Councillor Chris Harris

While the Greens welcome the expenditure of over $5B in rail infrastructure for Sydney, they have serious concerns about the CBD Metro proposal and its priorities and are supporting Pyrmont residents in their efforts to save Union Square.

Proposed sites for access to stations and installation of security vents at Union Square, Pyrmont, have prompted community outrage over destruction of heritage buildings, trashing of the village square and disruption to local businesses.

The Greens have thrown their support behind the community’s campaign and are confident that alternative solutions for station access and security vents are viable. The alternative solutions have been carefully thought through and the community should be shown the respect of having these considered through further investigation.

The proposed Pyrmont railway station would require five heritage buildings to be resumed for station access and 72 sq metre security vents. This is totally unsatisfactory when there are alternative solutions which could be considered.

We want a more acceptable solution through further investigation into the use of either the Casino site fronting Union Street or via compulsory acquisition of privately-owned vacant land fronting Harris Street and just north of the intersection of Harris and Union streets. There is no reason why the Metro Authority could not negotiate the location of the station entrance underneath the new Casino building or indeed, as a low-impact and transparent structure in Union Square itself.

In addition, a suitable section of Union Street between Paternoster Row and Pyrmont Bridge Road could be closed temporarily as a storage site for equipment, excavation material and new building materials.  This arrangement will accommodate cycle and pedestrian traffic through the Square and minimise disruption to local business.

The Greens will be attending the community rally on 4th July and will stand with the community to oppose these destructive, expedient and short sighted proposals put forward by the Metro Authority.
 

The Harold Park Paceway has asked the Minister for Planing to use her Part 3A powers to determine a concept plan for the re-zoning and redevelopment of both the trotting facility and the adjacent historic Tramsheds.

The Greens are very concerned about this approach by the Trotting Club to have the concept plan determined inside the minister’s office. Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act is meant to give the minister power to fast track critical infrastructure, not to enable an owner to increase the value of a property by being granted a rezoning.  The Greens are calling on the minister to refuse the Part 3A application and to refer the concept plan to the City of Sydney Council to carry out the necessary consultation and assessment.

Consultation Part 3A is a flawed process. Objectors are held at arms length from the decision makers but developers, particularly those who hand over large donations to the major parties, are able to get straight through to the minister. The process creates a very uneven playing field and has led to gross overdevelopment on sites such as the CUB site in Chippendale. The City of Sydney process is a much more open and public process and will allow objectors to have their voices heard.

The other key issue is the future of the historic Tramsheds that are adjacent to the Paceway. The process under which the title for the Tramsheds was transferred to the Trotting Club indicates that this valuable public land was handed over for a peppercorn consideration. In addition, the poor state of the Tramsheds, demonstrates that the Trotting Club has neglected this strategically located facility.

The Tramsheds site is a former depot for Sydney’s trams and now it seems to have found its way from public ownership into the hands of a horse racing business. There needs to be an examination of how this came about and exactly how much the trotting industry paid for it.

Whether or not the Tramsheds site remains the property of the trotting industry or is returned to public ownership, it should be used for a public purpose. Perhaps one good use is for it to be used as a depot for future light rail carriages or even buses. Other possible public uses can be developed by a thorough process of community consultation.

The Tramsheds site is a strategically located and important piece of public land that should be used for the benefit of the community, not to line the pockets of a developer or the trotting industry.

Below is a link to the Central Courier story and a second to the Sydney Morning Herald story.  After opening the link to the Courier story use the arrow to go to page 4 for full story.

http://digitaledition.centralmag.com.au/?iid=24977

smh-story.pdf

Sydney’s hard pressed police were called in this week to remove protestors from the City of Sydney’s works site in Wood St, Forest Lodge. The protestors were trying to make the Lord Mayor see reason and remove a large switchback path that was a last minute inclusion in the design of the important wildlife habitat area contained within the project.
 
The protestors are all local residents who live on either side of the works site, and they are hopping mad because they are been denied the habitat refuge that has been promised to them for over a decade.
 
On Monday 23rd  March I asked the CEO who from the City of Sydney had called in the police to remove the protestors from the site.  Protestors had informed me that a City of Sydney car was visiting the site on a regular basis and that the driver had taken photos of them. The CEO replied that no City staff had called the police. However it seemed odd to me that five police officers, and an inspector would be attending the site on the basis of an anonymous phone call.
 
