the surround sound for sustainable precincts

sydney Thank you to our sponsors: foreword

Tina Perinotto Managing editor and publisher, The Fifth Estate

They jumped up on the soapboxes, they to muster the troops. She turned from jostled to grab their moment with the audience to panel, fleshed out and teased mic. It was an event organiser’s dream. out the most interesting comments, and cut At one point, about half-an-hour into the to the chase on those whose love affair with proceedings, one of Sydney’s leading the limelight ran a little too hot. When one architects turned and said, “You’ve nailed it”. of the panellists asked if they could say yet one more longish comment, she shot back Yes, this Surround Sound for Sustainable with a “no”, followed by a charming smile. Precincts was very exciting. Yes, it got just a tad out of hand. And yes, there If there were some criticisms that could was some serious provocation from the be fairly levelled it was that the questions likes of Ed Blakely from the United States far outnumbered the answers. Studies Centre and Alex Harrington from Well you could have predicted that simply The Warren Centre at the University of by looking at the state of our cities; so Sydney. And, of course, Committee for much to do, and so many challenges. Sydney’s Tim Williams, who’s garnered an excellent reputation as agent provocateur after his controversial comments on the WestConnex, and who did his part to prod and provoke from his spot amid the nine member panel. Twinges of doubt about such a huge If we had any twinges of doubt about such panel disappeared on the night, with a huge panel they disappeared on the night, with each member proving critical to each member proving critical to the the debate and bringing serious insight to debate and bringing serious insight the topics at hand. to the topics at hand. Skilled MC and keen Jenny Brockie fan Maria Atkinson, however, knew how

2 3 index

Foreword 03

The Surround Sound 08

Six things Sydney must do for a workable city 46

The portfolio career and its impacts on the city 52

On precincts, health and wellbeing 56

Panellist interviews

Tim Williams 60

Terry Leckie 64

David Barnard 68

Matt Plumbridge 70

Erin Flaherty 72

Jonathan Emery 76

Michelle Tabet 78

David Rolls 80

Sally Betts 84

4 5 blogs.aecom.com/connectedcities

Together we ensure cities emerge stronger and smarter, delivering productive economies and connecting communities.

[email protected] Cities Director ANZ 6 7 surround soundthe surround sound for sustainable precincts sydney

A transcript of the Surround Sound Sydney, 12 August 2015, AECOM, George Street, Sydney

8 9 the panellists

Terry Leckie Paul Walker David Barnard David Rolls Erin Flaherty Matt Plumbridge

Terry Leckie is an Australian Paul Walker is the head of David Barnard is technical David Rolls is head of cities Erin Flaherty is responsible for Matt Plumbridge has 23 years’ leader in sustainable water investment for Lendlease’s urban director, Planning & Design at and urban renewal at Mirvac. setting strategic directions and experience in the property services, having developed regeneration business throughout AECOM. He has more than 25 Rolls has more than 30 objectives for Infrastructure sector ranging from earthworks new ways of providing localised Australia, which is valued at $16 years’ experience in architecture years’ experience in property, NSW in the transport, social and sub-contractor to government water systems to residential, billion and includes high-profile and urban design in the UK, US, construction, design and cultural infrastructure sectors. adviser in policy development. commercial, retail and industrial projects such as Barangaroo Singapore and Australia. development, with a particular Milestones in his career include She is on the Advisory Board developments since the 1990s. South, Darling Harbour Live and focus on complex, major mixed- the delivery of Australia’s first He spent 12 years in the US, for the North West Rail Link, Melbourne’s Victoria Harbour. use development projects. 6 Star Green Star project, He has extensive experience mainly working in San Francisco currently Australia’s largest public He has extensive leadership establishing a sustainability delivering water and wastewater He has over a decade of for ROMA Design Group, infrastructure project, and the experience in some of the department for a new city, projects in Australia and New experience in the property sector designing a range of projects Advisory Board for the Sydney largest urban regeneration developing and promulgating Zealand. He founded Flow in the development of large-scale including inner urban, brownfield Light Rail project. In addition, projects nationally. new building codes, and being Systems to create more mixed-use projects in Asia-Pacific. and waterfront precincts. she is on the Transport for NSW involved in an initiative that was affordable and innovative water At Mirvac he oversees projects CBD Transport, Traffic and Access Walker spent the last six years In 2003, he returned to Australia shortlisted (from 250 entrants) infrastructure and services. such as the Green Square Town Co-ordination Committee and the in Asia, and has a wealth of to lead a team of designers for the 2014 Guangzhou Award Centre, a six-hectare residential, Steering Committee for the new Through its work with experience in precinct activation and planners for Lendlease in for Urban Innovation. mixed-use and commercial Intercity Train Fleet. developers, Flow is setting and place making, drawing on his NSW and the ACT. After a stint development that forms part He is now responsible for the benchmarks for water significant history of successful working on Barangaroo, Barnard Prior to her role with of a major urban renewal site management of environment, sustainability and affordability in retail projects coordinated with became the national urban Infrastructure NSW, Flaherty in south Sydney. Previously, social, economic and corporate land release and urban highrise. enhanced public spaces within design manager at Stockland was the commercial manager Rolls held the role of managing sustainability policy initiatives for Leckie is a thought leader in the international retail destinations. in 2012, and made the move to for Reliance Rail, a public–private director, development at UrbanGrowth NSW. water industry, advocating for a AECOM in early 2015. partnership established to Prior to joining Lendlease, Walker Lendlease and was responsible greater role for the private sector. manage Sydney’s Waratah train worked for Westfield Australia for all development projects for project – 600+ double-decker in development and retail Lendlease Australia including trains for Sydney’s suburban rail management roles. mixed use and commercial, network. communities, apartments and retail. This included major Sydney projects such as Barangaroo, Darling Park and Darling Quarter.

10 11 Michelle Tabet Sally Betts Dr Tim Williams

Michelle Tabet is an independent Sally Betts was elected in Dr Tim Williams has led the strategy director who specialises 1995 and is the longest- Committee for Sydney since 2011, in urban development. Recent serving elected representative tripling its membership and, in the projects include driving the on Waverley Council. She is Premier’s words, “challenging the “Place” agenda for Darling Square currently serving her fifth year city to be great”. Before coming with Lendlease, and collaborating as Mayor. Sally worked for to Australia, Dr Williams was with e2 Melbourne, Koichi Takada the International Air Transport managing director of Navigant Architects and the Arts Centre Association and Qantas before Consulting’s public services Christchurch. Tabet is the creative taking up an advising role within team and a special advisor to five director of the 2016 Venice the NSW Government in 2005. consecutive Westminster ministers Architecture Biennale via the Sally is passionate about climate for cities, housing and planning. Australian Institute of Architects change mitigation and was He was CEO of the UK’s biggest and an Ambassador for the Sydney recently invited to speak at the urban regeneration initiative, the Architecture Festival. Previously, World Cities Summit Mayors Thames Gateway, from 1998 and she was director of innovation at Forum on her vision for gree 2003. In that role he helped attract Right Angle Studio, and worked at precinct infrastructure to deliver public investment to East London, Arup as senior strategic designer, reductions in waste, water and culminating in the winning of the Arts and Culture NSW and ACT. greenhouse gas emissions. Olympics for Stratford.

Maria Atkinson

Maria is a sustainability strategist and director of XO – an angel investment business with particular focus on impact investments. Maria also holds several non-executive directorships and advisory positions.

She was the founding CEO and co-founder of the Green Building Council of Australia. In January 2012, she was awarded a Member of the General Division of the Order of Australia for service to the construction and real estate sector, particularly as a leader and contributor to environmentally sustainable building development in Australia.

12 13 Before I get under way, it’s very technologies and manage disruptions in be a kind of traffic cop, in directing some important we acknowledge country, and business models – not to mention what questions from our panel and you having we acknowledge that we meet on the the community wants and how to fund all the opportunity on the soapbox. traditional lands of the Gadigal People of we need. the Eora Nation. It’s important that we pay The sex of ideas It’s a tough gig, and the elements that our respects to Elders past and present. Ideas sex: You take one idea, you deliver our precincts of the future need Your role tonight is to essentially bring add another idea and bam! Look Tina Perinotto, The Fifth Estate: all the help they can get, and that’s what ideas, to combine and re-combine, to meet and to mate: “the sex of ideas”. You what you’ve got – an even Good evening, and welcome to our first tonight is about. Surround Sound in the city. We’re here take one idea, you add it with another idea And with that, I’d like to hand you over to better idea. to co-create an ebook. So we’re actually and bam, look what you’ve got – an even Maria Atkinson, our MC for the night. creating content here. We have nine better idea. So don’t ask how it happens, panelists – a huge number. We could Maria Atkinson: My role is to facilitate it does happen, and all we need for the have 20 to talk about the different areas conversation between you and the rules tonight is respect of the diversity of of sustainable precincts. That’s why panellists. What we’re trying to do is to ideas, but think when you’re either posing a comment or a question that it has to James Rosenwax, AECOM: We’re very we’ve asked the audience to be part imagine and re-imagine the future. There’s contribute to the co-creation of an ebook, proud to host this evening, as co-sponsors of the show, because the audience are some confusion and there’s conflict in which is essentially a road map of the of this Surround Sound event. This is the the people that are creating sustainable those ideas, but what is certain in this future we all want to imagine, so try to be first Surround Sound The Fifth Estate has precincts, in one way or another. You all kind of destructive point of change, is optimistic. hosted on the East Coast; they’ve hosted are part of this story. that business and regulative models that one on the West Coast, in Perth, but we support new products, new solutions, The topic a cities agenda. We need to So let’s start our discussion with Sally don’t know what to expect tonight. We’re have to change. So tonight we’re trying make sure we can drive the shape of our Betts. Sally, you’ve represented our very proud to be associated with to co-create. I’ve seen the energy – if we The cities, urban renewal and precincts the nation at the World Forum on Sustainable , and we welcome you all all come in this room respectfully trying Fifth Estate way we want them to be. Precincts. It’s for a place called Bondi tonight to AECOM and our 5 Star building to contribute to good, something magical Junction. So what are you up to there? on George Street. So what kind of event is this? Maybe it’s can happen. So Tina has entrusted me to What made it make it to the world stage? a little bit chaotic – we call it part Q&A and part Shakespeare in the Round, but Maria Atkinson if you know Shakespeare, you’ll know he never worried about someone tampering with the script; he actually loved it. So that’s what we want to do, get everyone involved in writing our stories.

Done well, precincts can create a certain magic, when the synergies between all the elements come together to create a whole that’s bigger than its parts: with property use, communities, technologies in energy and services and in finances creating a whole that’s worth more than the sum of the parts.

There are so many pressures to manage. Buildings take years to design and build and must last decades, yet they need to anticipate trends, factor in tomorrow’s

14 15 City with a vision model is the model that can be used – get more buses on our roads, so the next because it’s small – for bigger places. tipping point is, we need to go to light rail. Sally Betts: Thank you very much. I see Professor Ed Blakely is here, and We’ve been working with a lot of people – We’ve had discussions with the it’s because Waverley joined the Future and as you said, we know we can’t do this government. We’re on the map, with a We cannot put any more Cities Collaborative that we were invited by ourselves – apart from our community red line, and obviously it’s just from Bondi buses on our road. It’s physically to go to Singapore and speak at the Lord we need a lot of you in the room to help Junction to Bondi Beach at the moment. Mayor’s Forum. If you don’t know, we us deliver this amazing vision that we We’re working with the government to impossible to get more buses have – it’s more than a vision – we are have and a wonderful model to make tick off all the ticks we need to. We’re on our roads… We need to go going to turn Bondi Junction into a hub of other cities completely sustainable. hoping that we’ll get into the next budget forward estimates, and hopefully by to light rail. environmental sustainability, with efficient Maria: Thanks Sally, I also heard you want 2020 we’ll have light rail, and hopefully buildings, recycled water, and waste and something to do with buses and a light our project will be given to Erin, to help recycling systems altogether. rail. Tell us a bit about the infrastructure deliver. As well as making Bondi Junction an need. we sit on government boards to ensure Maria: No pressure Erin. Will Sally get her that there’s appropriate gateway environmental city, we also want it to be a Sally: Well I’ve been trying to chat with wish? procedures, so we’re not really in the place where people want to live, it needs Erin [Flaherty] to make sure we’re on her business of making policies as much as to be the city of choice to live, to work, list [for public transport] quite soon. Erin Flaherty: Now I should just spend ensuring that the government’s policies to play and shop – because we know a couple of minutes explaining what You’ve all tried to go to Bondi Beach on a and objectives are carried out. we have 58,000 people who come to Infrastructure NSW does, which is a nice hot, sunny day. So we know that we have Westfield every day. So it is how we do all way of saying I can’t answer that question. Maria: So we’ll take it that Sally needs to 50,000 people on the beach on any good those things together. Infrastructure NSW is not a delivery get in a strategic plan. So Tim, a sprawled weekend, and with Green Square being agency, so we’re not like Transport for city is an inequitable city – are we really And we came to that because some developed as it is, we know that we are NSW. What we do is provide assurance to worried about people getting to the years ago we set some interesting going to be the playground for everyone the government in respect of government beach? environmental targets. So our target is to in Green Square. So we have heavy rail projects, basically. So we look at projects reduce our greenhouse gas submissions to Bondi Junction, but it’s incapable of that come up, for example from Transport, Planning our future cities by 30 per cent by 2020, and 70 per cent getting people to the beach. We know that and we look at the business cases, we by 2050. In comparison to the federal many people go by car, but when there are Tim Williams: My proposition is, in co- make recommendations, we’re concerned government it’s quite good, I think. We too many cars, you need to go to buses. creating the city that we want, we need need to not use any more potable water, with connecting people to jobs, we’re to think of the city of eight million, not the we want to reduce electricity usage. Our situation is, we have got buses that concerned with sustainability in a very city of four-and-a-half million that we have. make a profit – the 333 actually makes a general sense, but because we’re not a Does anybody really think in the room So we have a plan to do that and we know profit – but we cannot put any more buses delivery agency, we actually don’t have as that business-as-usual for Sydney would that we need a lot of help. We think our on our road. It’s physically impossible to much control over those things as some deliver a sustainable, equitable, productive of the other agencies do. city for all by 2055? The answer is we The other thing that we are legislated to don’t, really. do is to develop the state infrastructure Sally Betts Erin Flaherty, Matt Plumbridge, Terry Leckie So what do we need to change, is my strategy, which is a 20-year look forward, question, to the way we do business? which is then updated every five years. Our objectives, how we plan, and how So that’s something we did three years we deliver? Often I think discussions of ago; we’ve just updated it to give the sustainability don’t bring in discussions of government some recommendations in equity and the equitable city, and I think relation to the proceeds from the long- there’s an established link emerging in the term lease of the poles and wires. So research between sprawl and inequity, and Infrastructure NSW, we’re an assurance I want to explore that just for a little while. agency, we’re a recommending agency, 16 17 So there probably was a period of So what’s the evidence? Well there’s time in Australian cities, like American great American evidence from Harvard cities, where the aspirational wanted University that cities that have poor to go as far away from the inner city as connectivity – dispersed, low-density possible, and that actually worked in the places – have worse outcomes in terms of first generations of the development social mobility. We need to think of the city of of the car-based model for Sydney. But So Atlanta’s the opposite of a poster child increasingly we’re seeing internationally eight million, not the city of four- for this. It is the least concentrated city that the people of lower incomes and in the States. It is also the one with the and-a-half million that we have. worse outcomes in terms of health and worst social mobility, social inclusion. education and economy, are actually living So there’s some real evidence out there far away from CBDs, and the wealthy that that’s the city we’ve been heading and aspirational are living much closer to towards – how do we row back? Do CBDs, so there’s been a great inversion. you all agree that we need to have this So I think our challenge is, apart from conversation? the great challenge of trying to have this I think the last point is that we’re also conversation with people that are not creating a place where obesity and ill planners, not people really interested in health has a geography, that the Western transport – the great majority of Sydney – Suburbs – the least concentrated, most we need to have a proper discussion with disbursed, furthest from public transport them about, “Why the high-density city?” Is connectivity – are the ones where people it about sustainability? Is it about economy? are walking least. We do know that Is it about productivity? I want to introduce walkable precincts are the ones with this notion that it’s also about equity. the highest economic value in any city in the world at the moment. So go back to the beginning, in building a city of eight million, remember it’s an Australian discussion about social mobility that we have growth with equity.

