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Parramatta Urban Designer named Young Planner of the Year

Parramatta City Council’s Urban Designer Adrian Bonanni was last night named Young Planner of the Year at the Planning Institute of ’s NSW Awards for Excellence.

Adrian has prepared planning and urban design strategies and guidelines for key Parramatta City Centre projects; undertaken the management and promotion of Council’s first Design Excellence Competitions in response to the new city centre planning controls; and provides ongoing urban design advice for significant development applications in the Parramatta area.

“We congratulate this young member of our profession, applaud his commitment and his initiative”, said the Institute’s NSW President Julie Bindon. “Parramatta is experiencing significant growth and redevelopment and the work Adrian has been doing in providing design advice and community engagement is significant.”

The Planning Institute of Australia Annual Awards for Excellence acknowledge excellence, innovation and achievement in urban and regional planning.

The overall winner on the evening was Sovereign Hills, Port Macquarie, a sustainable new town on the NSW mid-North Coast. Sovereign Hills demonstrates best practice urban design and is a model urban release area project for others to follow. The Project also took the category Award for Urban design-plans & ideas .

In congratulating the Urban Futures Group and Port Macquarie-Hastings Council, PIA NSW President Julie Bindon said this project was a model of private sector and local government cooperation and partnership, achieving a significant town planning outcome.

Port Macquarie-Hastings Council also took the Urban Planning Achievement award for the Planned New Town - Port Macquarie. The judges considered this nomination to be an outstanding example of a sustained planning initiative by local government over a long period of time. Planning for the Thrumster new town has been a major undertaking for Council over the past five years. The project also demonstrates that a visionary Council in partnership with a visionary developer can achieve high quality sustainable outcomes.

The nominations and the awards this year demonstrate the good work being done by the planning profession across . It is particularly pleasing to see local councils producing innovative and sustainable projects.

The annual Awards celebrate planning achievements across 11 categories and this year attracted a number of strong contenders.

“At a time when the planning system is undergoing change and the planning profession continues to be under pressure, it is vitally important that we recognise our achievements and support the talented and hard-working planning professionals”, Ms Bindon said.

Other local council winners on the evening were:

o City of Council for Sustainable Sydney 2030, and the late Night Trading DCP 2007 o Willoughby City Council for Chatswood Civic Centre o Randwick City Council for Design ideas for rejuvenating residential flat buildings and for their Affordable Housing Strategy o for Waverley Affordable Housing Programme o Parramatta Council urban designer Adrian Bonanni was named Young Planner of the Year

There were strong contenders in other categories, recognising excellence in media, scholarship and research, in rural and regional planning, heritage and transport.

A full list of awardees follows.

For further information on the winners, or media comment, please contact: Julie Bindon, NSW President Robyn Vincin, NSW State Manager 0412 163 305

PLANNING INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA. NSW DIVISION 2008 AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE IN PLANNING LIST OF WINNERS

President’s Award Award : Urban Futures Group for Sovereign Hills Project Pty Ltd and Port Macquarie-Hastings Council For: Sovereign Hills, Port Macquarie This development area demonstrates a number of innovative urban design and development initiatives and demonstrates best practice urban design. It is a model urban release area project for others to follow. The ‘sustainable urbanism’ approach to the Sovereign Hills project coalesces best practice urban design with emerging best practice sustainable development, whilst innovating in the emergence of a ‘creative and connected’ community.

Category: Environmental Planning or Conservation Commendation : Randwick City Council For: Design Ideas for Rejuvenating Residential Flat Buildings Summary: The publication provides a showcase of design principles and renovation design concepts to promote, inspire and guide the refurbishment of older residential flat buildings built between the 1950s and 1970s.

Category: Heritage Planning Award: Context Pty Ltd For: The Meeting Place Precinct (Botany Bay National Park, Kurnell) Conservation Management Plan Summary: the Meeting Place Precinct Conservation Plan creates an innovative and effective strategic plan designed to guide good decision-making for this outstanding heritage place.

Category: Media- Public/ Professional Award: Clarendon Residential Group For: Your Home Buyer’s Guide Summary: The guide aims to educate project home buyers about sustainability and planning issues. It focuses on the house buying process and takes home buyers through the decisions they will need to make. The development of the guide has been a collaborative effort initiated by Clarendon and supported by government agencies and universities.

Commendation: SGS Economics and Planning For: Urbecon – the SGS Newsletter Urbecon is Australia’s longest running chronicle on urban policy containing short, accessible articles on urban economics, economic development and strategic planning issues. SGS produces Urbecon to raise public and professional awareness and debate about urban and regional economics and planning issues while keeping in touch with colleagues and clients.

Category: Rural & Regional Planning Award: NSW Department of Water and Energy, Department of Environment and Climate Change & Department of Primary Industries (Fisheries) For: Using Natural Resource Information in Rural Planning Summary: This project has delivered practical tools and data critically needed by local authorities for natural resource management, strategic planning, the preparation of local planning instruments.

