News & Discussion: Adelaide City Council

[how good is he]

Hi David, can you comment on the Victoria Square upgrade, in particular yours and/or your fellow councillors thoughts on the stage 2&3 upgrades. Is it on the agenda to get discussed or approved at all?
In regards to the old RAH site, has council or you an opinion on what should be done with it.
Also the new skate park, has any money been approved or allowed to build it or do you have any costings?
Also now that the new library is open in Rundle Place, is there any plans for the 3 buildings/libraries that it replaces?

[david]

Hi how good is he.

You have asked some curly questions but I will have a go at answering them from a personal point of view.

Re Victoria Square/Tarntanyangga, Council is still committed to completing the whole design as adopted last year but there is no money approved for that work yet. Quite frankly, I don't think it will get funding in our coming (June) budget unless the State or Feds are prepared to make a contribution (If they did I guess we would have to try to match it)
The ultimate plan includes 'squaring the square' with the roads put to the perimeter and creating the large unified space.

As far as the old RAH site is concerned Council has not come to any conclusions on a preferred development model other than to express our grave concern about the economic impact on the East End when the RAH goes. I support this work being done. In terms of the use of the space, my personal view leans towards clearing all the crappy buildings, adapting and re-using the heritage buildings (most obvious use would seem tome to be university-related), a substantial open space perhaps with an amphitheatre wit an emphasis on performing arts and perhaps a sculpture park and definitely an expansion of and integration with the Botanic Gardens. I would like to see that bloody awful multi-storey car park go at the same time (perhaps replaced with an underground one).

Re the Skate Park, we are consulting on ideas for the relocation of the Skate Park - I will wait and be guided by the results of that exercise. As far as funding is concerned we believe that as it is being moved at the behest of the State Government, they should bear the bulk of the cost! Anyone disagree?

THe libraries that we have closed down at Grote St and North Tce were both in leased premises and those leases have now been terminated. I hope all the users of those facilities will gravitate to the new City Library which I think is a really great asset to the CBD

I hope I have answered all your questions!

David P

[david]

Just a couple of points I should have made about Victoria Square:

The current contract includes the reinstallation of the 3 Rivers Fountain and some improvement to the paths and the grass in the southern half.

The next stages of the work and its timing will be a matter for the new Council which will be elected in November.

My own preference would be to press on with 'Stage 2' in 2014-2015 which would perhaps involve squaring the roads on the northern half of the square, extending the arbors, and creating the gardens in the southern half. I would also like to see Council chase the funds to build the aboriginal interpretive centre (Mullaburka) south of Reconciliation Plaza and the planned bike hub integrated with a cafe and an enhanced tram stop in front of the Hilton.

David P

[Matt]

David, by "extending the arbours", do you mean more of the existing black temporary ones, or building the "grander" looking ones from the master plan video?
Are these still on the agenda?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Honey of a City]

David, by "extending the arbours", do you mean more of the existing black temporary ones, or building the "grander" looking ones from the master plan video?
Are these still on the agenda?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yes please confirm that the arbours from the master plan will be built. That's what made the design extraordinary. To extend the current arbours would be a massive copout and a surrender to mediocrity.

[david]

I mean building the permanent grander ones for which I believe the footings have been built below the granite paving.
But I may have grander aspirations than some of my more fiscally cautious colleagues.

However, as I said, those decisions will be ones for the new Council to be elected in November, of which I may, or may not, be a member!

David

[david]

Peter Goers got stuck into us today - not very surprising given his usual stance in relation to whatever the Council does.
I think we got incredibly good value for a Stage 1 spend of $28m.

The space works well for set-piece events such as TDU, Royal Croquet Club (about to bump-in), Tasting Australia and Feast to follow later in the year one after the other.

By April we will have the rest of stage 1 done including the fountain and a general tidy-up of the southern half. We are looking at to how best to provide fencing which is required for some events (to meet Licensing requirements and to screen back-of -house activities) which won't detract from the overall appearance and visibility of the Square.

What I am keen to see is some umbrellas, sails or some kind of shade at the northern end with some deck chairs and ideally a trendy pop-up coffee/cool drink stall so we can relax there when nothing is planned in the Square and mums and dads can watch their kids splashing around in the new fountains.

But simple things like this are sometimes the hardest of all to get Town Hall to do!!!

David P

[Nathan]

Goers certainly has become the Pied Piper of the 'moan at everything' brigade.

Great to hear you're looking at better event fencing. I've long thought that event fencing could be so much nicer, considering the regularity of events around the city (especially in Rundle & Rymill Parks). I know that these events hire in the fencing themselves, but could the council possible get a large number of better ones, store them centrally, and lease them out to event organisers?

I like your idea of umbrellas. Some high quality ones could work well, like in newly pedestrianised sections of Broadway in NY.

[[Shuz]]

What about some sort of retractable fencing system, where the poles go into the ground and then when events are on, come up and down all thats needed is the tarp for the barrrier and advertising - something which event organisers should pay for - a nice little income stream for the council. Or does the fencing actually need to be a proper fence, iron wire and all to comply with event fencing regulations? (Im not aware of what the requirements / regulaions are).

Also, Peter Goers is a bit of a grumpy senile sore loser. He doesn't deserve the airtime he gets. Half of his 'facts' are wrong anyway. The square does get a fair bit of shade from the surrounding tall buildings shadows.

Also agree that a bit of shade could be provided up at the northern end over the pavers / fountain area. Council should trial a shade sail temporarily and see how feedback from users goes. It doesn't need to be an expensive job, sometimes the simplest & cheapest option can be the most effective. Just attach the sail to the street light / tram masts / square lighting poles, buy a few chairs from IKEA & issue a tender for operation of a coffee / ice-cream cart. Would go down well with families and office workers. I share Nathan's view about looking to the newly pedestrianised areas of New York (Times Square, in particular) as a perfect example.