Maria: Thanks Tim, so in the strategy with Erin, we also have UrbanGrowth, so Matt, paint us a picture of what these developments will look like in five or 10 years?

Matt: Five or 10 years, they’re quite short time horizons for many of our projects, but in their full build out I think principally they will address what Tim’s talking about here – social equity, and just to reference in Atlanta, the likelihood of being born into poverty and getting out of poverty in Atlanta is four per cent, so once you’re in it, you’re pretty much stuck in it.

18 19 local authority actually had no control and Maria: Nice segue for a couple of things it? Particularly when we have a drought.” yet they had all the power to supervise, so that I want to pick up on with Terry Leckie. Then we also hear, “We want control that was very present on my mind. Terry, last week you were launching the over costs. So why are our energy costs recycled water program at Central Park, escalating, going up, and why can’t we But in answer to that question, if you look Walkable precincts are the but you said what you are doing there, control that?” And so you see some at the US, for example, where I spent 12 is doing what Uber has done, but you’re behaviours, such as putting solar panels ones with the highest economic years, bright sparks do appear – and Adam doing it for infrastructure. You’re almost on, putting batteries in, trying to connect Beck [of EcoDistricts, recently back from value in any city in the world. saying shared infrastructure, shared to the grid and sell back to the grid, the US] is here, who can talk to some of economy. You said the authorities have you see the increase in rainwater tanks those bright sparks more specifically – but no idea what’s coming and it’s gonna that doesn’t make sense from a cost they appear because there are localised hit them like a bullet train. What did you perspective, but you see behaviour that controls, and fragmented regulations. And So what we want to see are inclusive and mean? And picking up on David’s point, drives towards control. that allows localities to innovate in areas engaged precincts, among other things, can we get to a precinct of sharing? inclusive and engaged, connected, with a that are specific and important to them. Then in the service level, we build these Terry: Yeah, I like what David was saying, fantastic new communities, we put vibrant and enduring local economy, both Now I’m not suggesting that we have a which was about asset management enhanced living into those communities, day and night. We want, ultimately, green free-for-all and no regulations, but what I and risk. That’s all the focus, and I think we put green walls and new landscaping buildings and green infrastructure. I mean am suggesting is that if you had a change it’s a bit different now. We’ve got a bit of and then we have this conflict with the that’s almost a default position these days. of focus, and actually allowed innovation a convergence of a few things. One of council, that says, “We like that but who’s and alternative success metrics to be But also, for there to be abundant natural those is about self-sufficiency, we’ve got gonna pay for the extra cost?” So we’re applied, we’d actually get a lot further environments, and it’s creeping in. I mean, technology and we’ve got sort of changed getting this change, I suppose, which we along in being able to innovate in precinct Sydney is glorious for that – I’ve seen a thinking – I would called it disruptive need to try and attend to. design and precinct delivery. glorious owl in Hyde Park. And ultimately thinking – in other industries, and we’re And at the same time, technology is it’s gotta be fun; it’s gotta have an identity. So others on this panel can probably starting to see that in precincts. advancing rapidly. The things we’ve seen It’s the peculiarity of it that Jane Jacobs talk more readily to utilities, and the over the last few years, the rate of change said really makes the identity. So we are opportunity there is at increasing utility self-sufficiency and control we see in technology is outstanding. And ideally going to have our own identities use, but at the most basic level of So what do I mean by self-sufficiency? there are things that we buy today that across all our different precincts. So that’s providing facilities for people in the public Self-sufficiency we’re seeing in our we never ever thought we needed. If we the aim, that’s what we’re driving towards. realm, too often this provision is simply consumers, where they want more look at the iPhone, I couldn’t imagine that based on asset management and risk. the bright sparks control, they want to control resources every person in the family, above the age And the number of times I’ve worked that are within their communities. You of one, would need an iPhone. A mate Maria: Thanks Matt, I wanna live in those with a lot of people on this panel, and hear every time it rains, people go, “Well of mine has an arrhythmia with his heart precincts. So David Barnard. You’ve said the developers invariably were trying to why do we let all that stormwater just and was showing me on his iPhone. Did that in a lot of ways Australia leads in do something well in excess of what the go down the drain? Why aren’t we using we know we needed that? Just go to areas of sustainability, but that there’s a local authority is keen to do, with all due maze of rules and regulations at all levels respect. And that’s not to say that local of government that limit what we can authorities are wrong either; they’re often implement. So how do we get the bright very pinched to deal with the situation. sparks to occur, David? We’re not focused at the moment David Barnard: That question is an on health, engagement, happiness. interesting one. I was getting on a plane, By adopting broader shared value flying back in an emergency from Brisbane metrics, then the true benefits of public because the RFS 10/50 rule [allowing trees infrastructure can be understood. to be cut down] was basically demolishing Invariably, the better developers, they want the block next door to me, and I was dealing to create these place beyond expectations. with this emergency situation where the 20 21 there? It probably doesn’t really matter. In San Francisco we’re seeing problems with the big campus providers in the Valley where the Y generation aren’t getting on the buses anymore. They’re in the cafés because that’s where they’d prefer to work, so then everything changes in terms of our cafés. The space we create at the bottom of our buildings is about creating secondary workspaces rather than food courts. Is that the death of the food court? I know I don’t go to food courts anymore because I don’t want to sit there on Wi-Fi and do work because I’d rather find a cozy café where I can sit in the corner. Is that an example of the shared economy? Absolutely. And I think our cities have to rapidly change, and what hospital! So he’s doing self-diagnosis and listening to that? we do as an industry needs to change to he’s an engineer and he loves that, but he Maria: Great! So we’ll come back about suit what people really want and how they didn’t know he needed that. laws and governance, but David Rolls, this want to live. And then we’ve got this changed thinking shared economy, what is Mirvac doing If you had a change of focus, Gentrification occurring and this destructive sort of in relation to the shared economy? And and allowed innovation thinking, and disruptive industry. So we’re if you want to draw on pressures around Maria: Brilliant. Thank you. Somebody getting this convergence which is about infrastructure or community attitudes, or and alternative success metrics from the audience submitted this, and unconstrained thinking, unconventional legal governance, draw on that. And are to be applied, we’d actually get it was a question posed by performer thinking, and sort of unprecedented we really imagining shared economy the Penny Arcade on New York, so thanks thinking, which is changing the way way we just heard Terry describe it and a lot further along in being able to whoever submitted this: “I see that we look to service. So we are now David before him? to innovate in precinct design the world I once knew becoming getting – back to services – off grid, so homogenised. Developers are destroyers: not connected, and, God help us, we The shared economy and precinct delivery. it’s gentrification of heart, soul, mind, have a network that we expect you’re David Rolls: Thanks Maria. It probably and of buildings. Sure the city has always going to connect to – and that’s what comes back to the things Tim said about changed, but historically it’s always we’re planning for, and that’s what where Sydney as a city in particular is people a lifestyle they want to live. brought its past with it.” How are we we expect. But we are seeing these going to go. Eight million people by 2050 ensuring we don’t create uninspiring technologies that don’t rely on the grid. and what does that really mean? And what The Frasers [Central Park] development places, and are creating places where How do we plan for that? Then we’re we’re seeing in terms of our cities having is a really good example with the student we want to bring the past with us? seeing “resource positive”, so now we’re to change – and it’s been also witnessed accommodation that is circa 20 sq m for Placemaker Michelle. seeing communities have resources that in the US probably before us, San the rooms but they have a lot of shared are actually positive, and they’re wanting Francisco’s probably a good example – the space. If you look at Melbourne, for Michelle Tabet: It’s a very thoughtful to share them with communities around cities change because they have to and instance, I don’t know if a lot of people question, and it’s not hard to answer at all! them, and they want to create a business the people living in them are forcing them know this statistic, but 40 per cent of I’d like to clarify that I am lucky enough to out of that. How do you plan for that? So to, and therefore the shared economy the population of the Melbourne CBD is work with developers, but also with local we say, “Is that a bullet train?” I don’t around the workplaces you need to create, students. Now does that cause the bars government and state government, and know if it’s a bullet train, but there’s the homes you need to create to allow and laneways, the culture of Melbourne, also cultural institutions. I think there’s a certainly a convergence of change. Are we or does that cause the students to go few overstatements. Number one is not 22 23 all developers are the same. Number two do. And those can be two different Reimagining central is not all the people that work within a things. And at the moment, in Sydney, development company have the same especially in the residential market, we’re Paul Walker: Well I quite like the mindset, and actually that’s the challenge, experiencing a wave where you can introduction from Tim Williams, which talks in my view, more so than, “Are all sell anything – honestly, you could sell about Sydney being 8.5 million people in I would take issue with the developers evil?” anything – that the onus is still on you as a number of years, and then you have to assertion that 8.5 million people a leader of our cities to do the right thing think about how Sydney is going to operate. And the reality is all of our cities need and I think that’s where our dilemma is: Everyone wants to agglomerate and work want to come into the city, because renewal every so often. All of our great do you follow the market; do you follow in the city, so how are you going to sustain that’s exactly what the government city have done it. I grew up in Paris, and what the right thing is? a city of 8.5 million people who all want to Paris renewed itself in the 1860s-1880s work in the city? actually cannot afford 8.5 million And by all accounts that could have been The second thing is, the past is really people to do. a major disaster, and people at that time important to cities. You have to understand And I think, actually, there’s currently 26 wrote that it was a major disaster, but the lineage and the story – even if it is, buildings in the Sydney CBD that have been now that’s what we look at, and think, “This used to be a cricket pitch,” or, “This converted from sub-grade commercial into “What a brilliant outcome that was.” used to be stable.” People relate and residential. And then after Barangaroo and a mining sector. And so, for Sydney to be connect emotionally to pasts. So without couple of buildings at Circular Quay, there’s competitive, it’s got to be competitive on So change is never popular, and the wanting to make the city a museum – not much commercial space left, and so, cost of doing business, and if there’s no reality is we have to understand the which I think is where Paris’s problem is fortunately or unfortunately, we’re locked in commercial space, then rents become supply chain of how are we able to at the moment – we need to find ways of by the harbour and the park. way too expensive, and the model of doing construct a lot of these cities. Some of weaving those narratives in. business in city becomes too expensive, this stuff is going to come bottom-up; The only way the city can spread is towards and people start to move to Singapore, and some of this stuff is going to have to Maria: Beautiful! Thanks Michelle. Central Station. And then you think, how Malaysia, KL, Hong Kong and other places. happen top-down. Now the question I So Paul. What do you understand by are 8.5 million people going to come in to find – there’s two things I’d like to include sustainable precincts and should they the city? It’s all got to be about Central. And So I think someone’s got to have a whole- – one is, there’s kind of two drivers for have a global focus, and I’d really like what’s the true role of Central Station? And of-Sydney view, as supposed to just a a developer, in my experience – other you to bring in your Asian experience. so people have to start thinking about the transactional view, and we’ve got to start people might have a different experience Is Sydney competing with Singapore, role of Central Station differently. thinking about how Sydney’s going to – but you can do what the market allows Hong Kong? And what would deliver the Sydney does have to compete with sustain 8.5 million people, and what’s the you to do or you can do what you want big picture that we’ve seen some of the Singapore, and Tim, you’re probably aware cost of our business model to make sure to do and what you know you should panellists paint for us? of the exact statistic of what the financial that we’re in the race for talent, and make district in Sydney’s CBD is worth in GDP sure that we’re in the race for affordability to Australia, but I think it’s more than the and diversity across our cities, and we have to start planning accordingly.

