By ANNA USHER

Balmoral’s worn-out skate park will be rebuilt and the streets that host the Mosman Markets given brighter lighting and better power, after Council landed $750,000 in State grants set to be confirmed at Tuesday’s meeting.

Council has secured a $250,000 grant from the State’s Crown Reserves Improvement Fund and will match it dollar for dollar, taking the Balmoral Oval project to $500,000.

The existing skate park, built in 2005, has sat underused for years because its bowl was designed for expert skaters. The rebuild will replace it with a low, “flow” style park aimed at beginners, and open it to scooters and bikes.

The grant also stretches to restoring about 1,000 square metres of bushland beside the oval, upgrading the loop track behind the cricket nets, and renewing the heritage signage at the corner of The Esplanade and Coronation Avenue.

Concept designs go on public exhibition first, with the skate park finished by the end of 2027.

Lights and power for the Mosman Markets

The second grant, $500,000 from Transport for NSW, will bring festoon lighting, extra power outlets, removable bollards and a resurfaced road to Middle Head Road, Avenue Road and the Village Green at Mosman Square.

The upgrades follow the 2025 Festival Street Party on Middle Head Road, which exposed a shortage of power and a road camber too steep to safely set up stalls and stages.

Designed by architects SJB, the plan is meant to make it quicker and cheaper to run street events and grow the popular markets.

Community consultation opens in mid-August, with a report back to Council in November and construction slated for late 2027.