[Waewick]

Peter Goers got stuck into us today - not very surprising given his usual stance in relation to whatever the Council does.
I think we got incredibly good value for a Stage 1 spend of $28m.

The space works well for set-piece events such as TDU, Royal Croquet Club (about to bump-in), Tasting Australia and Feast to follow later in the year one after the other.

By April we will have the rest of stage 1 done including the fountain and a general tidy-up of the southern half. We are looking at to how best to provide fencing which is required for some events (to meet Licensing requirements and to screen back-of -house activities) which won't detract from the overall appearance and visibility of the Square.

What I am keen to see is some umbrellas, sails or some kind of shade at the northern end with some deck chairs and ideally a trendy pop-up coffee/cool drink stall so we can relax there when nothing is planned in the Square and mums and dads can watch their kids splashing around in the new fountains.

But simple things like this are sometimes the hardest of all to get Town Hall to do!!!

David P

Hi David,

Goers is the type of person the city needs less of and I wouldn't even both reading his articles, sadly the Advertiser appears to be great at churning our anti-everything tripe, it must meet with demand for those few silly enough to buy that paper still.

I think works done at the Mall and the Square look great to date, obviously looking forward to the finished product. but so far so good.

Regards

[david]

Thanks for the positive comments about Mall and Vic Square.

The bumping-in of the Royal Croquet Club with its bright Red/Yellow tents looks pretty good and it should create a great space for Fringe activities right in the centre of the city.

The fencing does present some challenges especially on the western side where its proximity to the tram will require it to be earthed to prevent arcing to the tram lines apparently. This pretty much rules out retractable fencing. There are also some issues with Licensing provisions which seem to be overly prescriptive to my way of thinking. I want to see a simple see-through fence at 1200 height which will allow us to see most of what's happening in the square, most of the time!

David P

[Matt]

Peter Goers is a tit.
Given past form, we should probably expect a couple of follow up articles sinking the boot even further.

Dismissing the revamp as a failure because he spent an hour there when nothing much was happening is ridiculous.
Conveniently ignores the TDU, which, from what I've gathered from social media, appeared to be a massive success (as I'm sure the Fringe hub will be also).

On a side note, thrilled to hear the news about the arbour footings having been installed beneath the pavers. Great to hear and hopefully we get some further good news around council budget time.

[david]

Notes from Councillor David Plumridge's Desk - Issue 105

- Too Many Freeloaders.

- North Adelaide in Lock-Down

- Decisions from Council Meeting 11 February

Notes from Councillor Issue 105.pdf

(209.8 KiB) Downloaded 210 times

Area Councillor
David Plumridge AM
City of Adelaide.

[monotonehell]

A controversial notes this week David.

I agree with a review of the rates exemptions arrangements. For profit commercial activities should pay their way.

I also (partially) agree that the transport arrangements for Oval Declared Event days need to give consideration to the general activities they affect. We city residents accept some congestion when an event is on, but allowances need to be made. Another example of this is how the Christmas Pageant completely bisects the City. It's impossible to get from one side to the other, even for pedestrians.

However:

5.1.Council resolved to ask the State Government and the Opposition to support the Australian Medical Association’s
call for the federal government to convene a summit to tackle the scourge of alcohol-related harm and to develop coordinated
national action plans by governments on issues such as alcohol marketing, pricing, licensing and opening hours.

No mention of addressing the underlying social causes of the problem. Just the usual attack of the symptoms.

8 Council endorsed a set Questions to be put to Political Parties and Independents to elicit their policy positions
on a number of city issues which are of concern to Council in the coming State election. When Council receives
the replies they will be made available, verbatim, to all via the Council’s web site and social media outlets.

I look forward to this. Could we burden you with a favour to post the results on this forum when they become available?


Thanks again for your continued involvement with this forum.

[david]

Council agreed to ask our State Government to support a call for a National Summit to address issues of alcohol abuse which I think would go to all the causes as well as the symptoms. A bit of background, quoting from the AMA, might be helpful.

Background (from an AMA Media Release)

The AMA has called on the Federal Government to convene a National Summit to discuss and assess the evidence and develop effective national solutions to the epidemic of alcohol misuse and harms afflicting local communities right across the nation.

The AMA wants a whole-of-government approach from all governments that looks at harm minimisation, the marketing of alcohol and how young people are exposed to this marketing, pricing and taxation, venue licensing and opening hours. But any policy and regulation must be informed by everyday community experience – from police, doctors and other health professionals, drug and alcohol services, teachers, and the families who suffer from alcohol addiction, misuse, and the associated violence and illness
.
The AMA believes a National Summit, convened by the Federal Government, would bring together the experience, the expertise, and the passion to bring about much-needed meaningful change to Australia’s alcohol ‘culture’. A recent survey from the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine shows that on average:

• one in seven emergency department visits on a Saturday night are alcohol related, and in some areas the rate is as high as one in three.
• one in four hospitalisations of young people aged 15-24 years occurs because of alcohol. Hospital emergency staff are regularly confronted with the acute and chronic complications of alcohol.
• One in five Australians aged 14 years and above drink at a level that puts them at risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury over their lifetime.
• One in three 14 to 19 year olds drink alcohol in a way that places them at risk of an alcohol-related injury from a single drinking occasion at least once a month.

Young Australians are exposed to an unprecedented level of alcohol marketing and promotions, and there is strong evidence that the more young people are exposed to alcohol advertising, the earlier they start drinking, the more they drink, and the more alcohol-related harm they experience.

Re the political questions and answers I will endeavour to post them here when we get them.

David