David Rolls Ed Blakely

24 25 to remain as a driving part of the world, the Southern Hemisphere, University where Chris was. I find myself agreeing To the soapbox! we’ve got to move in a new paradigm.” of Western Sydney is planning a major with Chris. I think the problem is we don’t And the communication messages, Maria: Thanks Paul. So you’ve heard educational campus out there, and that’s have the conversation. I’m interested in politics, media, are not strong enough, some structure to this. You’ve heard the just Parramatta. Then the next city out who’s in the room today. I know I am, but in my opinion, that we are at the tipping problems, you’ve heard some ideas. I’m is Liverpool, so there is a structure in I think we need to give the community far point of major change. now going to a kind of “Jenny Brockie trying to decentralise, if you like, for want greater credit for what we can do, but you of a better word, because we can’t just need to have that robust conversation. mode”, which means getting up. Chris Maria: So Erin, do you want to respond actually have all those people wanting to Johnson, I’m going to come to you, to that? And then I’ll also go to Jeanette So in order for it to take Sydney forward come and work in the CBD because there because you disagree with something. So Brokman from the Better Planning there are a couple of issues. Do we really isn’t the space, there isn’t the transport. Chris, what are you disagreeing with? Network – I want to hear your response to want Sydney to be 8.5 million people? And anyway, people don’t want to. People Chris. Are we getting the narrative right? I don’t want to go off on a tangent with Chris Johnson, Urban Taskforce: Look, don’t want to sit in the car for an hour in Are communities on board or not? that, but is that growth sustainable in I think people are being far too tentative traffic. People want to catch a train, they terms of the timeline? If it’s not, what else here. If we are going to double [Sydney’s want to walk, they want to be able to ride Polycentricity or not? can we do? And if we do need to go with population] – that’s what you’re talking a bike – they actually want to work where 8.5 million people, we’ve got to be mindful about – I reckon we’re at an absolute Erin Flaherty: Thank you, I think that’s a they live. tipping point of change, and you can’t talk really worthwhile observation, because that all the latest research indicates slow, incremental language when you’re I think we just do have to get on board Paul Walker: I just want to address that intense densification and urbanisation at an absolute tipping point. We’re now ASAP. I would take issue with the point, because I have lived in Singapore actually prices people out of the city, so at a third of people in apartments – we’re assertion that 8.5 million people want for six years, and decentralisation was you actually don’t make it affordable, and way ahead of other cities in Australia, but to come into the city, because that’s a theory that didn’t work in Singapore, that’s the research coming in from all they’re catching up with London, New exactly what the government actually because people started going into around the world. polycentricity and then they realised they York, Singapore. If we’re going to move cannot afford 8.5 million people to do. Our I think we’re getting the conversation had to go twice as far to get to work forward, we have to all boldly retake this transport networks just won’t allow that wrong. We’re not having that robust because their business relocated to the agenda, that the city is moving from a to happen. But what we’re doing is trying conversation. We’re not game to have it. west when they lived in the east. So suburban to an urban city. And I think to create a “polycentric city”. Parramatta is We deliver the outcomes, we say where people can’t uproot their homes as easily there’s a communication message out a good example. Parramatta will become the growth’s going, we’re not actually as cities want to go polycentric, because there that’s not going strongly enough. the second CBD for Sydney, there are having a wide conversation. We’re not their families are over the other side of That, “C’mon guys, you cannot just sit plans for light rail, Westmead hospital talking about, for instance, horizontal the city and the kids can’t get to school. comfortably where you are. If we’re going will be the largest medical complex in density versus vertical density. We’re It’s not actually as easy as the theory of not taking the people to the room; we’re polycentricity sounds, because – given the delivering outcomes that only say where cost of housing – you can’t just uproot your Jeanette Brokman density is going and communities are lifestyle and your family to get close to the reacting. And I think the communities have jobs, so the theory is different in practice. really lost faith in that process. And I think I think we’re getting the Maria: So Jeanette, are we giving the it needs leadership from perhaps within conversation wrong. We’re not right narrative to people? Are we getting the industry to actually push it forward. what the community wants? And why So the first thing I’d suggest is – this is a having that robust conversation. has Sally got problems with community wonderful conversation, but let’s have it attitudes to density when I’d say Bondi We’re not game to have it. again next time with more people from the Junction is pretty dense? community, because it’s actually a journey Is the community on board? we need to have together, and don’t be frightened of that strong conversation. Jeanette Brokman, Better Planning Network: Actually I’ll just pick up from Maria: Brilliant! Thank you. So Matt, you’ve got a role of engaging with the 26 27 community, so on that basis, is it easy to for is smaller homes, shared spaces and have this conversation? And Tim, are we bigger lifestyles better connected with capable of having the conversation in the jobs and services. They don’t want to live industry? Or do we need someone else to in the middle of nowhere. help us in the conversation? That does lead to a conversation about Matt Plumbridge: It’s where our density, which is probably the worst word Density is probably the worst business is focusing so much effort. We you can think of to engage the community word you can think of to engage had a Central to Eveleigh community in the future of their city. So we probably engagement. Across the course of the have to find something other than density, the community in the future of day, horns were locked at times. It was but it’s the quality of life for the majority their city. a Saturday, it was cold, but at the end in the city of eight millions, which is the of the day the question was, “Was it question. So, like Jeanette, I think we worthwhile?” Eighty-nine per cent said have to take the argument out there, but yes. Never once had we got above 50, it’s not about saying, “Is it four million or which simply said to us that we’re doing eight?” It’s about doing eight well. the right thing. Everyone was celebrating Maria: So we’re gonna go to the audience the fact that although we’d lost the panel. Chris Derksema, City of Sydney. Saturday but we’d gained trust. So we intend to do that, like that, and better, on It’s about liveability all our projects. Chris Derksema: I think the vision that Maria: So Tim, is that UrbanGrowth out you’ve been talking about is absolutely on their own? vital and I think that’s something the City of Sydney did rather well with Sustainable We’re growing, like it or not Sydney 2030 a number of years ago, and Tim Williams: I do think the challenge I suppose it was a really, really simple – Jeanette is right – is to take this question: “What kind of city do you discussion out there – the civic want to live in in 2030?” And I think that debate about managing growth is the question needs to be asked more broadly fundamental one. I think Chris is right that across Sydney. I live in the Inner West, so we up the ante on what the benefits are I’m one of those lucky people. And one of in a rather more compelling narrative than the things, even a couple of weeks ago, we have at the moment. we went on an Inner West brewery tour, and that’s something you couldn’t have Just a few thoughts though. So Sydney’s done five years ago. So this is the type of going to go up to eight million – that’s liveability aspect of density that I think is locked in. That 1.7 per cent growth a year really important to draw out and to engage is happening – that’s just going to happen. people and to get that vision going. We can either do it badly, or we can do it well. By current trends, the demographic The City of Sydney is about 8.5 per centre of Sydney will be Katoomba by cent of Australia’s GDP, so very strong 2050. So I think we can go up or we can economically, but I think there are so go out. Everybody wants to live in the many people that we can bring in to the same place – essentially in the Inner city. The City of Sydney tries to create a West. So we have to take the Inner West great environment for people who live to them. Essentially what they’re looking in the city now, but there are limits and 28 29 we are starting to reach some of those gonna build – if you say you’re going to Get a move on! that we’ve created when it comes to limits. We’re currently in a huge boom in achieve that BASIX score, you should urban regeneration. terms of residential development, and achieve that BASIX score. Adam Beck: Thanks Maria. A lot of So we’ve got a lot of change to do, and I I suppose one of the less visionary but familiar faces, good to see some friends. Maria: Thank you. Nice vision. Sally, how think we’ve been scared to do it. We’re a absolutely essential elements, I think, is For those who don’t know me I’m Adam difficult is it? small country, size wise, and so we’ve got that when we do build new residential Beck, currently director of innovation at a the luxury – we’re a very wealthy country, around the city, that we actually do build Sally Betts: Well it’s very hard. For non-profit called EcoDistricts. I work 5am and I don’t think we’ve really put pressure good residential, because we’re finding example, if you ask anybody in Waverley, to 10am out of Portland, Oregon, then I on ourselves to truly innovate or change. that there are lots of developments now they will say, “It’s full. You’ve got all these do my Australian day, so I have the benefit – we’re in a boom state, there’s lots of people.” Now I want to tell you that the at the moment of working in two very I think there are some amazing models money to be had, and standards are population of Waverley has increased different markets. So it’s a very jarring day around collaborative governance and maybe being let go a little bit – and I think by 3000 people over the last 20 years – for me because I come off the back of collective impacts that we don’t pull there could be some really important 3000 people. So it’s the perception, of two years working out of the US where out of geeky blog sites and weave gains in just building what we say we’re course. What has happened is we have they’ve worked out how to collaborate on throughout the way we work together on less people per home, and in Waverley urban renewal and regenerating projects transforming our cities. There are many more cars per home. So it’s actually not across sectors. examples – this has all been done before. the density, it’s not people moving into I think they’ve had to do this for some I don’t know what’s going on here. Two the area that’s causing the angst in our cities out of necessity, because their back years ago I leave. I come back and it’s the community. They think our population has This is a really adversarial is up against the wall, they don’t have a same old conversation. “Oh my god, I doubled. So it’s how you sell what is really lot of cash, there’s a lot of problems, and can’t do district energy”. I’m thinking, holy environment that we’ve happening, and then explain, and sell, the so they’ve worked out how they have to crap, where are we at with this? Like, are benefits of real density, especially if we’re created when it comes to urban really work together. we going to have this conversation again going to value capture in our development, for the next two years, or three years? regeneration. which is the only thing that’s gonna pay And I come and work my Australian day I don’t know. I don’t necessarily have to make our buildings sustainable, and to and, I mean you guys are killing me here! solutions here, but all I’m saying is there is make our precincts sustainable. This is a really adversarial environment

Maria: Suzanna I’ve got from AECOM, Adam Beck and then I want Adam Beck to talk about (L-R): Sally Betts, Tim Williams, Erin Flaherty EcoDistricts, and what that could mean.

Suzanna Remmerswaal: Well my idea, or I guess question to the room is about the idea of the 15-hour working week, and the impacts that could have in shaping our city. So, the 15-hour working week is something [John Maynard] Keynes predicted we’d have by now back in 1930. How could that shape our cities, and how could our workplaces, our homes and our cities help respond to that?

See Suzanna’s piece The Portfolio Career and its Impact on the City.

Maria: Adam of EcoDistricts.

30 31 a better way; there’s a more collaborative tradespeople will be coding, 3D printing continue to try to get it working in the way. There are options, and I challenge us delivering buildings. C’mon guys. same way. And just thinking about some to really have a go at trying to find them. of the models that we might create in A wake-up call the future – how do we re-engage with Our future is in making great cities, Changing jobs Ed Blakely: I want to lift the game. Our community? How do we get ownership? David Rolls: I just thought I’d help try to future is in making great cities; it’s not How do we get trust? And does that mean not making great coal mines. If we answer the previous question around the making great coal mines. Our target for community bonds, community ownership don’t make and become the most 15-hour working week. You look at where Sydney, for Australia, is pitiful. If we don’t and businesses, about community Sydney or our cities are going in terms of make and become the most sustainable, decision-making at the minute scale rather sustainable, smartest city-nation in white collar versus blue collar and where smartest city-nation in the world, forget the than at the district scale. the world, we will have no future. we’re heading towards the services side, rest of this discussion – we will have no Ed Blakely: The citizens of Los Angeles We will be the white trash of Asia. and it’s no more pronounced than where future. We will be the white trash of Asia, have voted a tax on themselves for we are now. That’s causing a big shift in because we have nothing else to offer. the next 50 years to provide rail and how people are being employed. Now I hate to put the turd in the punch community infrastructure to make The statistics are that in 15 years 40 per bowl, but I am very serious, because my it a smart city. We’ve got to put it to Maria: So Michelle and Paul, comments, cent of our employees will be contractors, colleagues on the other side of the world, our people and stop putting it to our and then I’ll go to the soapbox. politicians. not employees. What does that do to Los Angeles, are looking really good. And Michelle Tabet: I’m a little bit tired of the flexibility that people are going to they know their future is in a great city. Maria: Nice one. Wendy. always comparing ourselves to North demand, or actually have? Because we’re And if we don’t start doing this we’ll have America. They’ve got 300 million people, Wendy Chapman: I’m from Smart Locale, finding that with our Y generation it’s all nothing else to do. So we need to be and we don’t. So the realisation there is Ultimo/Pyrmont. The development of about creating places where they want to smart about making cities if we’re going that there’s some things that can happen sustainable precincts on a greenfield site work, because it’s really hard to get good to have a future for this great nation. in the US – there’s certain historical is really exciting, but most of the precincts people. It’s really turned its head in the last events, there’s certain population and Maria: Thanks. So Terry. in Sydney are not greenfield sites. Most 40 years. So the question on the 15-hour demographic dynamics that are just not are made up of businesses who go about working week is not so much how many Terry Leckie: So maybe some advice – applicable. I love Los Angeles – let’s all go doing their day-to-day business, staying hours are they going to work, but where don’t drink the punch ’cause Ed’s in the on holiday there; that’d be amazing – and in business, all that basic stuff. What role are they going to work? And they’re gonna room! I’d be interested to understand not to denigrate what they’ve achieved but can a collective impact approach play in choose to do it the way they like. how Los Angeles are engaging with their Australians love doing this, looking at what community, and why is it not happening changing the nature of those precincts to Maria: Thanks. So before I go to Ed I they’re doing over here and over there. here? Adam talked about coming back be sustainable? want to lift the energy here. I’m not We’ve got to think about the very, after two years and going, “Well, why Sally Betts: So what we’ve done in Bondi hearing about the optimistic vision – very special predicament that we find is it not happening?” Maybe we aren’t Junction is that we’ve got a committee driverless cars, robots teaching robots, all ourselves in – low population, lots of engaging. If it’s not working then don’t of all the stakeholders. Westfield is our space, lots of challenges in terms of biggest partner, but anybody who’s going getting stuff up. Some of these business to develop, they’re on our committee, they models are tough when you only have 22 understand our vision – so Leightons has million people. It’s bloody tough, and it’s a David Barnard just agreed to a 6 Star Green Star building different environment to when you’ve got – the first one. But you have to talk to 300 million. anybody who’s going to develop your city, like we did, because we have a vision and Getting transport right we’re going to share it with everybody. All the state agencies work on a panel with John Brockhoff: John Brockhoff from us. So that’s the only way you can retrofit SGS. There’s been a lot of talk about a place like Bondi Junction. distributed infrastructure, but one element

