In April, the Commonwealth Government granted Commonwealth status for Lake Burley Griffin and parts of the surrounds.
Category Archives: cities
woden Valley Community Council issues
ACT Government fails on planning, again
When it comes to infrastructure and planning issues, the Woden Valley Community Council continues to have difficulties having real discussions with this ACT Labor/Greens government.
Sports club as developer
the need to make money leads to development
There are three major development issues within Canberra’s inner north that are going to make things interesting in 2022.
Who benefits from the Trojan Tram going south?
Here’s some news the ACT Labor/Greens coalition government may not appreciate. The model they use to enable for development and for getting the tram done, builds on the way trains and trams were introduced in and around Sydney in the late 19th century.
Continue reading Who benefits from the Trojan Tram going south?
ACT Government stuffs up Woden Town Centre
On May 12, I finished a column on the shocking state of Woden developments with this statement: “This government’s expertise in town cramming is worthy of an award.
ACT Government fails on social housing
They think they are progressive – HAH!
For a self-nominated progressive government, the ACT Labor/Greens government has not done well with social housing. Their only success in this area is the boldness of their superficial claims. Do they believe they own rhetoric?
ACT Government on Town Cramming
More Town Cramming for Woden
For the ACT’s Labor/Greens coalition politicians, planning is not something they worry about much despite it being something of major concern to residents.
ACT Government lacks design leadership
A pamphlet arrived in Dickson letterboxes that won’t bring much joy to the other areas of the city. It announced that $3 million is to be spent on Woolley Street, Dickson.
Watson community knows about planning
The ACT Government is a planning failure
When the Watson Community Association (WCA) puts forward the community’s views about a proposed development, it does a really thorough job.
ACT Government Design Panel a disaster
the failure of the National Capital Design Review Panel
Along with the wish the government would look after the city’s landscapes, its greenery and its open spaces, a common frustration is that the government does not understand design and does little to encourage good architecture.
ACT Greens not so green
ACT Greens – all talk and not much action
When governments don’t want to do much about something that requires actions, they hold inquiries, set up “Have Your Say” websites, present loads of useless stuff to public gatherings, talk a lot as if they are doing something and produce draft strategies.
ACT Government Stupidity Halted
ACT Greens save park from bulldozers
While the October ACT election returned a new version of the Labor/Greens coalition, this result was not because it was respected.
What happens in Sydney – happens here
Book Review: Killing Sydney: The Fight For a City’s Soul
Elizabeth Farrelly’s new book “Killing Sydney: The Fight For a City’s Soul” is a must-read for anyone with an interest in their local planning issues.
over-development in Woden
lack of planning and havoc in Woden
It has been about 18 months since I wrote a full piece about the Woden Town Centre and the ever-increasing planning issues that plague residents.
Dickson Supermarket approved
Dickson development about to happen
A couple of days before Christmas, a call came through from the Coles project manager to the Dickson Residents Group convenor that the new supermarket complex was to go ahead in May/June 2021.
Heritage Listing Lake Burley Griffin
Commonwealth bureaucratic mischief
People try hard to have faith in the federal government and its processes. When it comes to important matters, such as heritage, how can we expect the federal government to behave?
ACT Greens challenged on planning
ACT Government and the ACT Greens
Wandering down a street in Auckland, NZ, in early June 2016, we came upon a small group of people having a laugh about an advertising poster.
City Renewal Authority a loss cause
Time to give up on the City Renewal Authority
Has the electorate of Murrumbidgee been overlooked again?
ACT Government and Greenery
Canberra’s green infrastructure
Driving west on Belconnen Way, under the Gungahlin Drive Bridge, there is a view that demonstrates how planning and landscape aesthetics are not in the skill set of those who run this city.
ACT Elections 2020
Making that choice!
Given that I will be voting as an early voter next week, the time has come to decide on the candidates to be given the tick – or the flick.
Floriade Canberra 2020
Flowers in the suburbs
It is all happening again in Kingston and, as with other locations throughout Canberra, Floriade Reimagined saw locals planting more than 8000 bulbs and annuals in May.
ACT Government planning mess
How planning went wrong in MacGregor
In 2010, Dickson residents lodged objections to a unit development and eventually took the developer and the ACT Planning Directorate through the appeals tribunal and won.
Lack of Master Planning in Canberra
ACT Government fails on master planning
Canberra’s community groups spend a lot of time assessing complex development applications.
Vote for Greenery
Difficulties for Canberra voters to support greenery
On World Environment Day, June 5, the Canberra Liberals committed to planting one million trees over the next decade if they form government following the October 17 ACT election.
