The comments come after the Dunedin City Council confirmed infringement notices would be served on people who parked too long at The Oval, which is bordered by Princes St and Andersons Bay Rd, as cars build up in the area every weekend.
The council has issued a warning on its social media page about parking on yellow lines or the grass at the ground.
But the council’s warning has caused a stir with the public and many people expressed concern about the lack of parking and other safety issues.
Resident Reon Wharerimu said the council had failed to keep up with the increase in the use of the Oval for sports.
"Thousands of children use this venue most days.
"The Oval is bordered by busy roads all the way around. Lack of sufficient and safe parking options has led to families needing to park on the grass edging to safely take their children to sport."
He was disappointed there were "no pedestrian crossings whatsoever in the area".
"Princes St is a very wide street with two lanes running each way.
"It is only luck that a child hasn’t been seriously injured or, worse, killed."
The council needed to invest in sufficient parking and upgrade the dated facilities to enable continued use of this ground, he said.
"Instead, they choose to issue infringement notices to everyone who parks on the grass.
"We only parked on the grass as there is no parking options that allow safe travel for children to and from the grounds."
Real estate agent and former city councillor Conrad Stedman was also concerned.
"There are ways to create parking in the area but enforcement is the preferred option as opposed to solving the problem.
"By the grace of God, no-one has been seriously injured or should we keep waiting until someone is hurt?"
Other members of the public, including former Dunedin mayor Aaron Hawkins, have flagged the lack of pedestrian crossings or safe passage ways in the area.
A city council spokesman said "our focus is the safety of everyone using our community facilities, including sports grounds like The Oval".
"To this end, we are working to address concerns raised about parking on grass verges, yellow lines, traffic islands, across driveways and double parking.
"This includes a programme of work at sports grounds to provide more parking, five-minute drop-off/pick-up parks, mobility parks, better pedestrian access and lighting, cycle stands and concrete barriers around sports grounds to prevent parking on grass."
The spokesman said the council had also asked sports clubs to discuss with their members the need for safer parking at sports grounds.
"As part of this work, three parking officers were at The Oval yesterday reminding people not to park on the grass.
"We’ve also installed new signage there, but we’re taking a public education approach for now and no infringement notices were issued.
"We’re also considering safety improvements on Princes St as part of the Shaping Future Dunedin Transport programme."
