The Lived Experiences of Privatism and Community in the Development and Management of a Private Residential Estate in Sydney, Australia
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PRIVATE COMMUNITY? The Lived Experiences of Privatism and Community in the Development and Management of a Private Residential Estate in Sydney, Australia Therese Erin Kenna B. Science (Applied Geography), Hons, UNSW, 2005 Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Social Sciences, University of Western Sydney, Australia March 2009 STATEMENT OF AUTHENTICATION The work presented in this thesis is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, original except as acknowledged in the text. I hereby declare that I have not submitted this material, either in full or in part, for a degree at this or any other institution. _______________________________________ Therese E. Kenna 30th March 2009 ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Over the course of this PhD many people have offered assistance, advice, support and mentoring along the way, and a few of those people deserve a special mention. The research presented in this thesis would not have been possible without the generosity of the residents living in Macquarie Links who volunteered their time, invited me into their homes and offered many cups of tea and coffee (and wine!) during the course of some quite lengthy interviews, as well as those who responded to the household questionnaire. My deepest thanks to every one of the residents involved in the study. I have been fortunate to have two exceptional academics supervise this research: Professors Kevin Dunn and Deborah Stevenson. I am grateful for their commitment and contributions to this research, and many aspects of my academic life. I owe thanks to Kevin for having enough faith to let me loose in suburban Sydney, and patiently sitting back while I figured it all out (mistakes and all), for rolling with the punches, both good and bad, for listening to my rants, and for enduring all the moods that a PhD student can enact! Kevin has been a great mentor and source of wisdom for many years. After a fairly tumultuous few years at UNSW, I am extremely grateful to Kevin for making me part of his transfer to the University of Western Sydney (UWS) in early 2008 where the grass was definitely greener. Deborah Stevenson is an academic gem! She has been the most wonderful mentor, offered countless insights and intellectual contributions to this thesis, and totally engaged with this research. Deborah gave so generously of her time and I am grateful for all the little things along the way that meant so much – the emails (even those that just checked in on how I was), coffees, hugs, corridor conversations, and especially all the little pep talks! She patiently listened to the mess of thoughts in my head and urged every one of them onto paper, which ultimately helped me make sense of my research and pull this thesis together. Deborah’s belief in the contributions and value of this research was a huge source of motivation. She has also taught me so much about research and the writing process (even if it meant enduring so many of my blank and confused looks!). I am incredibly appreciative of Deborah’s perceptions and enthusiasm as they have wholly enriched this thesis. iii After meeting at a geography conference in 2005, I have shared much of this journey with fellow geography PhD student Sarah James who I can’t thank enough for her friendship and collegiality over many years, for sharing all the highs and the lows, the struggles and joys, and for all her advice and good humour along the way. I have had the pleasure of spending time with a fun and entertaining bunch of research students at UWS and I owe a million thank you’s to Ruth, Ashley, Garth, Dallas, Chris, Jacqui, Alanna and Mat, for all the good times, often over much needed drinks at the pub! Thanks also to the research students at the University of NSW, especially Claudette, Karin, Erin, Karen, Danielle, Andrew, Joanne, Alex and Stephen. I will always remember the generosity of the College of Arts and School of Social Sciences at the University of Western Sydney, with particular thanks to Michael Atherton (Associate Dean Research) for organising a seamless transfer to UWS. The SoSS admin team, in particular Melissa, Kerry, Janice, Ann and Kathie have been a little cheer squad urging me across the line, and offering many hugs and comforting chats for which I am grateful. Many of the academics within the School have been wonderfully supportive and encouraging and I owe special thanks in this regard to Stephen Tomsen, Awais Piracha, Robyn Bushell, Russell Staiff and Greg Martin. Through attendance at conferences, workshops and seminars and involvement in professional associations I have been fortunate to cross paths with some supportive academics. I am grateful to Donald McNeill, Kurt Iveson, Pauline McGuirk, Ruth Fincher and Gordon Waitt for all their support and encouragement over the past few years. The generosity and collegiality of these academics in supporting both my research and my many crazy ideas, like running reading groups, postgraduate student conferences, conference sessions and study group events, all aided not