailer parking areas. The lake foreshore wraps around three sides of the recreation area, which is sited on a point of land extending into the waterbody and is serviced by a sealed access and loop road.

The gully park system throughout Singleton Heights, Darlington and Hunterview follows the major drainage gullies, creating a geographic form of linear parks. The only major exceptions are Alroy Oval and Allan Bull Reserves, which both have playing fields and will be dealt with in another plan of management. The linear nature of these parks and reserves present challenges but also provide opportunities for stormwater drainage, erosion/sedimentation, landscape design, recreation, pedestrian and cycleway access. 

Singleton Council has eleven reserves with sports grounds with 23 playing fields, 12 netball and 27 tennis courts. 

A number of sports grounds are located adjacent to the Hunter River or on creek lines, e.g. Rose Point/Cook Park, Civic Park, Allan Bull Reserve.  This plan of management will also look at issues relating to the management of these areas with regard to riverbank vegetation and flooding. 

The aim of this masterplan is to provide strategic planning guidance for the revitalisation of the Singleton Town Centre through the preparation of an Urban Design Masterplan.

The masterplan study area is located in the town centre of Singleton and generally focused along the New England Highway and John Street. 

Singleton Township has a variety of different sized parks with a variety of uses. The Sports Grounds and Riverside Parks Plan of Management cover all parks with sports grounds or located on riverbanks. Burdekin Park is covered by a separate plan. Singleton Heights Gully Parks are covered in another plan. The remaining twenty-three town parks in Singleton will be dealt with in this Plan of Management. The town parks vary in size, shape and function. Most of the parks are small in size. This Plan will look at issues relating to the management of these parks. 

The parks that are located in the rural areas of the Shire provide sports facilities and passive recreation areas for people of Singleton Shire’s rural areas and villages. The parks also provide a service to the people of Singleton Township and for people outside the Shire.

The parks provide facilities such as natural settings, tennis courts, netball courts, basketball courts, children’s’ play equipment, picnic facilities and buildings used for sports amenities, playgroups and club meetings. Village parks with playing fields are included in the Sports Grounds plan of management and will not be dealt with in this plan.