Visitors Cost Us $30 Each by Bethany Williams
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JULY 2013 ISSUE 88 PRICELESS WWW.DOCKLANDSNEWS.COM.AU : Docklands_News New artwork for NewQuay. Climate commissioner Page 5 visits Docklands. Page 13 Council to appeal Supreme Pollution fl oods Court Watergate decision. Docklands waterways. Page 3 Page 4 Visitors cost us $30 each By Bethany Williams Destination Docklands only attracted about 5000 people to Docklands with the $150,000 it was given by the City of Melbourne as compensation for the cancellation of last New Year’s Eve 9.30 fi reworks. Th e marketing body conducted four events for future funding, Destination Docklands in lieu of the fi reworks and spent nearly $30 said 5000 people attended both its Christmas for each visitor it attracted. markets and Australia Day events. Th e council’s $150,000 was spent on Farewell According to Arts and Laughs festival to Summer, Tennis on Ice, Melbourne Food organiser Melissa Head, about 4000 and Wine Festival at Harbour Esplanade and people attended. Destination Docklands Welcome to Winter. contributed 50 per cent of the marketing eff ort for the festival and is, accordingly, Figures collected by Docklands News, credited with 50 per cent of the attendance. through post-event discussion with Destination Docklands and observation, Around 100 people participated in the Water indicate that approximately 5030 people Ratrace Corporate Challenge. attended the fi reworks replacement events. Th ese fi gures, combined with the 5030 Th is fi gure does not include people who attendees to the NYE compensation events, visited the Farewell to Summer sand result in an approximate attendance of sculpture installation, but does include 17,130 at all Destination Docklands events. attendees to the Farewell to Summer – Dig Destination Docklands CEO Anita Docklands event. Donnelly said nearly all the attendance Th e approximate attendance fi gure of 5030 fi gures collected by Docklands News were people calculates to an average of $29 spent inaccurate, despite most of them having per attendee to each event. been provided by her organisation. Ms Donnelly said Destination Docklands Last fi nancial year, Destination Docklands held 13 events in 2012-2013 and attracted Heels over head for holidays spent $600,000 attracting visitors to 48,124 people to Docklands. However, Ms Docklands through events and marketing. Donnelly did not reply to Docklands News’ Acrobat Ty Fitzsimons amazed onlookers when he showed off his Apart from the NYE compensation events, requests for itemisation of these fi gures. other 2012-2013 events included support She said her 48,124 fi gure did not include circus skills at NewQuay last month. for the Arts and Laughs Festival, a Water visitors to the Farewell to Summer sand Ratrace Corporate Challenge, four Christmas Ty will appear in the Winter Wonderland For a complete guide to holiday fun in sculptures that were installed on Harbour markets and an Australia Day event. Circus Spectacular at the Wonderland Docklands, head to page 15. Esplanade for two weeks which had attracted Spiegeltent this month. In its successful submission to the council “hundreds, if not thousands” of people. 66 NewQuay Promenade Shop 5 9640 0808 10 NewQuay Promenade www.newquay.com.au 17-19 Saint Mangos Lane | 9600 0337 www.steakhouse66.com.au 9670 4168 $10 Super Samburger with chips! Great steak with a view! True Cantonese cuisine! 2 DOCKLANDS NEWS ISSUE 88 Local port Suite 108, 198 Harbour Esplanade PO Box 23008 Docklands 8012 Tel: 8689 7979 Fax: 9602 2929 is a priority www.docklandsnews.com.au Advertising City of Melbourne is working Tel: 8689 7979 Fax: 9602 2929 to establish Docklands as a [email protected] local port. Reader contributions are welcome. Please send articles and images to [email protected] At the May 29 Docklands Community Forum, City of Melbourne city design Th e deadline for the August edition is director Rob Adams said council was July 25. progressing the concept of a local port with State Government. Follow us on Twitter Th e comment was made in response to Justice slams @Docklands_News discussion about the diffi culty in activating Docklands’ waterways and waterfront due to Like us on Facebook the involvement of multiple authorities. Docklands News As it stands, around 16 pieces of legislation council lawyers govern Docklands’ waterways, making it diffi cult to cut through the red tape when the Supreme Court, were contrary to “basic To download our iPad app, trying to introduce new initiatives on the water. A Supreme Court justice has authority” and “erroneously led the BAB into simply scan the QR code below: an error”. At the Melbourne Waterfront Forum described submissions made last year, attendees agreed that a single by City of Melbourne’s lawyers He referred to a document that was tendered waterways authority that