32 33 often not talked about is how do you do the advisory board for the North West a question that has to be asked around a discussion around inclusionary zoning – transport infrastructure organically? Rail, which is now the Sydney Metro, whether or not there is enough diversity in under what conditions could work for key which is an $11 billion project. And the housing choice that comes with that? workers. There’s a history in NSW of a fairly there’s a fabulous opportunity to create So that’s one question or discussion point. sclerotic approach in infrastructure I also wanted to give a quick response a city-shaping transport project; not planning, where gradually agencies, The second is whether or not there on… I mean Michelle is right that we’re just a transport project, but a transport through their asset management planning can be more done around key worker a small nation – 23 million. But the project that actually links all the different processes, get things up into budget accommodation within centres? So that clever thing to do – as Ed is saying – is communities along the routes. And one forward estimates, they find their way we’re not just providing infrastructure to borrow all the clever things that other way of doing that is to understand the onto the state infrastructure plan and around rail and bus lines, and lifestyle people are doing. And the idea that we different communities, and I think there’s ultimately, hopefully, they find funds and opportunities for people in existing have a referendum on a public transport a great appetite – or I’m hoping there is, get it done. centres, but also for key workers. program, which we ask people to – like because I’m pushing for it – to understand in Denver – give 0.5 per cent GST for But you’ve seen things like the Parramatta the communities, to do what we call a bit And look, us in the development the next 30 years to do that. We need to light rail, the CBD and southeast light of cultural mapping around the different community, we’re exposed to the find a way to replicate that kind of device rail – these project have largely grown stations, and then to use that as a defining voluntary planning agreement process in an Australian context. And the GST organically, despite the state infrastructure tool, if you’d like, for the neighbourhood, – and it’s a valid process – but whether discussion arising nationally is a perfect planning process. for the station, to bring the private sector or not there could be a stronger regime, opportunity to say that a proportion of the in. They want to be involved with an area I suppose, where there’s an obligation So my question is, how can we work GST rise should be devolved to states, as that we know. on the councils or state government to on coming up with these organic long as they can get buy-in to a program invest a certain percentage of money infrastructure proposals, get the support, For example, around UTS – lot’s of start- of change from their publics. Why can’t associated with that, with key worker and get them to be conceived of ups, technology. Actually understand your we do that? accommodation integrated within these differently rather than this more sclerotic city and then start to build something new developments. Because our nurses Maria: Great! So we should be supporting approach that we seem to have taken? like a transport network, which will link and teachers and ambulance and police that report. James, our host. all those cities, and it will be a Metro, so Erin Flaherty: Thank you. I think that’s – they are the people that contribute you’ll be able to go from Crows Nest to a very valid observation, and I think it’s as much as us in this room to making It’s urgent Bankstown in 20 minutes to have dinner. something that certainly quite a few sustainable and equitable communities. We’ve actually got to start thinking our James Rosenwax: I just want to make a commentators around town are talking transport systems are more city shaping Tim Williams: By an amazing point around creating a sense of urgency about, which is bringing communities in as opposed to just trains. coincidence, we’re publishing a paper around our city. I’ve observed a lot that’s early. called “Five game-changers for going on with our major regeneration I know Lendlease’s [global head of Diversity and equity affordable housing”. And one of them is projects. I applaud the programs that UrbanGrowth have got on but I don’t want development] David Hutton was talking Maria: Peter from Leightons. about when it comes to business cases – well the discussion was really, should Peter O’Meagher: There’s two ideas I James Rosenwax we be publishing business cases? But the thought I’d raise. Touching on the idea real discussion is, even before you get to that we’re faced with growth, inevitable that stage, we should actually be having growth, as Tim mentioned – eight million We’ve got a wonderful piece community forums to understand what the people in 25-30 years – it’s a question of community wants in that area, starting to sustainability of growth and equitability of infrastructure playing out at plan really early. Because what happens is that comes with it, or how we create a Badgerys Creek right now. Let’s not city that is equitable. we tend to bring the community in once a get this wrong. decision has been made in principle, if you And I suppose there are two things that like, when it really should be the other way. have happened recently. One, the SEPP But one thing I wanted to say to lift 65 changes, which has set a minimum the conversation perhaps is, I sit on size for apartments, which I think there’s 34 35 to see us taking compromise positions. the community early to decision making. same game. But we actually are the field cars in San Francisco. And that’s gonna And I can see compromises happening I run a chamber of commerce and I can that you’re playing on. So I just want to come to Sydney. You’ll be able to sit there, right now. feel every bit validated to be here. I don’t chuck it out there – that it’s interesting to have your account on your iPhone, and wear a suit, I’m not a developer, but the see it from an outsider’s point of view. a driverless car is gonna pick you up at I think we need strong city leadership Bays Precinct is actually happening in my And why am I an outsider? your place – you’ve already paid, it already right now to say, “That is just not right.” backyard. It affects greatly 110 business knows where you’re going, and all the We are a global city, we’re competing members that are part of my community. Disruption sickNESS work is done by Google Maps. That’s for resources, and as Ed says, our I’m dealing with a Mirvac development coming. And if we sit here as a bunch of competitors up north are going to shit all Alex Harrington, The Warren Centre: down the road, which is the Harold Park Sydneyites, saying, “What we did last over us if we get this wrong. We’ve got a I have a question for the panel. There’s development, at the moment. And we do week was fine, and it’s really something wonderful piece of infrastructure playing been a lot of discussion tonight about come in quite late to the conversation, and for San Francisco or LA” – without out at Badgerys Creek right now. Let’s disruptive technologies and I think it’s at that point you actually are out of your comparing ourselves to cities – but our not get this wrong. Let’s not get the Bays been quite a superficial discussion. depth and you do get trodden on, and you opportunity is that we become the best [Precinct] wrong. Let’s act with some Disruptive technology should make you do get bulldozered. We’re not playing the mimics in the world, that we catch what’s urgency and get it right. And have a few feel nauseous – you should want to reach coming early and apply in it a form that fights, because we need to have them for the Gaviscon, because it really is that nobody else can. pretty quickly. confronting. So much of our world is changing. Adelaide is testing driverless Paul Walker: I’m actually a little bit scared Maria: I want to hear from Kris. cars on highways. They’re beginning about driverless cars. And it’s actually Where’s the community? Disruptive technology should make a program; they’re going to be driving because once a driverless car is available, them on highways. So these things are you’ll use it. And no one is going to go get Kris Spann: I run the Glebe Chamber you feel nauseous – you should happening whether you like it or not. a bus or a train; they’re all gonna get their of Commerce. I also coincidentally run want to reach for the Gaviscon. So we haven’t talked about investment; own driverless cars and congestion is going a small business where The Fifth Estate we haven’t talked about the fact we are to be awful. Because even though those crew work from, which is a co-working not leveraging the opportunities to our cars can go a little bit quicker, everyone space. I just want to speak on bringing in north; we’re not talking about that skills will want their own, as opposed to getting should be thought of in this country the on mass public transport. So I’m actually a same way we think about a tonne of iron bit torn between the flexibility versus the Alex Harrington ore – it is valuable, it’s exploitable, and we reality of what’s really going to happen. can make a heck of a lot with it. These are opportunities we’re not grasping. How Size matters for innovation do our cities respond to this? And how The other point around what Adam was do we pull the levers, like Tim was saying saying around district cooling, precincts, with GST – you don’t have to necessarily applied sustainability – just to go back fundamentally shift the program, you just half-an-hour – actually, you can get that, have to make sure the right incentives are but you’ve got to get the swathe of there. How do we get those incentives? development area that is big enough, that means you can invest in the infrastructure. David Barnard: I think that’s a really, really good point, and I’d raise the So Adam was a bit critical of what question of, are we too insular as a place? Sydney’s doing, but places within Sydney What happened last week was alright; are doing it. Barangaroo is actually doing but what’s gonna happen next week? that, we’re about to become [climate] And I think we’re about to get a wall that positive, and it’s about to be the most says, the Ubers are coming out – I think sustainable financial district in the world, they’ve ordered a thousand driverless so it depends on the scale of the precinct.