The ACT Government spins about trees again
More spin about trees but nothing changes
When the government slipped through the unique variations to the rules for south-east corner of section 72 Dickson, all the local government members, including Green/Labor member Shane Rattenbury, signed off on this most inappropriate action by the planning minister.
ACT Government burns tax dollars
City Renewal Authority waste money – again
In centuries past when a colonial power arrived somewhere foreign (to them), they presumed that they knew how to improve the local culture and commenced with handing around beads and trinkets.
ACT Government and architecture
What is the ACT Government’s attitude to good architecture and good landscape design? That’s easy. It does not consider such things important.
ACT Government on climate emergency
When an emergency is not an emergency
In May 2019 the ACT Government declared a climate emergency. The expectation would have been for high-profile urgent actions.
ACT Government’s inability to listen
Residents speak but the government interprets
In August 2019, Ben Ponton, the ACT’s chief planner, said: “Your feedback plays a key role through your unique ability to communicate useful observations into issues that may affect your neighbourhood…”
And the reality?
The ACT Labor/Greens Government fails Canberra
The Singapore government of the ’70s, led by Lee Kuan Yew, was hell-bent on building a modern and prosperous city/state. It took a close relative to point out that if he wanted tourists to visit, then he needed to stop bulldozing the old stuff.
Continue reading The ACT Labor/Greens Government fails Canberra
Kingston Arts Precinct or more apartments
When confronted with the latest complex goings-on with the proposal for a huge apartment development alongside the Old Bus Depot Markets that will include the Kingston Arts Precinct, the Inner South Canberra Community Council (ISCCC) did a very sensible thing.
Yvette Berry insults Canberra’s inner north residents
After almost a decade of residents saying very clearly what their preferred options were for a precious community site within Dickson in the inner north of Canberra (Dickson Parklands) , residents have been told that Yvette Berry, Minister for social housing (housing clearances mostly) is to announce that her wonderful deaf government is to build on this community site. Click here for the opinion piece published in City News.
for another instance of Yvette Berry’s talent – click here – being dismissive about the urgent and long over due needs for sports, community and cultural facilities in Woden.
Yvette Berry does herself no favours in Woden
Yvette Berry as ACT sports minister attended a recent Woden Valley meeting and totally trashed all the ideas that residents put forward for much needed and well-overdue sports, recreation and cultural facilities for Woden – where there are 20 plus towers of apartments about to appear. And as yet – no facilities are being planned for the area. WTF?? Click here for the opinion piece in CityNews.
Griffin impugned for the West Basin’s awful future
Good journalism is welcomed and embraced. Journalism that is written to promote bad decisions by government must be called out. Here’s an example of the latter. The author, Tom Greenwell, starts well by making some points about Walter Burley Griffin’s planning for Canberra. But then he commits the crime of using Griffin’s name and visions to justify some outrageous developments being planned by the ACT Government (Urban Renewal Authority again!) that will destroy a wonderful part of the foreshore of Lake Burley Griffin. Click here for the article in City News.
and for more about West Basin alternative facts – click here; includes letters from Richard Johnstone of kingston – a supporter of West Basin developments.
And for more on the arguments against what Tom Greenwell has written – click here for a very well informed piece by Penny Moyes, one of the Lake Burley Griffin Guardians.
ACT planning’s brutal behaviour goes unchecked – again
Before the 2016 ACT Elections, the chief minister promised that there would be a panel formed to bring about master planning for the precinct around the Manuka Oval. That panel was to meet by the end of 2016. Did not happen! Instead there have been games, spin and alternative facts. The most recent insult being a meeting called that pretended to be about Manuka planning – but was simply a waste of people’s time. Another broken commitment by the ACT Chief Minster. Another insult to the intelligence of residents by Andrew Barr and his planning barbarians. click here for the opinion piece in City News.
It’s not easy being green around Kippax centre
When developers eye off ACT Government green spaces – the trend in Canberra is that those developers get to buy that land and the people lose yet another piece of precious community open space. This is happening with land behind the Kippax shops in west Belconnen in Canberra.The local Labor member is Yvette Berry and she loves to show up with a shovel to be photographed when community land and green spaces are being removed from the public ownership. Click here for the opinion piece in City News.
Woden Valley gets ignored
Two stories about a meeting at the Woden Community Council meeting in late July. The first is about an ACT Minister, Rachel Stephen-Smith, addressing the audience and apparently not having an understanding of the depth of anger about the lack of facilities in this centre – despite the enormous growth in apartments. The second involved the ACT Government’s planning bureaucracy’s mishandling of a small green space within the suburb of O’Malley. Both performances were astonishingly terrible – sort of funny if it was not about people’s lives. Click here for the opinion piece in City News.
