Planning Matters SPRING SUMMER

2012

Welcome to edition No.10 of ‘Planning Matters’, the newsletter produced by URPS twice a year. We hope you enjoy some highlights of the work we’ve been doing with many of you over recent months. You can also access electronic copies of this and all our past newsletters on our website at www.urps.com.au

inside Engaging communities about adapting to a changing climate • Engaging communities about adapting to a changing climate Climate change will impact upon just about every area of our lives, from the way we build our homes to the sorts of activities we do in our spare time, as well as the way we respond to disasters such as storms and bushfires. • Engaging young people to influence strategy development Such direct impact on people’s lives emphasises the importance of engaging the community in climate change • Streaky Bay – Local Knowlegde, adaptation. However, this is often difficult because climate science is highly technical, some people remain Expert Validation, Shared Purpose sceptical and the impacts are often long-term. • Gerald Ward joins URPS In his key note speech at the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility (NCCARF) conference in • Helping deliver affordable Melbourne earlier this year, leading climate scientist Professor David Karoly expressed an increasingly commonly housing “on the ground” held view when he said: • Primary Industry remaining in the engine room of SA’s economy “Twenty years ago, we thought that if we got the science right and told people loudly enough, that would be

• Learning from recent ERD Court enough. But it wasn’t. We’re learning that actually, it is people’s values and attitudes … that shape responses. decisions We would have done things differently if we had realised that … It will be participation that makes us resilient

• Church on main street – more and adaptive.” than a Sunday Service While climate scientists do incredibly important work, blasting scientific data through a megaphone has had limited impact at a local level and it is time for a new approach that better engages the community. This new approach puts people firmly at the centre of planning and decision making processes.

We have recently completed the Resilient Coastal Communities: Planning for Sea Level Rise on the Upper Spencer Gulf Project for the Climate Change Sector Agreement Committee. As well as building knowledge about local climate change impacts, the project sought to better engage the community on climate change issues. This is in contrast to much of the climate change work undertaken to date that has provided leadership and high- level strategic direction, but not necessarily guidance to the broader community in terms of how to respond to climate change.

Working with ‘project champions’ proved to be an effective way We found a particularly effective process was to work with “project champions”. The project champions were to start the conversation about diverse climate change impacts identified on the basis of being well-known, respected and connected into the broader community. They were also representative of key sectors such as agriculture, tourism, health and wellbeing, emergency services and manufacturing.

This approach allowed us to engage, exchange information and build capacity in a more focused and thorough manner with a select group of people. This meant that, for example, we could explore the implications of the sea level rise and storm surge mapping for each sector and consider potential adaptation options, which could then be communicated with the relevant sector by the project champion.

The benefit of this approach is that the project champions can carry on the climate change conversation with their respective communities long after the project is complete, empowering others to be involved in decisions about adapting to a changing climate. 1 www.urps.com.au

Engaging young people to influence strategy development

As citizens, children and young people have the right to be engaged in decision making that affects them. The City of Norwood Payneham & St Peters recently recognised this as part of its Strategic Plan review.

Carefully targeted engagement with young people leads to With assistance from WAX Design, URPS developed a ‘speak out’ style engagement event for school students using meaningful input into plans special playing cards that provided a range of images relating to the themes contained in Council’s CityPlan 2030. These and projects images provided a focal point for discussion about the key elements of the Strategic Plan and helped Council staff acting as facilitators to ‘deconstruct’ some of the more complex concepts like social equity and economic prosperity.

Mayor Robert Bria was present throughout the event and commented that: “the day emphasised the capacity of young people to participate in these broader planning processes and contribute their view of the world. In expressing their views about the environment, open space, culture and housing density, they displayed a level of insight and maturity well beyond their years”.

This view was shared by a number of the Council staff present at the workshop, who noted the depth of the insights generated by the young people. This demonstrated to us not only the value of engaging with young people as citizens, but also the way in which a carefully targeted engagement process can lead to meaningful input. Please contact Nicole Halsey if you’d like assistance in crafting an engagement process with young people to help shape the direction of your plan or project.

Streaky Bay – Local Knowledge, Expert Validation, Shared Purpose

We often approach our projects by undertaking desktop research and/or site analysis, and then consulting with the community and other stakeholders to test what we have learnt. This approach was reversed for key elements of the Streaky Bay Management Plan given the extensive work already undertaken by local conservation groups such as the Friends of Sceale Bay and the Friends of Streaky Bay Parks.

Working in collaboration with WAX Design and Suter Planners, URPS took carriage of the Coastal Plan component of the Streaky Bay Management Plan, providing a framework for identifying and protecting sensitive natural areas and ecosystems along the coast. In developing the Coastal Plan, our first step was to listen to the local conservation groups and explore the findings of their research – regardless of whether these had been formally documented or not. The generosity of these groups in sharing their knowledge earned the respect of the team and of the specialists in government agencies with whom we tested what we had learnt. For example, the views of coastal raptor expert, Terry Dennis, confirmed the importance of Cape Bauer, and Cape Radstock as nesting places for the White Bellied Sea Eagle, Osprey and other migratory seabirds.

The engagement model of ‘respecting, validating and publishing’ the excellent primary research of the Friends of Sceale Bay and the Friends of Streaky Bay Parks forged new partnerships between these groups and the District Council of Streaky Bay and State Government around coastal management, strengthening the final directions of the Management Plan.

Planning Matters 2 SPRING SUMMER 2012

Gerald Ward joins URPS

Experienced development manager Gerald Ward has joined URPS as an Associate Director. Gerald’s appointment adds a strong development and market dimension to the URPS team, building on the already considerable breadth of what URPS does for its clients.

