Planning Matters SPRING SUMMER 2012 Welcome to edition No.10 of ‘Planning Matters’, the newsletter produced by URPS twice a year. We hope you enjoy some highlights of the work we’ve been doing with many of you over recent months. You can also access electronic copies of this and all our past newsletters on our website at www.urps.com.au inside Engaging communities about adapting to a changing climate • Engaging communities about adapting to a changing climate Climate change will impact upon just about every area of our lives, from the way we build our homes to the sorts of activities we do in our spare time, as well as the way we respond to disasters such as storms and bushfires. • Engaging young people to influence strategy development Such direct impact on people’s lives emphasises the importance of engaging the community in climate change • Streaky Bay – Local Knowlegde, adaptation. However, this is often difficult because climate science is highly technical, some people remain Expert Validation, Shared Purpose sceptical and the impacts are often long-term. • Gerald Ward joins URPS In his key note speech at the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility (NCCARF) conference in • Helping deliver affordable Melbourne earlier this year, leading climate scientist Professor David Karoly expressed an increasingly commonly housing “on the ground” held view when he said: • Primary Industry remaining in the engine room of SA’s economy “Twenty years ago, we thought that if we got the science right and told people loudly enough, that would be • Learning from recent ERD Court enough. But it wasn’t. We’re learning that actually, it is people’s values and attitudes … that shape responses. decisions We would have done things differently if we had realised that … It will be participation that makes us resilient • Church on main street – more and adaptive.” than a Sunday Service While climate scientists do incredibly important work, blasting scientific data through a megaphone has had limited impact at a local level and it is time for a new approach that better engages the community. This new approach puts people firmly at the centre of planning and decision making processes. We have recently completed the Resilient Coastal Communities: Planning for Sea Level Rise on the Upper Spencer Gulf Project for the Eyre Peninsula Climate Change Sector Agreement Committee. As well as building knowledge about local climate change impacts, the project sought to better engage the community on climate change issues. This is in contrast to much of the climate change work undertaken to date that has provided leadership and high- level strategic direction, but not necessarily guidance to the broader community in terms of how to respond to climate change. Working with ‘project champions’ proved to be an effective way We found a particularly effective process was to work with “project champions”. The project champions were to start the conversation about diverse climate change impacts identified on the basis of being well-known, respected and connected into the broader community. They were also representative of key sectors such as agriculture, tourism, health and wellbeing, emergency services and manufacturing. This approach allowed us to engage, exchange information and build capacity in a more focused and thorough manner with a select group of people. This meant that, for example, we could explore the implications of the sea level rise and storm surge mapping for each sector and consider potential adaptation options, which could then be communicated with the relevant sector by the project champion. The benefit of this approach is that the project champions can carry on the climate change conversation with their respective communities long after the project is complete, empowering others to be involved in decisions about adapting to a changing climate. 1 www.urps.com.au Engaging young people to influence strategy development As citizens, children and young people have the right to be engaged in decision making that affects them. The City of Norwood Payneham & St Peters recently recognised this as part of its Strategic Plan review. Carefully targeted engagement with young people leads to With assistance from WAX Design, URPS developed a ‘speak out’ style engagement event for school students using meaningful input into plans special playing cards that provided a range of images relating to the themes contained in Council’s CityPlan 2030. These and projects images provided a focal point for discussion about the key elements of the Strategic Plan and helped Council staff acting as facilitators to ‘deconstruct’ some of the more complex concepts like social equity and economic prosperity. Mayor Robert Bria was present throughout the event and commented that: “the day emphasised the capacity of young people to participate in these broader planning processes and contribute their view of the world. In expressing their views about the environment, open space, culture and housing density, they displayed a level of insight and maturity well beyond their years”. This view was shared by a number of the Council staff present at the workshop, who noted the depth of the insights generated by the young people. This demonstrated to us not only the value of engaging with young people as citizens, but also the way in which a carefully targeted engagement process can lead to meaningful input. Please contact Nicole Halsey if you’d like assistance in crafting an engagement process with young people to help shape the direction of your plan or project. Streaky Bay – Local Knowledge, Expert Validation, Shared Purpose We often approach our projects by undertaking desktop research and/or site analysis, and then consulting with the community and other stakeholders to test what we have learnt. This approach was reversed for key elements of the Streaky Bay Management Plan given the extensive work already undertaken by local conservation groups such as the Friends of Sceale Bay and the Friends of Streaky Bay Parks. Working in collaboration with WAX Design and Suter Planners, URPS took carriage of the Coastal Plan component of the Streaky Bay Management Plan, providing a framework for identifying and protecting sensitive natural areas and ecosystems along the coast. In developing the Coastal Plan, our first step was to listen to the local conservation groups and explore the findings of their research – regardless of whether these had been formally documented or not. The generosity of these groups in sharing their knowledge earned the respect of the team and of the specialists in government agencies with whom we tested what we had learnt. For example, the views of coastal raptor expert, Terry Dennis, confirmed the importance of Cape Bauer, Cape Blanche and Cape Radstock as nesting places for the White Bellied Sea Eagle, Osprey and other migratory seabirds. The engagement model of ‘respecting, validating and publishing’ the excellent primary research of the Friends of Sceale Bay and the Friends of Streaky Bay Parks forged new partnerships between these groups and the District Council of Streaky Bay and State Government around coastal management, strengthening the final directions of the Management Plan. Planning Matters 2 SPRING SUMMER 2012 Gerald Ward joins URPS Experienced development manager Gerald Ward has joined URPS as an Associate Director. Gerald’s appointment adds a strong development and market dimension to the URPS team, building on the already considerable breadth of what URPS does for its clients. Gerald, a qualified town planner with more than 20 years’ experience in the property industry, has worked with some of Australia’s largest developers, including Delfin, Mirvac and Stockland. He also has significant experience with the retirement living sector where he most recently was the General Manager, Housing and Property for the ACH Group. Gerald’s appointment gives URPS increased capacity to help shape great communities. We can ‘close the loop’ from town planning to project delivery with advice and analysis on market depth and demand, product mix and economic feasibility for the best use of any given site or locale. This new service will, of course, come with the balance, rigour, collaboration and independence that our clients expect of the URPS team. Helping deliver affordable housing “on the ground” In Planning Matters, we have previously written about the challenges of providing affordable housing and the need for a variety of policy responses, partnerships and targeted investment. We have been putting some of these ideas to the test over the past two years in assisting the City of Salisbury to leverage its assets to deliver “bricks and mortar” affordable housing outcomes. In 2010, we helped Council to secure $1.5 million in Federal Funding to create 150 affordable house and land packages in Paralowie. When these are introduced to the local housing market later this year, the entry-point will be $10,000 lower than ordinarily would be the case, thanks to the Federal Government Funding. In addition, 15% of the dwellings will meet the State’s affordable housing criteria and will be offered to the market using Council’s and the State’s “Shared Appreciation Loan Scheme”, which Council piloted through the award-winning Brahma Green development. Council is working with HomeStart Finance and Habitat for Humanity (SA Australia) to ensure the provision of housing for the target groups. The development will also A variety of policy, feature some environmental features such