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Glebe Society Bulletin 2015 Issue 04

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Glebe Society Bulletin 2015 Issue 04 Issue 4 of 2015 (June) ISSN 1836-599X UranGrowths Bays Preint consultation – should we be worried? From Lesley Lynch, Convenor, Bays & Foreshores: UrbanGrowth NSW held a marathon consultation – The puli good in suh a huge the Sydneysiders Summit and related forums – urban development cannot be over five days (14-18 May) on the ‘transformation’ of the Bays Precinct. The general public was protected by the good intentions invited to drop in over the weekend. More specialist of some officials. It requires groups were invited to separate forums: councils strong formal planning on Thursday evening, community stakeholders/leaders on Friday evening and principles guaranteeing industry (planners, architects etc) on Monday. We transparency, strong planning are not quite sure when the big end of town and major developers were invited! laws protecting the public good and politial will The Glebe Society took UrbanGrowth’s invitation to this consultation seriously and with our ever- optimistic good faith. We paid for 3,000 leaflets There was a veritable cornucopia of information: advertising the Summit locally, held a well-attended the professional, glossy Discussion Paper, public meeting to discuss the Summit and fascinating information displays and videos, reminded all members just before the Summit. The repeated short talks on ideas for ‘transforming’ the Glebe Society was consequently well-represented bays’ and helpful UrbanGrowth staff at every among the many interested Sydneysiders who display. This information flow was interspersed with dropped in to see what UrbanGrowth had to say. constant exhortations to tell UrbanGrowth what you An enjoyable weekend experience … think: through short Q&A sessions, sticky note boards, electronic gadgets, a video room, talking The Summit was a friendly, interesting and tables and intimate and informal chats with the enjoyable experience in a fabulous venue (the UrbanGrowth staff – including the CEO and senior refurbished Locomotive Hall of the Australian staff. Classy free food and refreshments were Technology Park in Eveleigh). It was brilliantly available, too. planned and no doubt very informative for those who came without detailed knowledge of the Bays Sydneysiders seemed to enjoy the experience and Precinct or the many debates about their future made plenty of use of all the feedback options. redevelopment over the years. Consultation a soft sell But if you came looking for tangible information about the kinds of propositions UrbanGrowth was exploring for the Bays – 11 months into their mega- urban renewal project – you would have gone away disappointed. It was a soft sell with the vaguest of indications as to precisely what we, the public owners, would likely get through the promised ‘transformation’ process. It struck me as being designed to generate warm feelings about good things to come. There is little in the glossy Discussion Paper that is Glebe Society representatives discussion outside the new. (To view the Discussion Paper, go to Sydneysiders Summit. (Image V. Simpson-Young) https://transformingthebays.com.au/ and scroll June 2015 1 down to the bottom of the page, where you can Promenade, Bays Market District, White Bay download the pdf.) The language and many of the Power Station and White Bay including White Bay broad proposals repeat community input over the Cruise Terminal. years and much of the rest is planning and marketing jargon. There are lots of broad-brush Bays Waterfront Promenade indications of possible ‘transformations’ for the The promenade promises (in lyrical language) a bays, but few tangible proposals and no welcome extension of the foreshore walk from information on interested players who may be Balmain to Pyrmont – in fact to the CBD. This is having discussions with anyone in government. terrific, although not a new commitment. And one gets an edgy feeling that the foreshore walk might It does not seem like a lot of progress and is not be the big ‘public realm’ sop for the community. plausible to many of us. Even here there are a few gaps. The promenade Strong principles and processes are stops at Glebe Island Bridge and it appears that the needed Sydney Superyacht Marina will control public access to its bit of the foreshore. We urged UrbanGrowth to commit to strong planning principles for the Bays to signal a real The Discussion Paper is silent on the future of break from past practices in NSW. They have Glebe Island Bridge. Both councils and responded with a set of principles which are better community organisations have constantly argued than most but are, however, alarmingly silent or for its future use as a pedestrian and cycle route soft on two critical aspects: with a future option for light rail. Developments already approved or seeking approval in Rozelle Firstly, there is no mention of the principle Bay appear to pre-empt such future uses. embedded in the Sydney Regional Environmental Plan (Sydney Harbour Catchment) 2005 that there Bays