36 37 Michelle Tabet: I just have a comment you want to make another comment? on the driverless car thing, and a question about disruptive technology. For a long A challenge time I worked in the area of how disruptive Jeanette Brokman: I want to challenge technology changes the way we live in UrbanGrowth. Local communities have our cities. And what does it really put into linked up together with the Parramatta The challenge for the next 10 years question? And the more you look at that, Business Chamber. They have a vision is the form of the city. There’s a there’s always going to be a shiny object, for Parramatta that’s quite different to there is always gonna be something that is UrbanGrowth NSW’s. UrbanGrowth takes polarised view. It’s all towers/it’s exciting, and the reality is that we should its vision, which is the government’s not. Cities are not like that. be thinking about who those things are for vision, and dictates that out. The – it’s not because it’s physically possible conversation again is not happening. that we should actually do it. I understand there have been lots of There’s another lens to apply to this. It’s conversations trying to get UrbanGrowth a bit of a red herring to focus on what the back in the room. So if there’s one thing technology is – there are technologies I’d like to suggest to UrbanGrowth, it is to that are enabling; I’m not trying to take take the opportunity. that away – but the idea of focusing on Local communities have been given five technology for the sake of technology… minutes each to make a presentation. You know, like three years ago, every How on earth do you actually have city was going to have their “smart city a conversation? My background, for strategy”, and that space got completely instance, is in change management, and eaten up by IBM and Cisco and Siemens I’m a huge proponent of appreciative and whomever it was, just looking for enquiry. Appreciative enquiry talks about opportunities to sell their systems. sitting down at the start and visioning the Terry Leckie: So just to the price point, exercise and doing a “best of”. And you if you had a driverless vehicle shared have a completely different conversation and you had a non-congested access, so from actually taking and defending a you have the safety, you can improve the position. So I’d like to put the challenge capacity of our transport system, and you back out to UrbanGrowth, because have a price point that is half the cost of the constant feedback we’re getting is public transport, you’re not going to be disappointment with the delivery process able to stop it. Are we planning for it? at the moment through UrbanGrowth. Phillip Graus, Cox Architecture: I think What do we do well? the challenge for the next 10 years is the David Fox, AECOM: I don’t want to get form of the city, and the most interesting caught in the details, but I also want to be question tonight was the discussion able to look at the positive things Sydney between Paul and Infrastructure NSW. Are does, and Australia. So we have a very we polycentric? Are we not? high percentage of rated green buildings There’s a polarised view. It’s all towers/ compared to the rest of the world. So I it’s not. Cities are not like that. If you just wanted to ask a positive, introspective look at the Cumberland Plan we’re question, what does Sydney do well? only polycentric because jobs moved. Maria: Hold that. Jeanette [Brokman]. Do Manufacturing moved out of the city; 38 39 I want you to shape, essentially, your innovation, allowed us to deal better with to change, because what that does is vision of what needs to change to enable our developers, so that we could get a cause government to have to hold onto us to have a community that is informed, value uplift that would return benefits to AAA credit ratings, which means they engaged and contributing. our community. So it’s just some planning can’t invest in infrastructure, can’t invest Gone are the days that we need a changes I think would be helpful. in affordable housing or take less land separate roads ministry. We have The public value – and being the biggest land owner, The town founder so we actually get diversity in the cities – a structural flaw at the heart of David Barnard: Actually I’ve kind of cheated here. I’d change the general Terry Leckie: I’d like us to be able to because it’s all about the credit rate. governments. public. And the reason why it is not the celebrate the town founder, or the city Prime Minister or minister of planning founder, or the community founder. Project managers, Treasury or whatever – and I had a good chat Where are the bronze statues? Can that Erin Flaherty: It’s very funny you say that, with my desk buddy Norma [Shankie- be a developer? Are they proud of what because I know the state of NSW nearly we followed the jobs. Those centres Williams] about this – they have leadership they’ve done and therefore we celebrate went bust when they built the Harbour were based on manufacturing. We don’t responsibility but at the end of the day if them through history? We had that. Bridge, and also the Opera House – and manufacture now. The knowledge jobs, the public can more fully understand the Where are they now? I want to work with for that very reason. Because they had according to the Brookings Institution, are options and the impact of the decisions the visionaries who create that vision and a vision and they pushed it, even to the about 20-25 per cent [of all jobs] – so 20- they make, then we can respond more then stick to it. And we celebrate it for extent of state finances. 25 per cent need to be clustered; 75 per effectively. Because so much of what we time to come. cent don’t. We’re not doing the research And my response is probably a little bit do is ultimately market-driven. As much as to find out what these jobs are. similar, and maybe a little bit more prosaic. we’d like to manipulate the markets – and The Premier I actually don’t think it’s the Premier, and I So if we don’t have the debate about the we do and we push them along – if you Tim Williams: I wanna change the guy don’t think it is the ministers either. I think form of the city, based on evidence, then try to build something that’s not market who says, “You can’t do that Tim.” But I it’s two levels of government. The first is we’re lost. So that’s the debate. Have the driven it won’t get built. think the way to do that is to get to the Treasury, and I think what needs to happen debate, stop being polarised, and let’s get Premier, who is exceptional in all sorts of in Treasury is there needs to be a total some evidence about where jobs really “Gorgeous” Rob Stokes ways. I worry by the way that I’m involved re-think of business case methodologies are. You can’t plan and tell jobs where to Sally Betts: Well I’d like to influence Rob in a bit of a bromance towards Minister go. So where are jobs going? Where’s the Stokes – he’s a gorgeous guy. Part of Stokes as well, because he clearly is a evidence? Let’s start looking at more of a the problem councils have is that they’re gorgeous person, which is a very worrying mosaic, not arguing about polycentric or constrained by the legislation, and by the proposition in all sorts of ways. all just in the CBD. government’s template process. But I think the Premier needs to So the government has done some, we understand that tomorrow’s Sydney isn’t Who would you think, bad things for Waverley. We were tomorrow; tomorrow’s Sydney is 40 years the leaders in affordable housing. Because from now. Who will live here, and how will influence? our affordable housing program didn’t fit they live? into a template, we lost it. So our ability to Maria: I want to come back to the panel, But here’s a structural change he needs provide homes for the workers that we’re where I’ve been given a closing question. to do, which is: gone are the days that talking about was taken away because we Which specific job or person would we need a separate roads ministry. We did not fit into a template. you most like to influence? have a structural flaw at the heart of It could be from government, private, So I think if I could influence Rob governments. We need an integrated enterprise, community. Essentially, what Stokes to make a different process of transport approach. would you change if you could? What doing templates for different councils. parts of government – and I want you to Councils are brave, we have a very brave Standard & Poor’s be specific – I want right down to the job council, we would do a lot of things if David Rolls: The person who wrote the and the person, if you’re gonna go there. the legislation allowed a little bit more rules around Standard & Poor’s I’d like 40 41 Norma Shankie-Williams prosperity, yet we refuse to appreciate absolutely essential?” And what I find them and the very thing that becomes the amazing is that on that list, there could fuel to actually make the project go. be very, very easy decisions made – of course we want water and of course But on the flip side we have excellent It’s not about the different silos – we want roads – but they’re actually project directors in our stable. They really get including in that projects that you would that just wastes time. The planning it and they push so hard. I can’t be happier by all accounting frameworks find not at in my work with people who are willing to system wears us all down to no all palatable, such as libraries, such as take it along and who get it, implicitly. good end. performing arts precincts, because, you Erin: If I could just say, I wasn’t actually know what, if they don’t have that, what suggesting that’s the person I’d get rid of. do they have to live for? And that’s the That’s the person who’s got the power. reality. It’s a very extreme environment, it’s not at all similar, but I take so much Christchurch as inspiration inspiration from that. So I just want people Michelle: There’s definitely a hierarchy of to think a little bit more. If all this were people I would talk to. I do a lot of work in razed tomorrow, what would you do? and what’s actually important and what Norma Shankie-Williams, AECOM: I’ve Christchurch, and it’s really a challenging Paul Walker: I think because we’re gets measured, and what are the benefits, been so entranced by what everyone has context, for a lot of reasons. And recently talking about sustainable futures, my because I think that we’re living back in been saying. Tim, you kind of stole my they released a long-term plan, which is two sons, who are three and one. So the dark old ages when it comes to what’s thunder a little bit by talking about place, wildly unpopular with the community. I’d really like to influence them, to act important for society. because for me that is the most important Why? Because it’s an open conversation and think more progressively, and more thing. And my key person that I would And then the other level I would seek about the trade-offs they have to make. about the sustainability of Sydney, for the attack is, in fact, Minister Stokes. And we to influence is the project director. It’s, “Do you want bike lanes or do you betterment of the city and the future. had this discussion earlier tonight, didn’t The project director of all these all big want potable water in these suburbs?” Or, we David? But he’s the guy who can Maria: Thank you. So I’m gonna call that a projects, because at the end of the day “Do you want a performing arts precinct unravel all the mumbo jumbo and all the wrap. ■ it’s the government that’s actually got the or do you want something else that’s hot air around these planning rules that money, and it’s the government that’s just waste everybody’s time, I think. You doing things like the major transport set a vision for the place, you work with and the Central to Eveleigh. And unless the community from the very beginning, the project director is on board with and you deliver the vision for that place, sustainability, and is on board with within a strategic context. It’s not about community consultation, and is on board the different silos – that just wastes time with design, and is on board with all – the planning system, I think, wears us all the things that are so important to our down to no good end. society, it doesn’t happen. Because, at the end of the day, that’s the person that Matt Plumbridge: I’ll go with what Erin hires, fires and really is responsible for the said, absolutely, in terms of not only project. So, I think that the Premier has a Treasury but the whole financial and vision, the minister has a vision, but if you accounting world, and the notion that really want to make a change on things, two-dimensional accounting still runs our you’ve got to get to the person who calls economy. At the end of the day, it’s down the shots. to the value of potable water. It’s how you look at urban renewal, journey times, Maria: We’re gonna go back to the productivity, all these things are essentially soapbox. Norma. at the heart of our quality of life and our

42 43 Yesterday a public water utility. Today Flow Systems.

Reduce water infrastructure costs. Save time and money. World’s best innovation. Create a sustainable water community with Flow Systems.

[email protected] 1300 803 803

44 45 This is an edited transcript of an develop an integrated city vision and the gives clarity to investment decisions and Utzon Lecture speech delivered authority within government to raise and it also helps give the broader community by Professor Sue Holliday on allocate funds for implementation. I know a chance to have their say, understand 14 October. The Utzon Lecture that means a redistribution of power, but the challenges ahead and participate in series focuses on the presentation that’s where we should be heading. And thinking through the options for change. Six things of ideas from leading contributors we need senior elected representatives The Vision is not just a plan – or a map, of international significance in the on this authority. So mayors and ministers although that is important – it should be a Sydney must design, delivery and management – decision makers with the ability to business plan for investment by industry of the built environment. commit. and government. It needs to be a new Sydney Region Strategic Plan for 2050 do now for a In 1978, when I arrived in Sydney, the city 2. Develop a genuine vision for with an implementation plan to start was 2.5 million people. Today, its 4.5m. investing now. workable city When I’m 100, it will be 8m people. The a city of eight million people decisions we make today will determine The first job of this new governance the kind of city we will have then. We arrangement should be to set a new are at a tipping point. Either Sydney will vision for a city of eight million people. Professor Sue Holliday, become even more congested and less Across the world, there is a rebalance affordable, or we will transform the way UNSW Built Environment happening in current economic thinking – our city works for us. Which do we want? Either Sydney will become the market still prevails but governments Our position as the “globally competitive are seeing once again that they have even more congested and less city” in Australia is under threat if we do an important role in city building and in not make the right decisions now. affordable, or we will transform guiding the market towards more effective the way our city works for us. I want to start a conversation investment. A Vision, or whatever you about commencing a new vision to want to call it, helps set that direction. It accommodate the next 3.5 million people in Sydney and I’m suggesting six ideas to stop our city failing, to plan for eight million people and to start investing proactively in city-shaping infrastructure for 2050. This is a long-term road map to ensure we are making the right decisions over the next 40 years. 1. Better governance and leadership Since I started writing this talk, The Greater Sydney Commission has been announced. But there are two missing links. The first is that the Commission does not have the role to set the vision and to provide leadership. The second missing link is the Commonwealth.

What is needed is a genuine partnership organisation – not a committee – and with a mandate and a funding mechanism to 46 47 3. Use the Badgerys Creek Once you have those images firmly in If we have 1.3 million more households your head, the Badgerys Creek location coming to Sydney, we have to find them Airport site as a major reshaping for a new city makes enormous sense. long-term, secure accommodation. If they opportunity It’s a large site, with no neighbours; it are not poor enough to get into public is well located near the M7 for freight housing, or wealthy enough to buy their We have an affordable housing The purchase of the Badgerys Creek site logistics; it could be directly linked to own home and priced out of the lower rent crisis in Sydney and we are not by the Commonwealth was one of the Parramatta and the CBD with a 40-minute private market – where do they go? Many of most strategic decisions ever made to express metro shuttle; it is well located to them will be essential workers supporting taking it seriously enough. influence the future of Sydney. Airport provide jobs for communities in Penrith/ our schools, hospitals, police force, council or not, it has protected close to 2000 Liverpool/ Blacktown/Parramatta. It can and civil services. What do they do? hectares of land in the centre of Western also provide up to half a million homes, We have an affordable housing crisis in • Oh, and of course we should examine Sydney. It is now available for a genuine both apartments and single homes. negative gearing and land tax… but the city-shaping opportunity. Sydney and we are not taking it seriously With this one decision, to make the airport enough. Our policies focus on getting Prime Minister and Treasurer have got A decision to locate the second Sydney site a city with a transport hub – not a households into home ownership when that in hand… airport there has been made. But I want low-density employment zone, the city we should be aiming our policies at long- With these policies in place, we could you to imagine the use of that site in a structure is reshaped to accommodate term “community rental”. This is a cultural achieve 300,000 new affordable homes different way. Forget that its in the middle 3.5 million more people. But we have to shift we need to have. by 2050. of empty paddocks; forget that all the imagine – to vision – a high-rise city in So here is a suggestion for immediate suburbs in the West are just low level the middle of the Western Sydney region action: suburban sprawl; forget that airports are where all the action will be happening. 5. Build regional connectivity by traditionally surrounded by low-intensity This is the cornerstone of the new vision. • 50 per cent of all government land for developing Circular Metro routes retail and airport-related logistics sheds. sale – both local and state – should be No, think Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam. allocated for affordable housing. This Okay, so now we have the new city as This airport is now, in 50 years since 4. Mandate affordable housing would provide a supply of large enough the core of a new Sydney structure, and inception, a dynamic hub of international for every development and get parcels of land that developers would be an affordable housing regime to deliver exchange. A world trade centre, office the community housing sector to interested and for the first time, super affordable rental homes across Sydney. park and Airportcity, which provides funds would find it attractive to invest in. We now need to connect it all up. hotels, conference facilities, shops and manage it They say they need larger development If we agree the new airport city should restaurants to service the 60,000 jobs. opportunities and scale to invest. For a city of eight million people we will be developed within a 20-40 year period A high-speed train interchange is located need another 1.3 million homes if the • Inclusionary zoning should be mandated then a lot of other ideas fall into place – under the terminal. Think of the second household size remains the same at 2.7 for all residential flat developments citywide connectivity can actually happen. Sydney airport as a city and a transport people average over the Sydney region. providing a fund of capital to be invested interchange. into purchasing more land for affordable There is considerable opportunities for housing development. more density in the West if modern, fast, regular transit can be provided. This is • The government land development where the additional 3.5 million people agency must be required to secure 25 can live to relieve congestion in the per cent of all their developments as eastern and inner western areas already affordable housing. fully developed. • The community housing sector should be given the opportunity to manage, Let’s rethink the metros as the tool to and preferably own, as many properties connect and distribute people around as possible. We need to grow this the new Sydney. We need to think sector to build experience to take on of a metro system as a circular loop the management and development of connecting people and jobs and providing community housing rental. interchanges to link them to other transit 48 49 links in the system. This kind of thinking could offer Sydneysiders a real “big city” metro running without timetable every four minutes or so. Decisions made now can turn We have a great opportunity here to move the focus of growth and connectivity west. us towards a more sustainable, We can, of course, have a circular inner liveable and workable city. metro going through Rozelle as originally conceived and linking the Olympic Park and Bankstown. It would service those job hubs and distribute people to and for renewal in the inner areas, increasingly, from other parts of the system. But for we will need to look further west, to the next stage of Sydney’s development, Parramatta and beyond. Many, if not most, we should extend that concept through of the 3.5 million new people in Sydney will Chatswood, Macquarie Park, Epping and head West. Airport city has the opportunity to Parramatta fulfilling the ambition to link for thousands of new homes, connected to Parramatta to the “global arc”. jobs through the metro system.

Finally, as part of this city-wide connectivity But will we also need other places network, an Airport City Metro would link for people to choose to live. With fast Rouse Hill (at the end of the north west internet, we can link a network of smaller rail line) to Airport City at Badgerys Creek towns to Sydney so that providing choice and then loop around to Leppington and in living and working environments is Kingsford Smith Airport and the CBD. And possible. As a former member of the you have a 40-minute express link from High Speed Rail Advisory committee, it Airport city to the CBD via Kingsford Smith would be remiss of me not to mention the Airport – a similar time as between Canary transformative nature of that investment. Wharf and the centre of London. Canberra, Goulburn, Southern Highlands, Central Coast and Newcastle could all be This should not be a pipe dream. This within 40 minutes to an hour from Sydney. kind of transit network would provide Those centres could develop as part of an the connectivity outcomes that Prime employment and lifestyle network with Minister Turnbull has spoken about. This the HSR. But without it, alternative ways network will serve a big city by reducing of living and working outside of Sydney congestion and linking people to jobs and will not be feasible. other activities. I have outlined why I think Sydney stands 6. Implement the High Speed on the edge. Our lifestyle will deteriorate with the decline of the city’s workability. Rail between Badgerys Creek, But at this point in our history, we can go Newcastle and Canberra the other way. Decisions made now, at this tipping point, can turn us towards a more The key to preparing Sydney for an eight- sustainable, liveable and workable city. We million-person future is developing the need to make a few imaginative and bold west. Although there are still opportunities decisions. ■

50 51 The portfolio career Workers are commuting shorter distances, less frequently, occupying and its impacts on the city less private space and more public space, and expecting more from Suzanna Remmerswaal, AECOM the spaces they occupy.

