Page 5507 - Week 15 - Wednesday, 9 December 2009
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be taken into consideration when the ACT Planning and Land Authority is assessing development applications.
The master planning process is one which looks at the overall structure, uses and facilities of the area in tandem with looking at local employment, business and traffic levels. It gives all government departments, local residents and business owners a roadmap to work with, a way of thinking about what activities and uses for land in the area may be missing or overabundant.
A master plan gives the government the room to plan further into the future than most other shorter term planning and consultation processes. At the same time that the government is starting to do longer term transport planning into the next few decades, we need to ensure that the key areas which are integral to the new transport plan have the infrastructure ready for the new, improved bus system.
We know that for our city to be sustainable and functional into the future, we need to greatly improve our public transport system, but, in hand with that, we need to ensure that our planning and infrastructure is on the same page. My motion asks that the Assembly note proposed changes to transport services in the Tuggeranong Valley, including the development of a bus interchange and park and ride facilities at Erindale. The development of this infrastructure is more than welcome. However, there appears to be some concern amongst the local community in Erindale as to where exactly those facilities will sit and what impact they will have.
I also recognise that the ACT government has committed to undertaking a master plan for Tuggeranong, and I believe there are efficiencies that can be achieved for the planning bureaucracy and the community if these processes are conducted alongside each other.
As part of the ACT Greens’ commitment to community involvement and direct engagement with the constituents of my electorate of Brindabella, my office has been talking to people and groups throughout the Erindale area about the idea of an Erindale master plan. Through this consultation process, community members expressed to us the priority areas that they wish to see addressed in Tuggeranong and Erindale master planning, and these are some of the issues I will outline.
The first concern that constituents raised was the need for the government to conduct meaningful consultation, for meaningful consultation produces better outcomes. With all due respect to the town planners, developers and engineers that plan and build new developments, without community engagement, we cannot ensure that local residents and the business community will have maximised benefits.
Consultation also facilitates the achievement of balance between various stakeholders and their needs. The needs of the community, the government and the developers can sometimes be conflicting, and the consultation process can provide a forum in which those conflicts can be recognised and negotiated. If a strong consultation process is to be put in place for the Erindale master plan, we will need to see a greater level of information made available to the public.
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