The protest has continued each day since and on Wednesday 25th the attending police gave a direction that protestors leave the site. Most followed the direction and one protestor refused. Police carried her from the site. It should be noted that she was treated with respect and police were courteous. I commend the manner in which they carried out their duty.
 
The project manager, an employee of the developer (Frasers), spoke to the protestors before the police direction and revealed that all his instructions about work on the site came from the City of Sydney. Further he stated that the request for police intervention also came from the City of Sydney.
 
 It is clear that someone from the City of Sydney has called in the police – we have direct evidence of that now. It is also clear that this could not have happened without the agreement of the Lord Mayor, Clover Moore.
 
 The Lord Mayor appears to have introduced a new model of City engagement with the community. ‘Do what I say or we will call in the police!’ This is an absurd response to what is now a large Forest Lodge community united against the City over last minute, unwanted changes to a small local project in their backyard.
 
It really is about time that the Lord Mayor has a reality check and starts listening to this community. Arresting people because they are concerned about what is going on in their neighbourhood is contrary to everything that the Lord Mayor peddles as her approach to civic leadership.
 
 Wake up Clover. It is time to let go of this intrusive pathway that you seem so attached to. Give the Forest Lodge people their wildlife habitat.

Photos: Top: Clover’s response to peaceful protest - call in the cops

             Bottom: Peaceful protestors and councillors at the site

The Minister for Transport should intervene and reverse the decision to implement the latest cut to the 311 Bus service in Eastern Sydney. The reduction in the service is the latest in a succession of cuts in this bus route since 2002.
 
It seems clear to me that the 311 bus service is on the chopping block following the elimination of the Elizabeth Bay loop from the route in this latest review of Sydney bus services. The 311 is the only public transport service in Elizabeth Bay which also happens to be the most densely populated district in Sydney.
 

This latest reduction in service follows cuts to the frequency in the bus from 20 minute to 30 minute intervals in 2002. This was followed by a further service deterioration in 2006 when weekend and evening services were hacked by 35 services per week and travellers had a 45 minute wait between buses.
 
This gradual reduction in the frequency, coverage and reliability in the 311 bus will not encourage increased patronage of the service. On the contrary, it will become an increasingly less attractive transport option. Many of the residents in this area are elderly and rely on this bus service.
 
The original proposal floated for the reduced 311 service included the elimination of the railway square section of the route. But hostile submissions from bus users caused a rethink by bus planners. However, the fact that such drastic cuts were even proposed gives a clue to the long term plans for the 311 service.
 
It really is death by 1000 cuts for this important bus service. And this is at a time when the Government should be encouraging people to use public transport. Many Elizabeth Bay residents will be very disappointed by this decision.
 
As an aside, it is interesting that the local member, Clover Moore, has been claiming some sort of victory over the latest review of the 311 bus. Her media spin is contrasted by the reality that over a seven year period the service has been cut from a frequent 20 minute service to one that is less frequent, is less reliable and doesn’t even go to the most populous part of her electorate. Some victory Clover!
 
The Greens will continue to argue for increased spending on and an expansion of public transport facilities throughout all Sydney communities.

Photo: Councillor Harris with an Elizabeth Bay resident who died waiting for the 311 bus

Below is a link to the story as it appeared on page 6 of The City News on March 19

City News Story
 

Forest Lodge residents are furious at the refusal of the Lord Mayor of Sydney to provide the wildlife habitat that was promised to them for over a decade. The bushland reserve is located along Hereford Street near Wood Street at Forest Lodge. It will pass into public ownership following the completion of the development of the Children’s Hospital site at Camperdown. The project had its origins with Leichhardt Council over 10 years ago and throughout this entire period the local residents have wanted part of the land to be a thriving and healthy habitat for native plants, birds & animals

The pleas of local residents have been ignored by the City of Sydney Council and the Lord Mayor who is supportive of running a “v” shaped switchback pathway right thorough the middle of what is supposed to be a habitat area. This will totally degrade the habitat values of the crescent moon shaped piece of land because what is already a modest sized habitat area will be divided into three or four even smaller sections by concrete - its integrity will be destroyed.

The switchback pathway will be about 130 metres long with a one in twenty slope - it will be irresistible to young people who will have great fun skating and cycling on the sloping path with a 180 degree turn at the end of the first section. And that’s not a criticism of young skaters & cyclists – if I was 40 years younger I’d be down there with my mates in a flash! No doubt, every kid in Glebe will know about this path before long.

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