only my own development as a researcher, but that of others in the postgraduate community, for which I am thankful. The final thanks is reserved for my wonderful family who have continued to support and encourage my academic pursuits, even though they often wondered what I’ve been doing at uni all this time. They have kept a smile on my face and my feet firmly planted on the ground, and I owe a special thanks to my beautiful sisters Kate and Angela, and my parents Kathy and Kevin, and their partners Glen and Linda. iv CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iii LIST OF FIGURES viii LIST OF TABLES x ABBREVIATIONS xi ABSTRACT xii Chapter 1: PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL ESTATES: AN INTRODUCTION 1 Positioning Macquarie Links 6 Understanding private residential estates: research aims 9 Thesis outline 13 Chapter 2: THE EMERGENCE OF PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL ESTATES 16 Introduction 16 The transformation of residential governance 16 The emergence of private residential estates 19 Different socio-political contexts for emergence 29 The residents motivations for living in private residential estates 33 Social outcomes of the development of private residential estates 36 The financial costs of living in private residential estates 38 Conclusion 40 Chapter 3: UNDERSTANDING URBAN COMMUNITY 42 Introduction 42 Community lost? 43 Understanding urban community: commonalities, social organisation 48 and ideology Neighbourhood, mobility and community 58 Understanding urban community: complexities and contradictions 63 Conclusion 65 v Chapter 4: APPROACHING MACQUARIE LINKS 67 Introduction 67 Approaching urban communities 67 The case study approach 70 Research design 75 Approaching Macquarie Links Residents 76 Importance of ethnographic context 88 Analysing the data 90 Considering media representations of Macquarie Links 93 Interviewing stakeholders 94 Research ethics 94 A research challenge: young people in urban neighbourhoods 95 Conclusion 96 Chapter 5: CONSTRUCTING MACQUARIE LINKS: A PRIVATE 98 RESIDENTIAL ESTATE Introduction 98 Constructing the private residential estate: community schemes 98 legislation The diverse demography of Macquarie Links 114 Social constructions of Macquarie Links: “oh, you can imagine”! 123 Conclusion 132 Chapter 6: COMMUNITY IN MACQUARIE LINKS 134 Introduction 134 Community in Macquarie Links 134 Social interactions: the reality of common values, social organisation, 155 ideology and differences Conclusion 159 Chapter 7: COMMUNAL TACTICS: THE SECURITY AND 162 PROTECTION OF PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL ESTATES Introduction 162 vi The desire for gates, security and protection 163 Reality of gates and security 171 The Macquarie Links ‘Underbelly’: drugs, guns and birds! 176 Protecting Macquarie Links 180 Conclusion 193 Chapter 8: THE FUTURE VIABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY OF 195 PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL ESTATES Introduction 195 Constructing unsustainable neighbourhoods? 195 Failure of private residential estates: can the local councils pick up the 204 pieces? Conclusion 209 Chapter 9: LEAVING THE PRIVATE COMMUNITY: REFLECTIONS 210 AND KEY CONTRIBUTIONS Towards a new theory of urban community 212 The ‘club’ realm in urban society 215 The socio-spatial implications 216 Where to from here? 217 REFERENCES 219 APPENDICES 236 Appendix 1: Macquarie Links resident questionnaire 236 Appendix 2: Resident questionnaire cover letter 241 Appendix 3: Macquarie Links resident interview schedule 242 Appendix 4: Coding framework for interview transcripts 244 Appendix 5: Participant consent form 245 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1: Location map of Macquarie Links as positioned within the 8 surrounding suburbs and Local Government Areas. As the scale indicates Macquarie Links is located approximately 30km south west of the Sydney CBD. Figure 1.2: Aerial view of Macquarie Links. The golf course runs through the 8 centre of the houses and extends through to the edge of the estate, in the image. The south western motorway is in the top left of the image and the Campbelltown train line in the bottom right. The red circle indicates the gated entrance (Source: Google Earth, 2009). Figure 5.1: The number of community schemes registered in NSW since 1990 102 (Source: UDIA, 2008). Figure 5.2: Signage at the entrance to Hampton Court, a private residential 103 development in Sydney, Australia, 2008 indicating that the development is private property and for residents and guests only (Source: Therese Kenna). Figure 5.3: Gated entrance to Macquarie Links with a palm tree as the centre 107 piece. The gates are in the centre of the image, with the gate house behind the palm tree, 2006 (Source: Therese Kenna). Figure 5.4: Tree-lined streets and hedging along the road into and out of 107 Macquarie Links, 2006 (Source: Therese Kenna). Figures 5.5: Lifestyle and recreational elements of the Macquarie Links 108 development, the tennis courts, main swimming pool and golf course embedded amongst the houses of the estate, plus estate advertising promoting the idea that ‘life doesn’t get any better than this’, 2006 (Source: Therese Kenna).