governed Victoria by the council’s lawyers as a page of the BCA Harbour and the lower Yarra would during the Watergate Building but was actually a page from a guide to the overcome the current stalemate. Appeals Board (BAB) hearings BCA, and said the court had been “misled”. According to a council spokesperson, City as “unbelievable”. “… Th is court was misled by the tendering of of Melbourne’s waterways unit has been a page that was claimed to be a page of the researching waterways governance for the Building Code of Australia when it wasn’t,” On June 3 Justice Beach heard an application past 15 months, with the aim of fi nding Justice Beach said. from council’s lawyer Trevor Wallwork for a more eff ective management model for an indemnity certifi cate to be granted for the Justice Beach also referred to submissions Victoria Harbour and the lower Yarra. cost of the Supreme Court appeal. made by council’s lawyer, Tim Margetts, “Numerous studies, dating back as far An indemnity certifi cate generally entitles relating to the opinions of the municipal as 1999, have been commissioned by a party to reimbursement from the Appeal building surveyor and relied upon in the various government departments. Th e Costs Board for legal costs incurred due to BAB’s determination. subsequent reports have been unanimous circumstances beyond its control. “… I was less than impressed with in recommending fundamental reform and the majority promote a single management Justice Beach refused the application and propositions, which your leader never in any authority,” the spokesperson said. said the submissions made by council led way resiled from, which involved what he the BAB into an error. said was the proprietary of eff ectively calling Th e spokesperson said the research witnesses to give their opinions as to what the In May, Justice Beach ordered the case had shown limited options for a single words of the code meant,” Justice Beach said. management authority, but one option sits back to the BAB, saying that the board within existing legislation and involves the had misinterpreted the Building Code of Justice Beach declined to issue an indemnity declaration of a local port. Australia (BCA) and ordered council to pay certifi cate for the appeal and questioned appellant Paul Salter’s legal costs. why he would exercise the court’s discretion According to the spokesperson, there are 14 In March, the BAB had upheld building to grant a certifi cate in a case where “… local ports in Victoria and councils manage submissions were made which just should for of these. orders the City of Melbourne had issued in 2011 against Mr Salter’s Docklands never have been made.” “Th e local port management structure is Executive Apartments. On June 12 the City of Melbourne lodged an considered worthy of further investigation Mr Salter then successfully appealed the appeal against the Supreme Court’s decision due to the legal precedence, relative BAB’s decision at the Supreme Court. to return the case to the BAB, in the Victorian simplicity and the ability to study operating Court of Appeal (see the story on page 3). models. Th e waterways unit is currently At the indemnity certifi cate hearing Justice preparing a report for Council,” the Beach said it seemed to him that council’s A date for the fi rst appeal hearing is yet to be spokesperson said. submissions, both before the BAB and in scheduled. The new ANZ Docklands branch is open for business. Better ways to bank Better ways to talk Better branch experience Visit us at 833 Collins Street and discover more today. anz.com Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ) ABN 11 005 357 522. Australian Credit Licence Number 234527. ANZ’s colour blue is a trade mark of ANZ. Item No. 88643 06.2013 W350614 Please support our advertisers because without them we would have no Docklands News ISSUE 88 DOCKLANDS NEWS 3 Council to appeal short-stay decision Th is is despite the fact that Justice Beach City of Melbourne is appealing dismissed council’s application for an indemnity certifi cate with respect to costs on the Supreme Court’s decision June 3 (see the story on page 2). to return the Watergate short- Th e grounds for the appeal provided in the stay apartment case back to the notice of appeal are: Building Appeals Board (BAB). Th e judge erred in law in holding that the BAB misconstrued the BCA, by its fi nding that Mr Salter’s use of Watergate On June 12, council lodged an appeal in apartments for short-term commercial the Victorian Court of Appeal against the accommodation was a permitted use of a Supreme Court decision. Class 2 building; On May 30, Supreme Court Justice Beach had Th e judge erred in law in holding that the instructed the BAB to rehear the case, saying BAB misconstrued the meaning of the that the board had incorrectly interpreted the word dwelling; Building Code of Australia (BCA).