MEDIA RELEASE – 5 December 2016 Tasmania’s celebrated built heritage needs stronger protection under proposed planning scheme – National Trust

Freycinet Action Network
5 December 2016

Tasmania’s celebrated built heritage needs stronger protection 

under proposed planning scheme – National Trust

The Deputy Chair of the National Trust of Australia (Tasmania) Warwick Oakman has joined other stakeholder voices to raise concerns about changes to planning rules in Tasmania and the impact it could have on the preservation and setting of buildings in Tasmanian towns. Mr Oakman will address a public meeting on the planning reforms this Tuesday night in Launceston.

The National Trust is a community-based organisation responsible for the protection and presentation of historic heritage places. Since 1960 the Trust and its members have played a lead role advocating for the preservation of built heritage in Tasmania. It manages and opens to the public historic properties such as Runnymede in Hobart and Clarendon outside of Launceston. Mr Oakman has been involved with the management of the National Trust in Tasmania for the past 18 years.

“We are concerned about the small towns of Tasmania and how traditional, modest, sometimes internationally significant places and attendant rural landscape setting will be preserved under the proposed provisions of the new Tasmanian Planning Scheme,” said Mr Oakman.

“Unless planning has provisions to help protect unique and important heritage buildings and landscapes, it will have a permanent detrimental impact on Tasmania.”

Mr Oakman said the concerns were heightened with the impending removal of over 500 properties from the Tasmanian Heritage Register.

“The built cultural heritage landscape of Tasmania is of unique national and international character and needs strong protection under planning laws,” said Mr Oakman.

Mr Oakman will discuss the National Trust's concerns over the current proposed planning reforms at a public information night in Launceston on Tuesday, organised by over 20 community and environment groups.

7 - 9 pm, Tuesday 6th December
Pilgrim Uniting Church
34 Patterson Street, Launceston
Facebook Event Link: https://www.facebook.com/events/404963659894197/

OTHER SPEAKERS

Sophie Underwood – Founder of the Freycinet Action Network. Sophie will provide an overview, background, timelines and next steps of the proposed Tasmanian Planning Scheme.

Evan Boardman - Evan Boardman, Director of E3 Planning. Evan is a planning consultant and will be speaking about how the draft Tasmanian Planning Scheme will be taking away most of the protections for neighbourhood amenity and character with regards to views, privacy, sunlight into your backyard and home.

Todd Dudley – Director of the North East Bioregional Network will be speaking on the potential environmental impacts of the proposed Tasmanian Planning Scheme.

All three political parties have been invited to attend and the Green’s Rosalie Woodruff will outline her party’s position, while a statement will be read from Labor’s Madeline Ogilvie, Shadow Minister for Local Government & Public Planning, who is an apology. Planning Minister Peter Gutwein has again declined an invitation to participate in the public meeting.

Crowdfunding Alert

For More Information eMail LauncestonProjects@bigpond.com

WATCH THIS SPACE

 BTW:  Thanks to the reader who emailed me insisting that "suppoting" really needs an 'r' ... you're right and we've put it back after it got back from, and got over, being WRONG! ... However we do appreciate your money THANX!!

LETTER TO RATEPAYERS AND SUPPORTERS

Dear Ratepayers and supporters,

Thank you to those who signed the original petition requesting that Launceston City Council convene a Public Meeting to discuss the gifting of the land at Inveresk (the old Velodrome cycling track site next to York Park Stadium) and the Willis Street public car park site (the old Goods Railyard on the opposite side of the North Esk River)  and who were able to attend the Public Meeting that was finally concluded last week on 21st June at Albert Hall. 

The 132 members of the public attending the Public Meeting overwhelmingly opposed the gifting of the land  to the University, compared to less than 10 of those who were willing to vote AGAINST the Motions put to the meeting.

Since the Meeting, The Examiner Newspaper (who has admitted publicly its bias in supporting the move by UTas to Inveresk) received 138 Facebook comments, all opposing the proposal. That level of comment to a media Facebook story is extraordinary!

Unfortunately, Launceston City Council is not obliged to accept the outcome of the Public Meeting, and we are sure that LCC will continue to progress the gifting of the 2 pieces of land to UTas.

However, the Local Government Act 1993 allows for petitioners to proceed to sign a SECOND PETITION, once a Public Meeting has been held on the topic, this time requesting LCC to facilitate an ELECTOR POLL of all Launceston people on the Launceston Elector Roll.

A minimum of 1000 elector signatures (we aim for say, 1500 so as to ensure its validity) must be collected and presented by 20 July 2016. 

We expect this will be a major undertaking in such a short time, however, with your assistance, we hope we can succeed.