National Capital Authority stupidity on Commonwealth Avenue Bridge
The agency that is supposed to be the steward for the national capital, the National Capital Authority (NCA), does come out with some rubbish at times. In this case it floated the idea of pulling down Commonwealth Ave bridge to build a new bridge for the tram. Luckily the project engineer who worked on the bridge is around t point out how stupid this thought bubble was. Click here for my opinion piece in City News.
Heritage ignored in Reid house approval
The suburb of Reid in Canberra is one of the oldest and residents accept that there are heritage values to be considered for most of the suburb. When a house was demolished and plans were approved by the ACT Government that paid token attention to these heritage values – residents were not happy. To make matters worse the ACT Heritage Council approved the development application. What were they thinking! Click here for my opinion piece on this in the City News.
New ACT Labor Minister goes neoliberal
Chris Steel became an ACT Labor Minister about a year ago. Watching him recently at a Weston Creek Community Council meeting I became aware of how these Labor politicians have so easily accepted the arguments of the classic NeoLiberals. It is all about market forces. Click here for my opinion piece in City News.
The NCA and towers to dominate national capital
Some stories about planning in Canberra are simply unbelievable. This is one of those and involves the National Capital Authority not doing its job.
more CRAPP planning in Canberra
How sad! Yet another glossy ACT Government planning document that is a waste of time and effort – click here for my piece on this CRAPP in City News
Canberra and its tree loses
The bush capital is under threat from the ACT Government – it’s about trees
Woden town centre
Woden is being transformed, but into what?
The Greens/Labor coalition ACT government is infamous for its cabal of ministers who are making a mess of Canberra’s planning and development. What is happening in the Woden Centre demonstrates this. click here
Be afraid, the barbarians are inside the gate
Warning! neoliberal labor at its worst
I wrote a piece about the barbarians now running the ACT’s government – click here for the piece in CityNews.
Urban Biodiversity
The Conversation on urban biodiversity
The Conversation has an article recommending a change to planning to deal realistically with urban biodiversity.
Build more art centres
Where governments spend/not spend on culture
All cities have their city square or equivalent.
Getting high on Canberra’s coffee economy
Comments about Canberra’s coffee economy
Like many cities, coffee shops/ cafes pop up everywhere that there is a new development.
Trees and smart planning
Smart city planning can preserve old trees and the wildlife that needs them
Mature trees have horizontal branches that are attractive to wildlife and birds.from shutterstock.com
corrupted government planning
Seeking a new generation to step up
Once you realise how corrupted the ACT Government is – it would be so easy to get depressed and walk away.
Canberra Planning
There’s still little trust in Canberra’s planners
I have an opinion piece published in the City News based on the experience of attending a recent Woden Valley community meeting.
Planning battles
A win for inner Sydney
Lorrie Graham has posted on her blog about a win within her area of Sydney.
Dogs
Jenna Price on Dogs and Dog Parks
Could not agree more with this article. We have had some bad experiences in our local wetland park.
Henry Rolland Park in Canberra
A walk through a new Canberra park
#01
Here’s the official spin on this new park – click here. Watch this space for my thoughts on this park when they are published in CityNews.
ACT Chief Minister fails urban basics
Downtown Singapore.
I have just spent three weeks in Singapore.
Smart Cities
Social Housing vs community spaces
With Canberra having such an informed and aware community, one would have thought that a community-focused government planning minister would have surfaced by now – one being committed to development and the future growth of the city while simultaneously embracing the enhancement of (rather than reducing) the city’s amenities that are admired internationally.
Problems with school parking
Comments have been published about how Deakin residents have raised doubts about the development application for a 102-bed aged care facility on the former gallery site near the shopping centre.
Gardeners at war with possums
This story starts with standing outside the Museum of Sydney taking in an outdoor display of a cottage garden – complete with vegetables and herbs.
Pedestrians be aware – be very aware!
Life for pedestrians in Dickson is not as safe as it should be. Here’s a few events to illustrate my point.
Dickson auctions
Just months ago a Luton’s auctioneer stated that the property going under the hammer was the only house for sale in Dickson.
Thanks for Flu
Here’s a message from me – and the many others who suffered through the flu recently:
This goes out to those thoughtful people who insisted on going out into public areas when they had the flu.
Urban Destruction in Canberra
Same old spin in new clothes
There is no doubt that the spin doctors within the ACT Government worked hard to get journalists to take a positive spin on the establishment of the City Renewal Authority and the appointment of their CEO, Malcolm Snow
architecture and constitution ave
Back in 2013 plans were announced for the next stage of Canberra’s Constitution Avenue.
contracts for buying an apartment
When I was first alerted to the issues below – sadly my response was: Why am I not surprised?
