Waiting: Paul Hutchinson saysRiverstone residents are crying out for more police. Picture: Carlos Furtado
CONSTRUCTION of the contentious Riverstone police station has been further delayed as residents complain of more street crime.
Work on the $17 million station was expected to start this month but has been pushed back as more design changes are made.
Riverstone resident and Neighbourhood Watch convener Paul Hutchinson wrote to local MPs and Police Minister Michael Gallacher last month asking for concrete answers on when the station would be built.
Mr Hutchinson said petty criminals, who "canvass houses to break into", and vandals had run rampant in the absence of a police presence.
When residents called police about incidents, he said the response was either hours late or police did not show up at all.
"Hopefully by having a greater, visible police presence in Riverstone these issues shall cease," he said.
Planning for the new Riverstone station have been plagued by problems.
Blacktown Council and State Emergency Services submissions state the station would be unusable and officers would need to be rescued from the premises in case of serious flood. The council and the independent Joint Regional Planning Panel rejected the plans after almost two years of deliberations, only for the Police Minister to overrule the decision.
Riverstone state MP Kevin Conolly said the government "remained firm" in its decision to build the station.