Page 3916 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 25 August 2010
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As I noted earlier, the feedback we have sought and received from the Tuggeranong Community Council and community representatives is very much about developing a process which includes community consultation about what the priority areas are for master planning.
As Ms Le Couteur’s amendments state, this is a process which must be developed for all of Canberra as all areas start experiencing increasing pressure—for example, in relation to increased housing densities, just one of the many issues they are facing. It is important that any planning for the area happens only after the community is consulted. Many people in Tuggeranong specifically are telling us that they are feeling shut out of the process already. This is in relation to the Tuggeranong town centre master plan. There is a feeling that the planning process has been somewhat ad hoc.
It has been very much emphasised to us that it is recognised that Kambah is in need of an upgrade as one of the more established, older suburbs in the Tuggeranong area. And we need to start looking at other areas that need work done. One priority issue that has been identified with us is the need for more park and ride facilities in Tuggeranong, particularly in the north. This should be one issue which is used in determining priority areas.
Mawson is already experiencing congestion with its park and ride facilities. And there is some concern that Erindale will not be able to carry an interchange and park and ride facility as it is already quite a congested and busy area—particularly if we have the interchange going in there, which will significantly increase the pressure on the area. It therefore seems appropriate that this issue be looked at with Kambah, because it could become an area where more people are attracted with a shopping centre and it could be a good location for a park and ride.
What was also made clear was that through the Tuggeranong town centre master planning process in particular, other suburbs around the town centre will and should benefit from this process. We should start looking at a much less centralised version of planning so that fringe suburbs can benefit. This includes having an efficient transport system and looking at what other development reflects the desires of residents.
What the Greens are saying is that we need to develop a process for determining where and when master plans should occur, and that this is not through the existing process whereby cabinet determines it through the budget process. This should be a process developed through consultation with the community, businesses, community councils and other key community representatives. As I have already said, there is an obvious need for master plans to occur in a number of areas across Canberra—which is becoming more and more evident—and there should be a clear, transparent and accountable process developed to determine what the priority master plans are.
Like Ms Le Couteur, I acknowledge that I have sympathy for the points which have been raised by the Chief Minister about how we determine when and what areas are in need of development and about that issue of politicising planning. As I have already
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