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.