While the dream of a shorter, more a wider range of skills. A portfolio career “open house” arrangements and in public productive working week has not yet may be developed in response to a lack working commons in libraries, lobbies, happened for Australians, the shape of of full-time work, or in the aspiration cafés, parks and even the local pub. This our working week is changing due to of having a greater work–life balance, shift means that across their working movements like “portfolio careers” and including reduced work hours. It may week, workers are commuting shorter changing workscapes. involve part-time permanent employment, distances, less frequently, occupying less freelance work in a similar or opposite private space and more public space, and With work spilling out of traditional offices, field, and commitment to a personal expecting more from the spaces they our cities need to adapt to continue to endeavour such as a food blog or occupy. host the creative collisions required for volunteering at a local food co-op. businesses and communities to succeed. Without gearing the spaces in between Indicators of the adoption of portfolio Impacts on city infrastructure careers include the 32 per cent of home and work to support diversified A changing work week will help to diversify Australians who are now undertaking uses, the spark that keeps our cities as the load on transport, with part-time, freelance work as their sole source of the centres of economic growth, creative flexible and remote working reducing the income, ”moonlighting” as freelancers explosions and innovation may be lost. number of trips taken overall. Diversifying after hours, combining part-time load enables our existing infrastructure to employment and freelance work, or foot – from home to the local café where provide better service, reduces operational Portfolio careers and the rise of engaging in short-term contracted work. you can get free wifi with your coffee, or freelancing in Australia environmental impact by reducing by personal or share bike, from library to congestion, and extends the design lives meeting in the city and home via the pub. Supported by changing workscapes, A changing workscape of our existing infrastructure by servicing ubiquitous virtual connections and more people. Conversely, workers may Above all, with the aspiration for work–life This rise, coupled with the move to a incubated by the global financial crisis, also be happy to spend more time on balance top of mind, more flexible work more sustainable workscape where the portfolio career is providing a way single trips on public transport, where allows us to live out our preference for core commercial office space shrinks for workers to redefine their approach to – enabled by free wifi or cellular data – the lifestyle benefits of living closer to and workers overflow into the spaces in work, and the way they occupy our cities. they’re able to work or use social media. work, without the lifestyle and affordability between home and work, will impact the issues of living and working within the A portfolio career aims to provide job fabric of our cities. The wider workforce is Our changing workscape also supports a CBD. When the cultural collisions required security by diversifying income streams, joining portfolio careerists outside of the switch to more active transport modes, for businesses to thrive can happen allowing greater flexibility and developing office, in semi-private co-working spaces, by encouraging shorter, local trips by within co-working spaces like The Works 52 53 living quarters upstairs. This also ties into the demand for smaller commercial and retail spaces to support small and micro businesses, pop ups and new business The rise in portfolio careers, favoured by portfolio careerists, with coupled with the move to a more short-term leases and affordable rents sustainable workscape where core associated with smaller floor areas. commercial office space shrinks Achieving balance and workers overflow into the Enthusiasm for this changing workscape spaces in between home and work, may need to be tempered by will impact the fabric of our cities. consideration of the social impacts of the ever-present connection to work, and with increased flexibility, the creep of work life into family and leisure time. While in Glebe [home of The Fifth Estate] and in the aim of the portfolio careerist may the networked public spaces in between be to achieve better work–life balance, like the bustling Telstra building lobby on spreading themselves across a diverse George Street, an office location in the portfolio may indeed impact their ability to CBD may be less important for success. achieve this balance. Affordable blended living and work Keeping the spark of creative Providing the kind of comfort and collisions in our cities infrastructure (wifi and cellular data) to Our cities have been built to enable the enable our work lives to overflow into creative collision of workers occupying public spaces also puts less pressure the same space at the same time. With on our homes, enabling the uptake the rise of the portfolio career amongst of more affordable, smaller housing other movements, our cities will need to stock, and models such as live-work respond to its occupants moving beyond apartments, next generation boarding traditional times and space, in order houses or student accommodation. to continue to drive economic growth, Residential developments are already creativity and innovation. ■ taking advantage of this movement, with developments like The Junction Suzanna Remmerswaal is a in Newtown, NSW providing live-work sustainability consultant with AECOM. residential apartments, which include a secure commercial office space and

54 55 This need not be so difficult, nor require the three “domains” that need to be extra resources. Rather, it is about getting addressed to generate health supportive multiple outcomes from the design, built environments. We wrote about these management and policy actions we in our earlier contribution to TFE’s first already undertake. Current interest in e-book on precincts: physical activity, precincts has been stimulated by the new social interaction and nutrition. Below smaller-scale and disruptive technologies we offer a model to illustrate that when On precincts, relating to energy and water efficiencies. we stimulate interactions between the So too, better resident and worker three domains, our built environments amenities come from providing a good will be correspondingly more effective in health and wellbeing range of services within easy walking supporting health – and infinitely liveable. distance. These very same features, There are numerous guidelines to assist often with only a little tweaking, can yield (see our list in TFE’s earlier e-book). Greg Paine and Susan Thompson, City Wellbeing, important health benefits. In Australia The Heart Foundation is City Futures Research Centre, UNSW Our study of a new precinct designed to crucially involved. A recent international minimise its ecological footprint reveals compendium, The Routledge Handbook that its features simultaneously yield of Planning for Health and Well-Being Planning and developing cities to best involved in protecting our health. We have immediate health co-benefits. Reducing provides a wealth of ideas, including fulfil our needs and desires has always been largely successful at providing clean the need to drive so as to lower carbon many contributions from Australia. been complicated. air and water, safe foods to eat and the emissions leads to increased exercise Kevin McCloud (of Grand Designs) says removal of harmful wastes. However, through use of active transport (that’s he would like every politician, planner Indeed it was the impetus for the notion we have now dropped the ball when walking, cycling and taking public and developer to be given a copy! of the “wicked problem” – problems that dealing with contemporary chronic or transport). Water-sensitive urban design The important thing to remember is are difficult to define, socially complex and lifestyle illnesses that currently afflict us features create a pleasant place that also that adopting its message is not yet highly interdependent, while demanding and challenge our health budgets. Some encourages residents to be out and about, another time-consuming add-on and that solutions are collaborative, holistic suggest these illnesses have reached meet with others and achieve the mental cost impediment to what we are already and interdisciplinary (and first defined plague proportions. Insufficient exercise, wellbeing that is stimulated by nature. doing. Rather, it is about a new level by two urban planners from the United of awareness. Assisted by the precinct overconsumption of fatty, convenience Study participants in other locations are States). scale, we can make every element of foods and feelings of isolation and advising how much they desire a good the built environment count many times Simplifying and dividing up component loneliness are all well documented risk neighbourhood focus – this means a over, meeting our multiple environmental, issues, silo-like; adopting a monolithic factors for conditions such as obesity, central place to which they can walk, economic and wellbeing needs. ■ one-size-fits-all “efficiency” approach and heart and respiratory diseases, cancer and where they bump into neighbours just letting things slip when they get too mental illness. (socialisation benefits) and shop for hard, simply doesn’t work. The idea of It is imperative we catch up. Research healthy food (local economy and nutrition co-benefits – fruitful convergences where by the City Futures Research Centre at benefits). They also want proper parks, not action in one area generates positive the University of New South Wales, and just “open space”, with informal exercise outcomes in another, often at no extra similar studies elsewhere, reveal that each equipment and ball courts for youth and We have now dropped the ball cost – coupled with the manageable scale of us invariably knows what we need to family interactions. Organised group when dealing with contemporary of the precinct, now promises better do to keep healthy. Nevertheless, we have activities are also mentioned as a way to chronic or lifestyle illnesses that outcomes. progressively embedded features into the encourage exercise and socialising. We have also noted that these health benefits So how might this work? The health very fabric of our neighbourhoods that currently afflict us and challenge figure prominently in marketing material impacts of our neighbourhoods is a good make healthy behaviours hard to achieve. our health budgets. for some of these areas. example. Urban planning has long been But we must change the ways places are designed, built and managed. All of this confirms the importance of

56 57 panellist interviews Panellist interviews

58 59 Everybody wants to live in the Dr Tim Williams inner west but they can’t. There is a demand from not just millennials but on the importance retiring baby boomers. So there is a of public transport big shift coming; they call it the great inversion.

A lack of governance around Sydney together to plan for Sydney together,” Dr overheating in the housing market and is and its future has led to sub-optimal Williams says. “Unless we have more causing big, big transport challenges. Is results, Dr Williams, CEO of the metropolitan coordination we can’t that the way forward for Sydney? Committee for Sydney, says. deliver the best urban planning.” “We have all these historic town centres “I don’t think we have given ourselves Like all global cities, Sydney is that are under dense and don’t have the tools to sort Sydney’s problems out,” experiencing pressure as more demand enough amenity,” Dr Williams says. For he says. “We are trying to do a global focuses on fewer spaces. Fifty years ago example, it takes an hour travel to get to city without the tools. Most countries of people wanted to live in the suburbs, now Liverpool by public transport. they want to live in the heart of the action. the world either have formal or informal “That is just nonsense,” he says. “It’s an collaborations or structures.” “Everybody wants to live in the inner intrinsically beautiful town centre that Dr Williams points out that Auckland west but they can’t,” says Dr Williams. would attract millennial entrepreneurs, has just one council to which the “There is a demand from not just 25 to 34-year-olds, who could get government is devolving powers. The millennials but retiring baby boomers. affordable housing.” So there is a big shift coming; they call it UK’s City Deals are resulting in central However, places such as Liverpool need the great inversion. government powers being transferred to knowledge economy workplaces that big cities. “We will see, and indeed welcome, can attract graduates. much more density where people want “Australian cities are the orphans of “It’s not about transferring economic to live and work and play. We need to public policy,” Dr Williams says. “I don’t development from one place to another, look at retrofitting our suburbs on top think you can have an urban planning it’s about enabling the west to develop of our town centres, better connectivity discussion that doesn’t start with the its own economic contribution,” and better amenity.” governance gap.” Dr Williams says. The NSW Government’s independent Dr Williams questions whether we can Greater Sydney Commission will be “a provide these lifestyles in Liverpool, A public transport revolution great coordinating initiative”, according to Penrith or Parramatta. We can’t build the new-look Dr Williams. “The challenge is to create that decentralised Sydney on a road network, opportunity for that kind of world in “We welcome the Greater Sydney according to Dr Williams. Commission, which is an attempt to get more places, because our attempt to government departments to sit down put it all in one place is causing massive “That is not a road network world… 60 61 whatever happens we need a public transport revolution in Sydney.” Fast rail linking major centres is crucial. You can’t build a modern future “The jobs will come if you can get from for western Sydney without a Parramatta to the CBD in 10 minutes by public transport,” Dr Williams says. modern public transport system. East London’s residents gained access Fast rail between Parramatta to 100,000 jobs through the Jubilee Line extension to Canary Wharf. and the CBD is hugely more

“You can’t build a modern future for important to the future of a western Sydney without a modern public more socially integrated and transport system. Fast rail between economically successful Sydney Parramatta and the CBD is hugely more important to the future of a more than WestConnex. socially integrated and economically successful Sydney than WestConnex.

“WestConnex doesn’t give you the kind of social mobility and density dividend land bank, well connected by public that public transport gives you, so that is transport, where everyone would want why we need a proper debate about the to live,” he says. “It would create a outcomes we are seeking for this city.” sustainable density, an attractive one for Sydney. I think we might see some We need to go up, not out innovation around it.”

Dr Williams is hopeful the state Creating change isn’t about technical government will take up the Committee fixes, urban design or policy, Dr William for Sydney’s proposal to unlock the says – it’s about getting the public to buy land above Sydney’s train stations for into the future of Sydney. apartments. The concept could provide “Unless we convince people that we’ve affordable housing for key workers such got to go up and not just out, then we as police, nurses and teachers. will be creating a second-rate, second- Developers are building social, affordable class divided city,” Dr Williams says. and privately-owned apartments at 50 “We have to reach over the heads of London tube stations. Sydney has 360 the politicians, who are a little afraid to stations. be bold, and we have to talk directly to the public about why we have to build a “Why can’t we do the same?” Dr more compact, more connected, more Williams says. “You have a public sector equitable Sydney.” ■

62 63 Terry Leckie on the Are we creating public transport systems five years in the making transformative when these will be overtaken by a potential of precincts cheaper, more convenient, share- vehicle industry?