Cascadia subduction zone
Maybe not going to Portland for a holiday – with this disaster waiting to happen.
culture, arts and city planning
backyards
Vanishing Australian backyards
leave us vulnerable to the stresses of city life
the Dutch Reach
a Telstra NBN story
Another mess made by Malcolm Turnbull
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10154819656957544&set=p.10154819656957544&type=3
architecture
“Call us dull, call us sellouts, call us gentrifiers – just don’t call us copycats”
Our lust for originality is wrecking the city, delivering a rash of formally new but ultimately anti-urban hideous skyline baubles reducing city-making to a spectacle of super-size billboard branding gestures while inhibiting the multiplication of good ideas. Click here
post-truth planning
Dr Elizabeth Farrelly is outraged
Dr Elizabeth Farrelly sets the scene for how planning might navigate the post-truth political landscape – click here.
Will your house burn?
As I watched the horrifying footage of the London Grenfell Tower fire, I remarked that this is what could have happened in Docklands, Melbourne, in 2014.
architecture
Good article by Miguel Córdova Ramírez on the teaching of architecture.
Architecture
Architecture and all that spin
If there is one occupation that I could not imagine doing, it is being an ACT Government planner who spends most of the day looking through development applications (DA) for commercial developments.
Architecture
The Problem Isn’t Architecture, It’s Urban Design
Interesting read – but I think they let the architects off too easily. Click here.
Places for Children
click on image for article
Changing architecture of Dickson
Talking to locals in the last weeks there were stories of that knock on the door and the offer to buy the house. The reactions were a little different and also similar.
developers rule the day – again
Sad story from Manchester. Lesson? – watch out for the spin when developments are announced. click here
A tale of two parklands
Very strange things happen in the urban design planning space in Canberra.
Architecture
a note to the ACT Chief Minister
About the architecture along Northbourne Avenue
Architecture
How to waste public money
The saga of the proposed Garden Bridge over the Thames in London has been well covered in the UK press. It is indeed a saga. It is about a folly.
Woden planning
When the government says one things but does the other…
The press release from the Woden Community Council points to the problems with planning in Canberra.
Northbourne oh Northbourne
Local governments rarely get the opportunity to completely makeover and enhance the main entry to the city – and the city centre itself.
What is this landscape about
Jonathan Jones on cherishing the landscape
Click on the image to see the point being made – it’s a good one!
The Australian suburb
Reinventing density: overcoming the suburban setback
Grace Mortlock, University of Technology Sydney and David Neustein, University of Technology Sydney; republish from The Conversation
City for Pedestrians
Government Architect – what’s that?
Canberra is usually referred to as being a designed and/or planned city. Continue reading Government Architect – what’s that?
Shared Spaces
Share your space
There’s a 1989 song by Pere Ubu, Flat, that has the following lyrics, “In the early part of the 20th Century, Deep inside the American wilderness, In the state of Kansas – 82,000 square miles of flat -There were two automobile cars. On July 5th 1904 they ran into each other”.
how cycling changed New York
Streetfight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution
Author: Sadik-Khan, Janette; Solomonow, Seth
New Book – here’s text from the publishers: As New York City’s transportation commissioner, Janette Sadik-Khan managed the seemingly impossible and transformed the streets of one of the world’s greatest, toughest cities into dynamic spaces safe for pedestrians and bikers.
Greening the city & health
Here’s a few links on current research and commentary on green spaces, our cities and health.
Wollongong – urban opportunities?
There is some brilliant work being delivered within the public realm by local governments across Australia.
Architecture
For too many cities are being altered in not such a good way by over the top architecturally design structures by ‘star architects’.
Green Square Zetland Sydney
We start with words from the City of Sydney – that contains all those words that make sensible people run for cover:
Vitoria-Gasteiz and 21st Century city transport
Imitate to Innovate: Vitoria-Gasteiz Shows How Cities can Address 21st Century Challenges. Click on image for the story.
copenhagen
A nice blog worth visiting, philscopenhagen – click on the image above.
Barangaroo & architectural sour grapes
The whole of the Barangaroo story is messy. Sydney based architectural writers are not very happy. Yes their chosen few did not get the contract. Yes even the next team did not survive.
Barangaroo
Barangaroo Reserve, opened to the public in August 2015. It was immediately greeted with much enthusiasm and was declared a success.
The only Moscow metro toilet
Some stories make you wonder. Here’s one of them.
Passengers on Moscow’s underground system can now access a toilet for the first time – but only at one station. click here.