December-January 2020, Issue 103 The Voice of Postcode 3006 and Montague 见 30 页 southbanklocalnews.com.au Forever Free Twitter @southbank_news Community loses Boyd Park battle The City of Melbourne has endorsed a planning application for a development on the edge of Boyd Park, marking the beginning of the end of the contest over the site while a broader debate over green space in the suburb is sure to continue. words by Meg Hill Boyd Park. PLANNING Multiple deals with a previous de- veloper, Mackie, fell through. It was only last year that PDG was unveiled Councillors unanimously voted in a as the new buyer, but the Boyd Park Future Melbourne Committee (FMC) was built and funded by the council meeting on December 1 to endorse in the meantime. the application from developer PDG Although multiple councillors for a 42-storey tower on the west- declared sympathy with the senti- ern edge of the park with proposed ment expressed through community conditions. opposition, they said the framework The application will now await for the development was created by approval from the Minister for previous councils. Planning Richard Wynne. Cr Nicholas Reece said it was a There were 128 written submis- challenging application to consider. sions to the meeting, the overwhelm- “On the one hand I’m very sym- Sustainability wins again In another victory for the community, the Southbank Sustainability Group’s ing majority of which requested that pathetic to some of the submissions impact on the environment and the local community has been recognised the council oppose the development. we heard from our submitters Photo by John Tadigiri again with yet another award. Continued on page 8. There was strong opposition from tonight who represent residents in local residents to giving up a portion Southbank; on the other hand I think of the park, currently occupied by a it needs to be said that there is a lot basketball court and pop-up orchard, that is very commendable about this that they said was cherished by a particular proposal,” Cr Reece said. Crown backed down on new taxi system community deprived of open green Cr Reece commended the build- space. ing’s six-star green star rating, the words by David Schout by police, fare-searching drivers travelling north on Artemis Pattichi from Southbank inclusion of 40 affordable housing SAFETY & SECURITY Clarendon St seek to turn right into the Crown taxi rank. Sustainability Group addressed the units, and 920 sqm of community However, as the rank fills up, and given only a small meeting to oppose the application. facility space at ground and level one number of cars can turn on a green arrow, the resulting “That activated green space has of the proposed building. A new taxi system designed to alleviate late-night traffic congestion can see taxis banked back to the Whiteman St become the heart of our community, “In terms of the development and chaos on Clarendon St was shut down at the last minute intersection and beyond. and something you know very well financial framework, that was a de- by Crown Casino, according to Southbank Police. Residents in nearby high-rises have reported a “nightly has been missing in Southbank for so cision made by council many, many, The proposed new “feeder station” under the Kings cacophony from 10pm to 4am” due to frustrated drivers long,” she said. many years ago,” he said. Way overpass, where drivers would pick up a ticket be- using their horns. “It’s not going to be a park anymore “What we’re considering this eve- fore presenting it at the casino’s western-end taxi rank, A new “feeder” system sought to alleviate this issue by if you take away that part.” ning is the planning application and was designed to reduce the gridlock on busy Friday and ensuring a more even flow of traffic. The application has been long in that regard the planning controls Saturday evenings that was causing congestion, safety and Drivers who had not collected a ticket from the pro- foreshadowed by the council’s plans are reasonably clear.” noise issues. posed underpass booth would have been swiftly moved for the site, but its submission in Cr Rohan Leppert said it was ap- But according to the police Crown pulled out of the on. September reignited opposition from parent that Southbank lacked open trial system late last year. While much of the now redundant cab rank under- residents to the plans. space. “Crown ultimately were reluctant to do it,” Southbank neath Kings Way is the subject of plans for new commu- The council originally purchased “This is one of our urban renewal Station Commander Senior Sergeant Alexandra O’Toole nity space as part of the City of Melbourne’s City Road the land – which