Who are the Planners?
Phone 07 3371 9355 or Email
14 November 2004
Whose "side" are the Council's planners on when they talk and "advise"
the developers (but not Councillors, the Mayor or the community)?...
...
Three or now I think about it, four (and more!) recent items suggest that
no-one seems to know who is "planning" our suburbs.
The first was discovering that character houses, according to Council's
planners, can be moved around the site or shifted with no loss of
character to the suburb ... at least no material loss sufficient to require
the character houses to remain and for development to be responsive to the
local character and environment. This was made quite clear during the
protracted battle to keep IRONY ... but has occurred again with the "old
federation" house on the corner of Kew Street and Lambert Road and the
former St Andrew's Rectory on Central Avenue and Lambert Road.
It then occurred when a friend of mine rang to say he had just received a
letter from Cr Judy Magub (Toowong Ward) telling him that trees in his
street were to be trimmed and/or removed and that footpath trees were to be
planted with about 8 days notice ... but NO DETAILS ...! Which trees? Where?
Interestingly, while some of the streets where this was "planned" by
Council's officers WITHOUT any consultation with residents, were in the
Toowong Ward, others were in Walter Taylor ...! Our Councillor seemed a bit
taken aback at this deft bit of "planning" by Council and Cr Magub ...!
Of course the 300 condos landing in the IGC is another example ... NOBODY
does that type of project and announces it before getting tacit approval
(or "approvability") from Council officers but what about the Councillors
(our "representatives") and the Lord Mayor? Were they told or only the
planners? Scope for "corruption"? You betcha ...!
So whose "side" are the Council's planners on when they talk and "advise"
the developers ... but not Councillors, the Mayor or the community?
Then there is the proposal (see current Westside News) to erect 3 storey
shops/offices/apartments on Honour Avenue at Graceville West (opp the
station) to replace a "character" shopping strip that fits in very nicely now.
This follows the demolition of the technically interesting and definitely
"character" shop/business on the opposite corner ... formerly the dry
cleaners ...!
Where does it stop?
To get an idea, have a look at the current Westside News report about the
Graceville shops and note that Cr Hinchliffe (implicitly or explicitly?)
makes the point that developers have rights in the Town Plan (CityPlan) ...
but residents?
Lots of people are really disappointed that the Lord Mayor's policy promise
to initiate much more local planning has not eventuated thus allowing these
random developments to turn up anywhere and anytime.
But what is worse is knowing that the previous administrations under Cr
Soorley deliberately created the situation by removing the rights (or
opportunity) for residents to "have a say" while promoting the "Your City
Your Say" process. Unfortunately, YCYS is a black box and we have no rights.
What really counts is knowing that the CityPlan favours developers and
residents who "sell out" on their fellows in the name of legitimate greed.
So much so that when a local business owner tried to start up a Station
Road (Indooroopilly) business group to pursue better development in this
precinct, she held a meeting at which Council's officers were invited and
attended ... but so did Cr Soorley (NOT a resident and certainly NOT a
business). Cr Soorley then publicly castigated the organisers as a
political front and made the point very firmly that Council does the
planning, not local residents ... and so it is ... and it seems out local
state member Ronan Lee agrees ... for he has been unable to access even the
reports on the proposals for Indooroopilly railway station and certainly no
way will the state government make the documents available to the residents
... not even to those of us who donated several days of professional; time
in a "consultation" process ...!
Thus, despite a Major Centres Plan and a Local Area Plan (anmd contrary to
Cr Hinchliffe's assertions in the Westside News), there have been no
detailed plans of traffic, future development, etc. Instead, suddenly, out
of the blue comes first a 4-5 storey unit block on Railway Avenue (see it
in the middle of a row of character houses opp Indooroopilly railway
station) and then, the Coles Express on Coonan Street then the requirement
for widening Coonan Street in front of Keating House (to get rid of all the
old trees?) ... and numerous traffic schemes ... BUT ALL without a public
traffic or transport plan.
And wait for it, although the funds were available late in the term of
Denver Beanland, there are still no "plans" available for the railway
station lifts ... although Corinda, with EXISTING ramps and FAR less
people, is getting lifts.
It is increasingly clear that unless the Liberal Councillor's provide the
opportunity through local planning processes and reference groups or
committees, the "corruption" put in place as CityPlan will continue to
allow planning of our suburbs by developers and planners ... perhaps Prime
Minister Bob Menzies was right about the perils of "faceless men" and women
... he just had the wrong time and people ...!
As usual, feel free to comment and disagree ... and by no means last,
thanks to those who attended the pseudo-consultation about the fencing of
St Lucia Golf Course ... and es[pecially to those who said "NO FENCE" and
"NO BIKEPATH but an improved BIKEWAY would be good!"
Michael Yeates.
WTN RAG