Services to urban precincts will each of those, if in some cases they are a new era may arrive with less cars. transport systems five years in the change dramatically in the next five producing resources, and in other cases Carparks could be repurposed for food making when these will be overtaken by years and we must be able to control they are drawing on resources?” production, work or community spaces. a cheaper, more convenient, share-vehicle resources generated within precincts For this to happen, a shift in design industry?” Leckie says the connection to provide while providing interconnection with thinking is necessary. To be habitable chilled water (supply and return), recycled To be relevant in the future, Leckie others, says Terry Leckie, managing space, clearances will need to be 2.4 to water (supply), and wastewater (return) believes new precinct developments director of Flow Systems. Urban three metres. is expensive. He questions whether must: precincts of the future would benefit we should be following the lead of “So don’t create your carparks at the from smart grid corridors to share • enable connection of precinct services Singapore’s Marina Bay, which has a lowest height because it restricts your each other’s resources. to, and disconnection from, all regional service duct so large “you could drive a ability to repurpose.” services truck through it”. Flow Systems owns and operates Central Likewise, the demand for public transport • create community structures that Park Water, the water utility of the award- “Could we put in a service duct that could may shrink. enable self-management and ownership winning development in Chippendale. take services of the future that we might • create shared multi-functional facilities It runs the world’s biggest membrane “Uber have just launched trials on share?” Leckie says. within precincts bioreactor recycled water facility in autonomous vehicles after already the basement of a residential building. Who would invest in these smart-grid dramatically changing the taxi industry,” • capture value creators within precincts The recycled water network harnesses corridors between precincts? Do they Leckie says. “Are we creating public rainwater, stormwater, irrigation and need to be as large as Marina Bay’s or sewage, and creates multiple water could they be enlarged over time? supplies to meet the community’s “And how do we future-proof them? requirements. Because the economies of having Leckie says Flow Systems is now interconnected precincts is the future.” installing connecting infrastructure across Broadway to UTS. Repurposing spaces “So we have three campuses – the third Sustainable precincts are going to go site is Sydney TAFE’s Ultimo College – through transition. With the shared separated by roads. How do we create car, electric car, driverless car and economic sharing models between more jobs available within precincts, 64 65 Transforming green space Community gardens and median-strip fruit and multi-utility services would be helpful, commercial and retail space.” trees are increasing in popularity. says Leckie. The winds may be changing. Flow The movement of greenery up walls and “How do you produce opportunities for “Even as a transition, there might be a Systems recently received a request for onto rooftops is providing flexibility around people to share or to sell? So markets or guide to legislation in each of the states information for alternative servicing for green space ratios. collaborative consumerism within that across multi-utility services provided Parramatta North. “We find that we are actually providing space,” Leckie says. within mixed-use precincts,” he says, “It is the first of a government entity to be more green space than there is land “[and] to then identify where there might Flow Systems is currently looking at food actually considering this in a precinct, so area!” Leckie says. be blockages that could be overcome or production in Parramatta. we must be making some progress.” ■ changed or legislation could be tweaked The trend may create more space for “It is about value adding so a bit like the to support it.” markets, shops, workplaces or simply High Line in New York – how it increased more nature. While it increases the Available space is often a barrier. “We the value of property beside it, created a demand on water, there is a lower show [developers] the space that is business which provided jobs, and utilised requirement for energy. required and they say, ‘That’s a lot of a structure that was derelict,” he says. We start to get economics when space for us to fit into our building’. So it is Communities may find themselves in “How do we capture that value? How do about identifying non-usable space.” we link energy and water together a situation where they are not just self- we make it economic and sustainable?” sufficient but resource positive. “They are Upfront capital is always handy. and we have precincts that consist producing food, water and energy that “We start to get economics when we of residential, commercial and they can export to communities around Barriers for Precinct Utility Systems link energy and water together and we them.” retail space. National legislation that supports precincts have precincts that consist of residential,

66 67 David Barnard on why Part of what has to happen over the next five-plus years is smarter looser regulation ways to manage the regulatory leads to brighter sparks environment.

Regulations need to be loosened for the ground-breaking movement that Adam and saying, ‘You don’t need to be so tight.’ David says changes at a federal and state bright sparks of innovation to flourish Beck, formerly of the Green Building Maybe we need to establish a different level would make it easier to develop in Sydney’s sustainability sector, David Council of Australia, is bringing to Australia framework that is a more outcome, sustainable precincts within Sydney. Barnard, AECOM technical director from Portland in the US. shared-value based approach.” “At a state level, we seriously need to Planning & Design says. EcoDistricts seeks to accelerate Innovation in Sydney’s sustainability think about the specific delivery groups According to Barnard, we are global leaders neighbourhood-scale urban regeneration sector is occurring, Barnard says, but we such as transport, roads, utilities – there in most areas of sustainability but a maze efforts in an equitable, resilient and have struggled with the measurement needs to be a different approach in how of rules and regulations at all levels of sustainable way. The movement capability. For example, putting a value on we actually bring all those guys together government limit what we can implement. recognises that it’s difficult to deploy enhancing walkability. to produce an efficient result. However, sustainable technologies and strategies good things are happening in some “Everybody believes walkability is a good “Where there are shining lights overseas, due to minimal public policy support, and areas and on some projects, and this idea. But until you can put a financial or it’s almost always because their regulatory seeks to remove such barriers. demonstrates an overall desire to build health metric to the value, only then can system is a bit looser, which allows little better and healthier places.” ■ bright sparks to occur because they are “How do you unwind challenges with you to go back to local authorities and say, not constrained,” Barnard says. utilities?” Barnard says. “Challenges with ‘If you actually allow us to build x y z, we decentralising systems so that they are can improve the lives of our residents or Our regulations maintain a benchmark actually local serving and better connected workers and that is going to reduce your minimum but don’t often allow us to with the populous? These are all things costs in this area.’” exceed them. the large developers would like to try and The GBCA have succeeded with do, but become massive road blocks along “In the United States, in some areas, commercial buildings because there is the journey. you will get particularly focused, driven clear financial value to the tenant. local authorities, and you will be able “We get situations, for example, like with “But it has been less understood when to do things you certainly can’t do here sewer systems; we just pump it out and mum and dad are buying a property or at the moment. So part of what has to off it goes, because it is just too hard a council is having to maintain an open happen over the next five-plus years is to do recycled systems, which we have space or piece of amenity – they are smarter ways to manage the regulatory been [capable of] doing for years. Sydney literally judging it on the basis of ‘what environment.” Water supports it but it is not consistent. is this going to cost me to maintain?’ So I think part of it is that regulatory Barnard believes Sydney should be Nothing at all to do with the inherent environment. It is pulling back a little bit embracing concepts from EcoDistricts, health benefits.” 68 69 “The idea of precinct infrastructure, decentralised infrastructure, that’s a big one – where waste is treated locally and various engineering systems can turn waste into energy,” he says. “Or instead of having garbage trucks drive around, Matt Plumbridge you can have pneumatic waste collection on bold ideas needed systems.” These automated systems transport waste at high speeds through underground for urban renewal pneumatic tubes to collection stations where it is compacted and sealed before being transported away for recycling or landfill. Cities in Spain, Korea and the Sydney office workers of the future for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi’s Department United Arab Emirates have implemented may be able to harvest their lunch off of Municipal Affairs, working to reduce the them, with reduced CO2 emissions the exterior walls of the building if the ecological footprint of the Emirate. from garbage trucks one of the main concept of productive facades gets off environmental benefits. Sydney needs to be bold when looking at the ground. its sustainable future and not be spooked UrbanGrowth’s new strategy also UrbanGrowth NSW’s senior manager – by novel concepts, Plumbridge says. focuses on inclusive and engaged sustainable development, Matt Plumbridge, communities, enduring local economy, For example, most Sydney apartments Sydney needs to be bold when says the edible vegetative facade is just connected neighbourhoods, sustainable could be $100,000 cheaper if they did not one idea the organisation is looking at built environment and culturally rich looking at its future and not be contain a car park. under Abundant Natural Environment, one environment. spooked by novel concepts. of eight key pillars of its new strategy, “If you go to any punter out there, they Connected neighbourhoods is about which is part of the Living Cities Index. would absolutely take the 100 grand to achieving a “finer urban grain”, to enable live in the place and not have the car, “Abundant natural environment includes walking and cycling, public transport and because they wouldn’t need a car because food production, so community gardens, or alternative forms of transport. Plumbridge says. “You look at district they’d have public transport or a car share the French are looking at vegetative facades, precinct infrastructure, managing your facility or adequate cycling infrastructure,” “We want seven-minute walking precincts which is pretty interesting,” Plumbridge says. waste, water, heating and cooling, energy, Plumbridge says. – seven minutes to get to anywhere is an “We are looking at the language of Central international best practice,” Plumbridge matching demand – and demand is going Park and growing that into something that “So that seems like a scary proposition but says. Digital connectivity is also important to be diminished because you are going is productive, not just good to look at. We we just have to be bold and actually look at to ensure people are enabled when they to have energy efficiency embedded in want to have flora and fauna integrated what people want these days. We have an need to be. there.” into our precincts – be that on rooftops, on arrogance to assume that everyone wants The goals for the built environment UrbanGrowth is conscious of not creating facades, or into the harbour waters – we what our generation wants. At the end of include low-carbon or carbon-neutral homogenous precincts that suit just one want to encourage nature back.” the day people want smaller places, they type of person. It seeks to highlight each don’t want the hassle of a car if they don’t developments made from energy-efficient As UrbanGrowth’s senior manager of community’s unique character. have to – if public transport is good enough and ecologically sustainable materials. It sustainable development, Plumbridge or there is a car share facility, they would looks at selecting appropriate materials “Central to Eveleigh or The Bays or works on major urban renewal projects be happy to take that.” with a high albedo, natural canopy cover Parramatta Road or Parramatta North or such as Central to Eveleigh, Green Park, and micro-climate engineering to mitigate Newcastle – each of them has their own The Bays Precinct and Parramatta Road. Plumbridge says technology is advancing heat island effect. identity and we need to draw that out and Prior to this role, he spent five years in sustainable trends in infrastructure in many “Essentially it is about resource efficiency,” celebrate it for what it is.” ■ Environment and Sustainability Planning parts of the world. 70 71 The state government is keen to work be a portal into a creative precinct. “So in precincts such as The Bays and Central with developers to capitalise on the instead of being stainless steel and pretty to Eveleigh has generated a much more creative and cultural characters of bland, it has artworks incorporated within holistic approach to planning. neighbourhoods in 20-minute cities the station. “When community consultation became to avoid “the cookie-cutter approach”, “Certainly that is a real trend mandatory for these major projects, Erin Flaherty, executive director at internationally… to actually think about a lot of the information coming out Infrastructure NSW, says. Cultural mapping leads into designing a station that reflects that resulted in a better understanding of She points to the example of Crossrail community and that links in with the next how people actually want to live in their sustainability and resilience but in London, “a world leader in the way so you get this journey through the city neighbourhood,” she says. linking all the different neighbourhoods.” it’s just a much more nuanced they are using a rail system to create “People want to walk, people want to live approach to development. sustainable and resilient precincts” Flaherty says Infrastructure NSW is in an environment where there is easy through neighbourhood cultural mapping. looking into cultural mapping in relation to access to food… more formal types of “Crossrail is being a place maker and light rail and rapid transit. entertainment. People really want to live where they work, where they play – that a shaper for a lot of very different “Cultural mapping leads into sustainability is really coming out very strongly.” neighbourhoods,” Flaherty says. “Cultural and resilience but it’s just a much more mapping was done around one of the nuanced approach to development. It’s The biggest barrier to the 20-minute city stations… and within a half a kilometre being much more tailored in your plans… is the distance people live from their radius there was something like 45 start- because you have an understanding of workplaces. up galleries. All of a sudden the neigh- what was there already.” bourhood had a very different flavour and “The challenge is now to start thinking the Crossrail people were able to say to that we don’t need to bring the entire developers, ‘Is that of interest to you?’” Living where we work and play western suburbs of Sydney into two or three CBDs – the Sydney CBD and According to Flaherty, community interest As a result, the station was designed to Macquarie Park,” she says.

Erin Flaherty on living where you play and learning to love density

72 73 We are on the cusp of quite a big change in the way Sydney’s transport will look and work and Learning to love density also what people actually expect Density is not necessarily bad, it just from their neighbourhoods. needs to be well managed, Flaherty says. However, the community also needs to understand density.

“We have to have planning for people who “It’s not having three-storey apartment want to work much closer to where they blocks next to what was an arts and live, so that’s changes in public transport, crafts-style post-WWII house,” Flaherty in more light rail; it is fixing up the existing says. “There are other ways to achieve transport system so we are linking home density and what the government is doing and work much more quickly. is clustering the density along existing transport links… around existing town “We are on the cusp of quite a big change centres.” in the way Sydney’s transport will look and work and also what people actually Density enables you to provide services expect from their neighbourhoods. There so people don’t have to drive, but you is a desire to move towards reshaping can’t do that if everybody lives on a the city… creating more resilient and quarter-acre block. sustainable outcomes.” Flaherty is excited about new For example, Sydney Metro Northwest developments, such as The Bays, which will feature driverless trains every four are achieving higher density. minutes during peak times, connecting “I see the city [centre] moving to the the hills area to Macquarie Park, west a bit,” she says. “The plan for The Chatswood and the CBD. Bays enables the city to grow in a way “That’s going to totally change the way that probably reflects where the greater people live and work. I think that the new- population is, which is to the west. There look Sydney is going to grow up around are a lot of challenges with The Bays those sorts of projects.” but that is why there has been so much consultation too, to bring the community The City of Sydney is embracing light along. rail as a catalyst for city transformation, Flaherty says. “Nobody wants the city just to keep going, being a megalopolis from “Certainly City of Sydney are leading Newcastle to Wollongong. That’s not a the charge, learning from global cities sustainable model.” ■ in relation to how transport modes and infrastructure can be catalysts for change.”