Gerald, a qualified town planner with more than 20 years’ experience in the property industry, has worked with some of Australia’s largest developers, including Delfin, Mirvac and Stockland. He also has significant experience with the retirement living sector where he most recently was the General Manager, Housing and Property for the ACH Group.

Gerald’s appointment gives URPS increased capacity to help shape great communities. We can ‘close the loop’ from town planning to project delivery with advice and analysis on market depth and demand, product mix and economic feasibility for the best use of any given site or locale.

This new service will, of course, come with the balance, rigour, collaboration and independence that our clients expect of the URPS team.

Helping deliver affordable housing “on the ground”

In Planning Matters, we have previously written about the challenges of providing affordable housing and the need for a variety of policy responses, partnerships and targeted investment. We have been putting some of these ideas to the test over the past two years in assisting the City of Salisbury to leverage its assets to deliver “bricks and mortar” affordable housing outcomes.

In 2010, we helped Council to secure $1.5 million in Federal Funding to create 150 affordable house and land packages in Paralowie. When these are introduced to the local housing market later this year, the entry-point will be $10,000 lower than ordinarily would be the case, thanks to the Federal Government Funding.

In addition, 15% of the dwellings will meet the State’s affordable housing criteria and will be offered to the market using Council’s and the State’s “Shared Appreciation Loan Scheme”, which Council piloted through the award-winning Brahma Green development. Council is working with HomeStart Finance and Habitat for Humanity (SA Australia) to ensure the provision of housing for the target groups. The development will also A variety of policy, feature some environmental features such as solar panels on all houses and recycled water for non potable uses. partnerships and investment is needed to deliver affordable We have enjoyed assisting with the provision of strategic planning and Development Plan Amendment advice to housing “on the ground” progress this innovative project, and congratulate Council for taking such a proactive role in delivering affordable housing to its community.

Primary Industry Remaining in the Engine Room of SA’s Economy

PIRSA’s vision for the future is “to involve all sectors that intersect with our food production system – energy, land use, conservation and tourism, and for people throughout our region and the world to know that South Australian produce is clean and green”.

In order to help realise this vision, URPS helped PIRSA prepare “Planning for the Future of Primary Industry in ”. This document provides a thorough analysis of the strategic tensions and policy questions facing primary industry in SA. Significantly, it establishes eight objectives that are a clear statement of PIRSA’s position to stakeholders and the public. These objectives can be used as a reference for PIRSA when commenting on Planning Strategies, Development Plan Amendments and development applications, as well as decision making on any other matters with a land use element. They are also useful for PIRSA as a framework for directing policy change and other initiatives.

DPTI were an important supporting partner in this project, and we believe that the result is an ever improving ‘line-of sight’ between the State Government’s broad strategic directions and straight- forward assessment of primary industry development, promoting investment confidence in primary industries, agri-business, and wine and food production in South Australia.

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Learning from recent ERD Court decisions

In the matter of Behn & Anor v Clare and Gilbert Valleys Council, we provided expert evidence in support of the applicant who was proposing a facility for the storage and dispatch of agricultural chemicals and seed on the outskirts of Saddleworth.

In upholding Council’s approval, the ERD Court found that the proposed development was not a “warehouse” where the actual “commercial transaction” is carried out. Rather, the subject site is part of an overall commercial transaction involving other, potentially remote, parcels of land. Therefore, the proposed facility was considered to be a bulk handling and storage facility that might be reasonably anticipated in the Primary Production Zone, rather than a warehouse which is non-complying. In comparison, a building that shares a common wall and a connecting doorway with the head office in which office the sale of goods is negotiated might well be considered to be a warehouse.

This ruling emphasises the importance of understanding the nature of the proposed activity and ensuring the correct land use description informs its assessment.

Church on the main street – more than a Sunday Service

It is well documented that non-retail uses make an important contribution to the vibrancy and overall appeal of based inks and materials recycled ‘main street’ and town centre locations. Land uses such as libraries, community/health services and residential apartments increase the catchment for retail uses and contribute to the unique character of each main street in ways that distinguish them from more homogenous shopping centres.

With this in mind, Grazio Maiorano and Michael Arman recently spoke at the Church on the Main Street Conference. Organised by the Urban Mission Network of the Uniting Church, the focus was on the role of the church in contributing to the activity and vibrancy on main streets, and providing social support to the local community.

What stood out to us is the way some churches are getting creative about breathing life into main streets. Pilgrim Uniting Church on Flinders Street, for example, is entertaining passers-by and office workers with its Music in the Lane program, where local musicians provide a free lunch-time concert on the steps of the church.

We look forward to the ongoing conversation about the way in which a variety of stakeholders can work together to enrich life along our main streets. Printed on 100% recycled Australian Made paper (ISO14001 Environment Management Certification: FSC recycled); Printed using soy Management Certification: FSC recycled); Australian Made paper (ISO14001 Environment Printed on 100% recycled

URPS Our people Our place More information Marcus Rolfe [email protected] Suite 12 Copies of this and our Grazio Maiorano [email protected] 154 Fullarton Road previous newsletters are Angela Hazebroek [email protected] Rose Park available on our website at Nicole Halsey [email protected] South Australia 5067 www.urps.com.au If you Gerald Ward [email protected] (Corner of Alexandra Avenue) would like to discuss the Kieron Barnes [email protected] information contained in any Julie Lewis [email protected] of our newsletters in further Geoff Butler [email protected] detail please don’t hesitate Victoria Haupt [email protected] Phone: 08 8333 7999 to contact us on 8333 7999 Michael Arman [email protected] or drop into our offices at Email: [email protected] Rosanna Palumbo [email protected] Suite 12/154 Fullarton Road, Donna Ruggiero [email protected] Web : www.urps.com.au Rose Park.

The content of this newsletter is for general information only. It should not be relied on and action which could affect your organisation Planning Matters 4 should not be taken without appropriate professional advice.