Market District (Sydney Fish Market be no further alienation from public ownership, by and Blackwattle Bay) sale or long term lease, of the harbour foreshores. The discussion paper floats a very attractive future There are 80+ hectares of publicly owned for the fish markets: ‘rejuvenate the Sydney Fish foreshore lands at stake in this project. One can Markets ... and connect it to the water, expand the only assume the silence on this principle signals fresh food offering, creating a world class Bays the likely sell-off of much of this irreplaceable public Market District’; ‘Restaurants, cafés and Sydney’s asset for quick returns to the Treasury. best dining destination’. Yes – a very welcome Secondly, much of the corruption that has blighted vision. Although it was a bit of an unpleasant planning in NSW over recent decades has been surprise to the Pyrmont/Ultimo community to see associated with behind-the-scenes approvals for that this market district extended along Bank Street unsolicited developments. We have repeatedly where they thought they had agreement for a urged that ‘all unsolicited development proposals public park. relating to any Bays public land or waters be More interesting was what is not mentioned on the subject to open competitive tenders and proper double-spread glossy pages of the Discussion public scrutiny’. Paper: large-scale residential development. UrbanGrowth continues to evade this explicit It is clear from other information that a significant principle for the more vague promise of ‘an ethical part of the fish markets will be sold off for procurement process that optimises value for residential and, possibly, hotel development. This government and taxpayers while being attractive to is hardly a surprise and UrbanGrowth does reveal investors’. This could mean anything. elsewhere, in passing, that housing is a priority for UrbanGrowth has been under persistent pressure this part of the bays; and it is not a problem in itself. on this point. In response to questions, they But questions from the floor could not elicit any promise a fair and competitive process but the further information as to whether there were words always leave the process undefined and are discussions underway with any developers or any suggestive of some internal process that we can developers with an active interest or with specific ‘trust’. ideas. Questioners were assured that no discussion about options was underway with These are vast, valuable public assets. anyone. Sydneysiders should demand a formal, open and competitive tender process for all development Remarkable, given that one major player (the proposals. Dahua Group) is reported as having bought the Bidvest site adjoining the Fish Markets for $17.5m UrbanGrowth’s immediate priorities for the in December 2014 in preparation for a $3 billion bid Bays Precinct to redevelop Blackwattle Bay. Dahua had already A number of ‘Destinations’ are flagged for made one (of at least two) secret unsolicited immediate (2015-19) action: Bays Waterfront development bid for Blackwattle Bay in 2013. (SMH 2 Glebe Society Bulletin 24.5.2015). (Apparently city real estate agents are just a statement of vague possibilities: confident that apartments will be available in the the potential to integrate a viable mix of new land not-too-distant future at the Fish Markets). ‘ and maritime uses, with working harbour industries One could be forgiven for thinking that and on-water recreation facilities. It would also UrbanGrowth’s assurance that neither they nor the include better public access to the waterfront.’ new Minister for Planning have held any I note that the promise is not for a continuous discussions with these players might be a foreshore promenade here. At the moment it is technically correct response that obscures the doubtful that this can be delivered for the Rozelle magnitude of current developer lobbying and Bay foreshores. There is no reference to the Glebe negotiations. Island Bridge, which is pretty central to what is, and Expect rapid action on this site later in 2015. We is not, viable in these bays. And one wonders what can only hope that multiple players will force the the diversity of on-water recreation activities will be Government to utilise an independent, transparent like with the superyacht marina berths expanded competitive tender for this lucrative development. from their current 24 to 43 and the construction of the second dry boat storage building which will lift One can also only hope that UrbanGrowth’s the number of stored boats to over 1000. nonspecific references to diverse housing will be translated into a formal and binding target for Transport – unanswered questions remain significant social and affordable housing as part of The massive transport and traffic issues this development. surrounding the Bays Precinct are well recognised. White Bay Power Station It is therefore astonishing that the Discussion Paper Somewhat surprisingly, this is scheduled as an , while acknowledging that ‘an integrated strategy that considers all aspects of movement’ is immediate priority.
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