Category: Social & Community- Based Planning Award: Landcom For: Landcom Welcome Program Summary: The Program fosters a sense of belonging for new residents, promoting a culture of welcome and hospitality and helping new residents forge networks. It currently operates in seven communities across Sydney and on the South Coast. Four new programs are planned for 2009.

Commendation : Randwick City Council For: Affordable Housing Strategy & Rental Housing Programme Summary: This strategy and action plan, incorporating the Rental Housing Programme, gives Council a practical framework for conducting its role as an active supporter of affordable housing in the City of Randwick.

Commendation : Waverley Council For: Waverley Affordable Housing Program Summary: This program is a social initiative seeking to maintain social diversity and improve sustainability through the promotion of equitable, secure and accessible affordable housing and rental accommodation with the Waverley LGA.

Category: Student Project – secondary or tertiary Award : Kate O’Donnell For: In the shadow of power: planning, politics & the Kurnell Peninsula Summary: This thesis examines the relationship, power struggles and communicative processes that exist between state and local government in NSW, using the Kurnell Peninsula as a case study.

Category: Transport Planning Award: Sydney Ports Authority For: Port Freight Logistics Plan Summary: The Port Freight Logistics Plan represents a framework by Sydney Ports Corporation for improvements to landside logistics to meet the ongoing challenges of managing activities at Port Botany in a period of unprecedented growth. The Plan proposes initiatives to maximise rail use and to minimise the impact of truck movements generated by the Port.

Category: Planning Scholarship, Research or Teaching Award: Metropolis Congress For: Metropolis Congress 2008 Research Publications Summary: The first two research publications released to coincide with the Metropolis Congress 2008 are innovative in addressing the concept of cities, including Australia’s global cities intersecting across the globe. The topics addressed in these books are aimed to trigger fruitful debates in government, the private sector and the general public regarding how to create better strategies for the future of Australian cities.

Commendation : Robert Freestone and Bronwyn Hanna For: Florence Taylor’s Hats: designing, building & editing Sydney Summary: Florence Taylor’s Hats is the first critical biography of the remarkable Florence Taylor (1879-1969) and analyses her contributions to the worlds of planning, design, publishing and women’s rights in Sydney.

Category: Urban Design – Plans and Ideas Award: Urban Futures Group for Sovereign Hills Project Pty Ltd and Port Macquarie-Hastings Council For: Sovereign Hills, Port Macquarie Summary: This development area demonstrates a number of innovative urban design and development initiatives and demonstrates best practice urban design. It is a model urban release area project for others to follow. The ‘sustainable urbanism’ approach to the Sovereign Hills project coalesces best practice urban design with emerging best practice sustainable development, whilst innovating in the emergence of a ‘creative and connected’ community.

Commendation: HBO + EMTB Urban and Landscape Design For: Pacific Highway upgrade: Brunswick to Yelgen Summary: This project formed part of the NSW State Government’s and Federal Government’s 10 year commitment to upgrading the Pacific Highway. This is a unique section of great natural beauty and high ecological value which has become a major tourist, transport and freight route. The purpose designed serpentine pedestrian bridge at Billinudgel now provides an iconic and identifiable artefact providing landmark recognition for the highway and a practical community asset. Landscape design features a number of significant elements which ensure the sustainability of the environment.

Category: Urban Planning Achievement Award: Port Macquarie-Hastings Council For: Planned New Town – Port Macquarie Summary: Port Macquarie-Hastings Council has embarked on a visionary approach to establish a sustainable new town at Thrumster, which will satisfy the living, working, social and recreational needs of a new community of 10,000 people.

Award: Council For: Sustainable Sydney 2030 Summary: Sustainable Sydney 2030 is the City of Sydney’s vision for growth and development and provides ‘step change’ progressions toward a more sustainable future while protecting and preserving the aspects of the City that are much loved and which underpin its potential. The vision offers truly integrated solutions drawn from leading experts across urban policy and management and a comprehensive consultation process.

Commendation : Willoughby City Council For: Chatswood Civic Place Summary: The vision for Civic Place is to make Chatswood one of the great cities in Australia – a model for civic development planned, designed and constructed by local government, with a sense of place that people will enjoy, talk about and come back to.

Commendation: City of Sydney Council For: Late Night Trading Premises Development Control Plan 2007 Summary: The DCP is designed to balance the important role that late night trading premises play in Sydney’s economic and social life with the rights of residents to live in safe and pleasant neighbourhoods. The policy is the outcome of extended consultation with residents, community groups and key stakeholders such as the NSW Police and the Australian Hotels Association.

Commendation: Landcom For: The Landcom Guidelines Summary: The Landcom guidelines attempt to provide direction on some of the key ingredients that go into the making of great places. The set includes guidelines on new homes, the public domain, and community and cultural facilities.

Young Planner of the Year Awarded to: Adrian Bonanni, Urban Designer, Parramatta City Council Summary: Over the last year as an Urban Designer with Parramatta City Council Adrian Bonanni has prepared planning/ urban design strategies and guidelines for key city centre projects; undertaken management and promotion of Council’s first Design Excellence Competitions in response to the new city centre planning controls; and provides urban design advice for significant development applications and leads the planning/ design approach for key public domain projects.