If you are able to print off the Petition Form, then we ask that you:

• email LauncestonPR@bigpond.com asking for the PDF Form;
• sign the form and encourage as many friends and acquaintances on the Launceston Roll, to do likewise. 
• post original copies ack to our collection point (P.O. Box 513 Launceston 7250); OR
• simply drop them into my letterbox at 41 High Street, when you are passing. 
• You may also like to send a copy of the Petition to your friends, by email.

If you do not have printing facilities, please ask me for copie(s) to be forwarded to you.
In the meantime, here are a few ‘dot’ points to summarise last Tuesday night’s Public Meeting:

• Criticism of Council’s lack of due diligence, including construction problems/costs and issues with developing on the flood plains of the North Esk River and potential seismic risks
• The track record of UTas in consistently chipping away at the Launceston campus making it but a shadow of what it was 20 years ago. There is no confidence this pattern will change
• 10,000 PLUS extra students can’t be guaranteed. It is an aspirational figure based on demographics not fact, and a fraud to say that is the kind of figure that will eventuate from this proposal
• Absence of support by electors
• Risk of UTas plan not fully eventuating or finding success – the punt
• Reliance on trust versus a properly defined and proven business plan
• The Northern Campuses remaining lesser branches of UTas without the ability of independent initiatives to remain sustainable
• Traffic congestion and parking inadequacies for UTas and other users of the precinct
• We need a uniquely Northern campus independent of UTas 

Please do not hesitate to contact me should you like to discuss your position on this land give away, or have any ideas on how we may further engage with Launceston Electors in relation to this matter.

If you are concerned about the high level of LCC Rates that you are being required to pay, and at how LCC spends your hard-earned money, then please sign the Petition. Council’s valuation of these two pieces of land is $4.5M and apart from the loss of this significant sum that would lessen the Launceston rate burden, the land currently produces a healthy income to Council that helps offset rates paid by its citizens. Once this becomes University owned, not even rates are payable.

Many thanks,

Regards,

Lionel MorrellPresident
Tasmanian Ratepayers Association Inc.
41 High Street
Launceston TAS  7250
T  03 6331 6144
e  li82303@bigpond.net.au

Public Meeting Launceston City Council

Notice of Public Meeting

Public Meeting 7 June 2016 postponed to 21 June 2016

The public is advised that at the Public Meeting held at the Albert Hall, Launceston at 7pm on Tuesday 7 June 2016 in response to a petition received by the Council Meeting, the subject matter being:

1.    That the Launceston City Council call a Public Meeting for the purpose of discussing the Council's decision to transfer (free gift) land, known as Willis Street Car Park and Old Velodrome

2.    Call on Council to rescind the motion passed by the Full Council Meeting 9th November 2015 to transfer said land (free gift) to UTAS

3.    That the said land be placed for sale on the open market via a public auction with a Reserve Price of $5 million,

the following decisions were taken:

1.    That Mr Don Wing AM is appointed as chairperson for the purposes of the Public Meeting; and

2.    That in view of the flood crises that is threatening Launceston and with respect to the efforts and pleadings by the petitioners and their representative for this Public Meeting to be rescheduled to a later date since yesterday, such a request having been refused by Council's representatives, this meeting now be adjourned forthwith and resume at this same venue on Tuesday 21 June 2016 at 7pm, so that those people attending can now return home safely.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a Public Meeting will be held in Albert Hall, corner of Tamar and Cimitiere Streets Launceston, commencing at 7pm on Tuesday 21 June 2016 to consider the matters sought by the petitioners, namely:

1.    That the Launceston City Council call a Public Meeting for the purpose of discussing the Council's decision to transfer (free gift) land, known as Willis Street Car Park and Old Velodrome

2.    Call on Council to rescind the motion passed by the Full Council Meeting 9th November 2015 to transfer said land (free gift) to UTAS

3.    That the said land be placed for sale on the open market via a public auction with a Reserve Price of $5 million.

The chair of the Public Meeting shall be Mr Don Wing AM and the Meeting shall be conducted in accordance with the Local Government Meeting Procedures (Regulations) 2015, as appropriate. The agenda of the meeting will be:

1.    Opening remarks from the Mayor, Alderman A M van Zetten

2.    Introductory remarks from the Chair, Mr Don Wing AM

3.    Report on submissions by the General Manager under section 60A(4) of the Local Government Act 1993 (Tas)

4.    Statements of position (15 minutes each)

(a)  Council

(b)  Petitioner

5.    Motions on the subject matter

6.    Close

Written submissions in relation to the subject matter have been summarised by the General Manager and will be available to those attending the Public Meeting and can be viewed at www.launceston.tas.gov.au.

Robert Dobrzynski

General Manager

INVITATION PUBLIC MEETING TUESDAY JUNE 7 AT 7 PM ALBERT HALL