includes the Boyd areas that didn’t adequately plan for told Southbank News. Masterplan, the council was understood to be supportive Community Hub, the Boyd Park and open space, and retro-engineering “We had members rostered and it was all set to go, and of the police’s trial measures. the development site – in 2007, with some open space into one of the most then Crown pulled the pin on it,” she said. “They [Crown] didn’t believe the taxi drivers were plans to sell off a portion for devel- dense parts of the country is In what has previously been labelled a “20-year issue” Continued on page 2. opment to fund the creation of the Continued on page 2. HEALTH, PAGE 03 BUSINESS, PAGE 05 ARTS & CULTURE, PAGE 07 BUILDING, PAGE 12 Locals play down risk Blondie does this NGV Contemporary to Australia 108 officially A of hotel quarantine B differently C transform Arts Precinct D stands tallest Scan to enquire Your Southbank Property Experts Contact us today for a free, no obligation rental or sales appraisal. 9696 8869 | [email protected] | melcorp.com.au Victor Chung Mark Giuliano Trish Destito Sergio Lopez The Voice of Postcode 3006 and Montague 2 Crown backed down on new taxi system CONTACT Continued from page 1. Suite 108, 198 Harbour Esplanade Docklands 3008 actually going to put themselves in that taxi southbanklocalnews.com.au feeder as they reckon it might deny them a fare. Tel: 8689 7980 So, they didn’t think there was going to be co- operation,” Senior Sergeant O’Toole confirmed. EDITOR Crown did not respond to a request for com- Sean Car ment from Southbank News. PUBLISHER The issue has not surfaced since March 23, Hyperlocal News Pty Ltd when Crown closed their operations due to ABN: 57 623 558 725 COVD-19 restrictions. On November 25 the casino reopened its ADVERTISING gaming floor, but to just 1000 patrons. Hyper-local print works for advertisers However, Senior Sergeant O’Toole said po- in our digital world because local people lice expected the taxi issue to return when casi- are interested in local news. no operations returned to pre-pandemic levels, ▲ The proposal for Boyd Park. To sell to the Southbank community, and were currently working through another contact Jack Hayes on 0401 031 236 or new system to ease the local issue. [email protected] The plan, which is still being developed, could involve closing the troublesome right-turning Community loses Reader contributions are welcome. lane, forcing drivers instead to travel north on Send letters, articles and images to: Clarendon St across the Yarra River towards Boyd Park battle [email protected] Flinders Street, before turning around and re- ▲ Taxis blocking Clarendon St: a regular sight. turning to the casino for a fare. Continued from page 1. The deadline for the February edition “Hopefully that would mean it wouldn’t have is February 4, 2021. the impact on that intersection, because it’s a illegally outside Eureka Tower in what the City exceptionally difficult, expensive and chal- SOCIAL MEDIA longer stretch of road going back to Flinders of Melbourne has said is part of a “serious poli- lenging,” Cr Leppert said. TwitterFollow us on Twitter St than having taxis turning [right],” Senior cy issue” and an “intractable problem”. “The question is: does this application align @SOUTHBANK_News Sergeant O’Toole said. In the past, readers have told Southbank News with the planning scheme and should a permit “They [taxis] then won’t be relying upon an of overcrowding on Riverside Quay and even issue? The answer is yes; that doesn’t mean that FACEBOOK-SQUARELike us on Facebook arrow, it would obviously just be a green light as the complete blocking of nearby Cook Street, no-one in this room doesn’t believe that we Southbank Local News opposed to just five or six cars coming through which at times has sparked angry confrontation. need to work a hell of a lot harder to leave a on an arrow. It would be green for a lot longer, Similarly, to Crown, the issue has softened greener open space for Southbank.” instagramFollow us on Instagram so we would hope that would improve the traf- for much of 2020 due to the pandemic accord- In light of the disappointment of Southbank @southbanklocalnews fic flow. ing to Senior Sergeant O’Toole. Boulevard, which will deliver less green space “There’s actually not even 1500 people in She said enforcement of that issue mirrored than what many residents had hoped, attention Opinions expressed by contributors are not Crown at the moment so it’s not the beast it nor- the casino. now turns to the proposal for a green park over necessarily shared by the publisher. mally is. So, we won’t be able to test [the new “That was causing a lot of issues.