Petition demands reprieve for Port Adelaide Magistrates Court
Port Adelaide's Chamber of Commerce has given the South Australian Government a petition expressing anger about a planned closure of the suburban magistrates court.
About 1,000 people from across the LeFevre Peninsula and western suburbs signed the petition and Port Adelaide MP Susan Close will now table it in State Parliament.
"The signatures on the petition send a clear signal to the Courts Administration Authority of the importance of the court to Port Adelaide," she said.
"The petition will add further weight to my input to the consultation process being held by Chief Justice Chris Kourakis.
"The court complex is a modern building that provides enormous benefits for the Port Adelaide community and its loss would be devastating."
Chief Justice Kourakis said recently budget constraints had led to the plan to progressively close Port Adelaide, Holden Hill, Mount Barker and Tanunda's magistrates courts.
A statement from the Courts Administration Council said it was a necessary response to the pressures and competing demands on available resources.
The State Government said at the time the priorities decided for the courts were out of its hands.
Dr Close said it was heartening so many local businesses and residents had taken an active interest in the plan to close Port Adelaide Magistrates Court by the middle of next year.
"These are challenging financial times for all government institutions, but the Port Adelaide Magistrates Court is far more than a building, it is a community institution that a high-need and very locally-based community has respect for and trust in," she said.
Dr Close said the suburban court was much needed in a community which had a "fair spread of social disadvantage".
