But a battle looms over the fate of the fence on which the teenager was impaled, which is due to be torn down in the Waterloo Estate redevelopment. The Hickey family want it to be preserved, affixed with a controversial plaque that blames police for his death.

Thomas "TJ" Hickey, died after he catapulted off his bike and became impaled on a fence, provoking riots in the streets of Redfern where residents accused police of chasing him into the railing. The next night they peppered officers with bricks, bottles and petrol bombs and burnt down the police station. About 50 officers were injured.

An inquest found TJ's death had been a "freak accident" and cleared the police of wrongdoing, but the family has never accepted the finding and rallied for a new inquest every year on the anniversary of the accident.

Ahead of the annual "march for justice" on Tuesday, the new Minister for Housing Pru Goward confirmed that a memorial to TJ would be erected as part of the redevelopment of the housing estate at the site of his death.

The words would be thrashed out after construction, which is not due to begin until mid-2018.

Indigenous Social Justice Association secretary Raul Bassi said TJ's mother, Gail Hickey, was working on a form of words that described their sense of loss and made no mention of the local police.

​Aboriginal students at the University of Technology, Sydney, donated a plaque to the family 10 years ago, but it was never erected because the explanation of his death as "arising from a police pursuit" became a sticking point with the Department of Housing and Redfern Local Area Command.

Mr Bassi said the Hickey family was steadfast in its desire to have this original plaque affixed to the fence where he was impaled, and that the fence should be preserved when the towers were torn down.

But it would also be happy for a second, less provocative memorial.

"The plaque is still in discussion but it will be a less offensive plaque for the police," Mr Bassi said.

"Aboriginal people heal in particular places and the Hickeys feel connected to the park."

"It doesn't mean we will leave behind our beliefs, but a temporary solution could be this plaque."

Ms Goward said that she had visited the Waterloo estate and plans for a memorial remained in place.

"I am happy to meet with TJ's family to discuss future plans," Ms Goward said.

Ms Goward's predecessor, Brad Hazzard, is understood to have first raised the prospect of a permanent plaque after gaining in-principle approval from Redfern Superintendent Luke Freudenstein.

​The vision was for a plaque to be erected beside a bench in the new park created within the redevelopment.

Superintendent Freudenstein told Fairfax Media he had no objection to the current "TJ Hickey Park" sign, but would need to have a conversation with the minister about any proposal for alternative wording that might mention the police

But he said the relationship between police and the Aboriginal community in Redfern had improved considerably since the riot.

"We've worked very hard to establish that, and the Aboriginal community have worked just as hard to repair any broken bridges," Superintendent Freudenstein said.