Past Programs
Urban Development and Planning - 2008
2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004
Bicycle Heaven
15/06/2008
There are many cities that could aspire to the title of 'bike heaven', cities where cycle paths abound and where governments and car users alike regard bicycles as a solution to traffic problems rather than a cause of them. Sydney isn't one of them.
Visit Amsterdam or Copenhagen... even Adelaide and Canberra have kilometres of cycle paths in their city centres, while Brisbane is planning many more. But it's still a distant dream in huge, sprawling, car-mad Sydney, where it's said one-third of all land lies under roads and car parks. It takes a lot of nerve to cycle in Sydney but, for those who do, it becomes a passion they want to share.
'Happy cycling!' Photo courtesy of Moz.
It's not like the suburbs
04/05/2008
The Narrabundah Longstay Caravan Park is a unique community tucked away on the urban fringes of Canberra who have pulled together over the last two years to save their homes.
A wide variety of mostly low-income residents live in a hotchpotch of dwellings, from miniature houses to caravans with annexes and even a double decker bus, with an annexe. Ninety per cent of them own their homes, despite the fact that you cannot get a home loan to buy in the caravan park. They are proud of their homes and well established gardens and there is a strong sense of community in the park—everyone helps the other out and watches over their neighbours' homes.
The park was originally established in 1975 to house the workers who built Canberra and the new Parliament House. In 2006 the park was sold to a developer and the residents were issued with eviction notices. Rather than move out, they all worked together, lobbying government and the community of Canberra to protect their homes. After many months of negotiations the developer has accepted a land swap offered by the ACT government, and the residents are awaiting the outcome of an environmental impact analysis on this new piece of land. When that is clear, the residents will no longer be in limbo and will be able to continue living in the park.
In the program you hear single dad David, retiree Gabbi, Frank and Norma who moved there from Harden, student and advocate Deb, and Pam who has lived there for 20 years, more recently with her husband Mark and their menagerie of pets.
Based on the experience of this community the longstay caravan park could be one solution to the current housing crisis, a place where it is possible for people on very low incomes to own their own homes and have a sense of security.
Since this story was broadcast the environmental statement on the landswap has been approved and the ACT Government has now taken over ownership of the park. The residents now feel safe as tennants of the ACT Government.
- Watch a short presentation on the residents of the Narrabundah Longstay Caravan Park.
Port to Paradise
23/03/2008
Port Adelaide is a working class, suburban region that contains one of the last working, historic ports in Australia. It sits on the Port River and it is this waterfront that has attracted developers to the area.
South Australia's State Government has sold a swathe of riverfront land to a consortium of developers who are building many multi-storey, high-density residential apartments, expected to attract a further 8,000 people into the region.
With half a dozen buildings, up to six storeys high, already complete and plans for buildings of up to 12 storeys, there are mixed feelings about what will happen to the Port and its people.
Hundreds of millions of dollars of capital investment, environmental cleanup, new marinas, an influx of 'outsiders', higher housing prices and the loss of heritage are in the mix that is dividing locals. Some are against the developers and government while others are celebrating the change in lifestyle and population mix.