74 75 Sydney needs to take a holistic scores 98 out of 100 as residents don’t approach to improving density, require cars for daily errands. walkability and multiple modes Emery says UrbanGrowth’s proposed of transit such as light rail, bicycle major urban transformation projects infrastructure and ferry services, such as The Bays Precinct and Central to Jonathan Emery says. Jonathan Eveleigh are also great examples of the Emery on Getting around quickly and easily is 20-minute living model. imperative if we are to maintain our “People choose a neighbourhood or current status of being recognised as a location to live because it has what they top-10 most liveable city. taking a need to truly live before they choose an Carbon neutrality is achieved through 6000 “Liveability and quality of life are the key apartment or a house,” he says. square metres of onsite solar (enough to holistic metrics that will drive the success of cities power 137 homes) and a precinct district To get density right in Sydney, Emery in the 21st century,” Emery says. “It will says we need strong connections to thermal energy plant. The plant uses harbour approach be a key metric to aid cities in attracting transit, quality open space, excellence heat rejection, reducing water consumption talent and capital in the coming decades. in architectural design, an engaging by up to 100 million litres annually. “Changing the shape and density of our streetscape, dynamic retail offerings and “Barangaroo is the first project globally to city would support the existing transport rich diversity of uses including offices, retail, have the Climate Positive Road Map passed systems and improve walkability between residential, health/education and recreation. by the Clinton Climate Initiative,” Emery work and home.” “All of these are key elements in creating says. The site is also water positive thanks to an onsite recycled water plant, capable of Emery says getting the retail right, an inviting and unique place experience,” producing one million litres of water per day. and making it authentic, is imperative. he says. “Density without attention to a Otherwise people will get in their cars and quality of place is doomed to fail. There is also much to be learnt from drive further afield. Similarly, they need to “It is largely the failings of 20th-century Lendlease’s work at Victoria Harbour be able to access jobs, schools, healthcare planning approaches to density in many of in Melbourne. The Forte apartment services and recreational pursuits. the world’s cities that has given rise to the building, the world’s tallest timber residential building, and Library at the “What we do at Lendlease with our urban renaissance in urban regeneration we are Dock, Australia’s most sustainable civic regeneration projects is we not only think currently experiencing.” building and the first 6 star Green Star about the residential, commercial or It’s important not to take a mono-cultural Public Building (Design), both utilise cross- retail offers but we also focus on where approach. laminated timber (CLT) – the latest in people’s jobs are,” he says. sustainable materials. “We challenge ourselves to understand “We think of the amenity that needs to what is important to live in each part of “There is a drive in the property industry support the people who will live and work a city and create the right response for for safer, more sustainable and more there… where public transport is, where that project,” Emery says. “A rich diversity efficient forms of construction,” Emery the schools are and health services – we of building types and uses, coupled with says. “CLT can drive improvements in think about these things and we try to Density without attention to a excellent streetscape design, is essential each of these areas, while delivering a include them or make sure people know to creating great places.” high-quality product for the end user.” ■ quality of place is doomed to fail. how to get them – all within 20 minutes.” As Sydney looks forward to the next five- Jonathan Emery is managing director Lendlease’s Darling Square project is rated plus years, carbon-neutral projects such as urban regeneration, Lendlease. Paul as a “walker’s paradise” on Walkscore.com, Barangaroo, Australia’s first carbon-neutral Walker, head of investment, urban which rates any address in the US, Canada community, will provide both inspiration regeneration replaced Mr Emery on the and Australia on walkability to help people and lessons. night of the Surround Sound. “drive less and live more”. Darling Square 76 77 With smaller apartment sizes more of your life is going to be lived in Michelle Tabet on the need public in an individual sense but for innovative cities policies also in a physical sense.

Sydney needs innovative policy and have affordable housing targets. It doesn’t vertical and rooftop gardens, solar panels, regulation that creates markets for have sustainability targets embedded in it. trigeneration pipes and water tanks, Central sustainability products and services, So we end up doing that through industry Park’s repositioned urban living is “bringing says independent urban strategist leadership, which is happening.” understanding that is quite progressive”. Michelle Tabet. Australand’s (now Fraser’s Property Australia) “From a retail-positioning perspective it is “The current [federal and state] governments decision to commit to minimum 5 Star hard to beat,” Tabet says. Green Star – Design & As Built ratings for lack vision and courage in this space and As a land development purposely designed all its new industrial, commercial and retail every step taken forward is followed by a to help transition the manufacturing sector projects is a positive sign of growing industry couple of steps back,” she says. “Climate up the value chain, Tonsley Park has been leadership, according to Tabet. Energy- change policy is not even discussed, reinvented with “innovative strategies” and efficiency measures will include solar PV renewables are a massive missed “socially progressive infrastructure”, Tabet systems, geothermal heating and cooling, opportunity for Australia in terms of global says. The development is now uniquely LED lighting, as well as improved insulation, market leadership; the list goes on and on.” positioned to create high-value jobs in glazing and airconditioning systems. of our media we are also transposing onto For sustainability goals to become a reality research, education and clean technology. our cities so we are expecting our cities within Sydney, Tabet says cities need to “They are doing that because they think Global engineering and technology firm to be renewable, magazines, experiences, be on the agenda at a federal government there is a value proposition from the Siemens is the latest high-profile company festivals and events. So that’s a really, really level. market,” Tabet says. “There is a strategic to open its doors at the site. positioning for their brand to be doing that difficult thing to provide for even though a With access to information and “Basically looking at the dynamic of cities but none of it is really mandated or led by lot of people try,” she says. as a topic of policy making and a focus for entertainment available at an ever- government, so it is interesting.” “But I think property developers are investment, that is not happening,” Tabet increasing pace, our expectation of cities is understanding that people see beyond says. “So firstly I think it is a leadership A consultant on urban development sites, changing, Tabet says. This is something we the actual features and characteristics of thing.” rather than greenfield projects on the have to plan for in the future. city fringe, Tabet says excellent examples an apartment, unit or piece of real estate “With smaller apartment sizes more of The system also needs to change. of innovation include Central Park in that they can own, that they are looking your life is going to be lived in public in for a story that captures them. I know that “The planning system in NSW is really Chippendale and Tonsley Park in South an individual sense but also in a physical sounds really fluffy, but people connect difficult to navigate; not only is it a Australia. sense,” she says. with places emotionally. And I think there is massive cost to development, it is also With its spacious urban park, and “In a lot of ways, the expectations we have some growing understanding of that.” ■ not progressive,” Tabet says. “It doesn’t sustainable design features such as 78 79 My number one issue for the david rolls on country, and particular for Sydney, is affordability. At the the importance moment we are heading off on of scalability a trajectory that is unprecedented in any generation.

For sustainable precincts to be It’s complicated the square to ensure that new precincts commonplace across Sydney, we won’t be redundant in five years as need affordable and small-scale According to David, most of Mirvac’s needs evolve. solutions so that smaller developers projects have trigeneration or co- “The rate of change of technology in the will be incentivised to adopt them, generation systems, but regulations next five years, if it is anything like the last head of cities and urban renewal at around onsite utility production are five years, will be pretty mind blowing,” he Mirvac David Rolls says. hampering efforts. says. “And coming from a developer/land- “There is only one Barangaroo that’s “We are working with the utilities; the owner perspective, we need to put in the happened in Sydney in 20 years,” he says. issue is the ability to distribute those infrastructure now in the buildings to allow “I love the project, obviously, but the things – water and power – because that technology to work, otherwise you run bell curve of what goes on is very much you then get deemed a producer, and the risk of the precincts and the projects on a local scale. The big projects will be the licensing to be deemed a producer we do being redundant a lot quicker.” is pretty much impossible to get around showcases, and that will help fund certain Car share is getting more prevalent, and to actually do anything outside of your technologies that come into the market, the driverless car is on the horizon. but it has to be driven down to a local boundary. “Uber has put in an order for some scale for it to really work.” “The rate of change in utility organisations massive amount of Google cars, so they is much slower than any other part of Size should not impact sustainability can run people around cities, not too far the industry because of legislation,” he measures such as water recycling and off, without even needing drivers,” Rolls says. “Their ability to do things differently solar power generation. says. “How is that going to work? That is is a lot less because they are a lot more pretty disruptive!” “The problem with urban renewal is that constrained. So that is going to be the you have to deal with each project on its big challenge.” merits, complexities, demographics and Inspiring precincts scale. I think to get too caught up in how big you need to be viable will limit your Keeping up with change Green Square is a Mirvac project that is creating change, Rolls says. ability to create solutions that deal with David says developers and architects, the different scales,” David says. or “creators”, need to think outside “That is really a three-way partnership

80 81 between the City [of Sydney], UrbanGrowth and Mirvac, which is pretty unique,” he says. “Two levels of government and the private sector so from a barrier to entry that is a ‘biggy’ The developers who take a precinct and that’s going to be an absolute game view are the ones who are really changer for that part of town.” changing the game. Darling Quarter, which transformed the old Sega site into a mecca for all ages, is also a favourite. “The big opportunities really have to “You go there on weekends now and you be in the government land… precinct- just can’t move – the diversity of people based projects and it’s the mandate of who are using that space, from kids to the people like UrbanGrowth, Places Victoria, older generation, to young adults, to the [Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority] diversity of people’s ethnic background, in Perth, that’s where the big game it’s just awesome,” he says. changers, pilot projects and exemplars are going to come from.”

Leadership is vital Similarly, we need leadership to make The big developers are influencing headway with affordable housing. Sydney’s sustainability journey, Rolls says. “My number one issue for the country, “The developers who take a precinct and particular for Sydney, is affordability,” view are the ones who are really changing Rolls says. “At the moment we are the game. You can’t expect the smaller- heading off on a trajectory that is scale bell-curve market developers to unprecedented in any generation.” be able to influence outside of their He says his personal view is that local boundary because they just don’t have the or state governments should have a resources.” mandated affordable principles like Market forces are a factor impeding London, where 35 per cent must be sustainable precincts, Rolls says. affordable housing.

“Private-sector vendors are getting some “That will start changing the game and pretty competitive pricing from off-shores, therefore we get the diversity back into which means that your ability to do things our ownership profile.” ■ differently or invest in stuff that doesn’t give you a return is very difficult,” he says.

82 83 Constructing a light rail system to “It needs a lot of water and we thought, encourage innovation, and the system move residents, workers and tourists ‘Well that is good because we could have strangles innovation, I think,” she says. between Bondi Junction and Bondi recycled water, so how would we do “We need to be more outcome-focused. Beach by 2020 is crucial, says Waverley that?’ And then we thought, ‘If we were If our dream is to build a sustainable Bondi mayor Sally Betts. to dig up our roads, perhaps we should Junction, and if someone has an idea look at how we collect our garbage…’” “We know in Waverley we are definitely at that their building would reduce garbage, Sally Betts a tipping point,” she says. “We can’t have The council is now researching pneumatic reduce greenhouse gases and use less more buses. People use them, people co-mingled garbage/recycling collection potable water, then we should be flexible love them. The problem with buses is we systems to reduce the number of trucks enough to embrace their ideas. on Bondi roaming the streets. can’t actually put more buses on the road. “If you could make your [Development Junction’s We have to go to light rail.” “Now we are talking to anybody that may Control Plans] and your [Local Waverley Council has been talking to be building in Bondi Junction, explaining Environment Plans] and your regulations the state government about a light rail the different ways of collecting garbage, really flexible to encourage innovation, I green and they are pretty excited about it,” think you would have an amazing result.” connection for four years. While there is no funding yet, the council has done all Betts says. “If we have a simple solution, potential the technical specifications and a route it would save those businesses money, Resilient for the future has been outlined. “We are actually on the it would save us from having bins NSW transport map,” Betts says. everywhere – so it would be a cleaner Betts says use of potable water will and tidier place – and we would probably be a big issue in the coming years Along with providing jobs closer to have as good or better reduction of waste as communities address resilience where people live so they don’t have to to landfill.” and climate change. Waverley has commute, providing light rail is critical, undertaken stormwater harvesting in Waverley has recruited key stakeholders according to Betts. “Certainly from Bondi Bronte and Bondi and is now installing a such as RMS, Sydney Buses, Sydney Rail, Junction to Bondi Beach, which is our stormwater recycling system in Tamarama NSW Police and local business to help it main corridor, but hopefully in the future Park. Waverley is one of six councils realise its long-term vision. [we can] even expand that to other areas.” cooperating to establish a regional Light rail is just one component on “We’ve made them partners so they garbage facilitation plant, and is also Waverley’s push to transform Bondi are serious stakeholders in the future working with Woollahra and Randwick Junction into a sustainable precinct. development of Bondi Junction,” Betts says. to help expand environmental targets to cover not just council properties but the Leighton Properties has taken the “Rather than concentrate on a specific whole community. problem, which could be greenhouse council’s vision on board and the result gas emissions … we thought we should will be Bondi Junction’s first 6 Star Green “We are all retrofitting our buildings, we look at an area in total,” she says. “We Star building. are all collecting stormwater… Our surf clubs don’t have to use potable water to have the vision that we could make Bondi “That is incredibly exciting for us,” Betts wash their surfboards. It’s all small things Junction a really sustainable, liveable little says. “And it would not have happened but if everybody did that it would be city and, when we succeed with that, had they not agreed to work with us, fantastic! We have the vision that we could the model could then be transported to had they not agreed to sit down and bigger places.” understand our vision for the junction.” “We are putting a whole lot of strategies make Bondi Junction a really in place to meet really stringent targets The council and Westfield Bondi Junction Betts says regulations at all levels of and, if every council did what we were sustainable, liveable little city, and generate the most greenhouse gases in government need more flexibility. Waverley and so the two organisations doing, I think Australia would be in a pretty the model could be transported to “You have to get so many approvals for are looking at different solutions such as good place as far as climate change is so many things so it doesn’t actually bigger places. trigeneration. concerned.” ■

84 85 THE FIFTH ESTATE'S sydney SURROUND SOUND

NOVEMBER 2015 © 2015 The Fifth Estate www.thefifthestate.com.au PO Box 563 Glebe NSW 2037 Sydney Australia

86