Swans Victory Parade pics

I have attended many welcome home and celebration parades at the Town Hall. But in that time today's Swans Victory parade had the highest levels of enthusiasm and passion I have witnessed - but I may be biased. Here's a few pics and apologies to non sporty readers. Back to normal next week.

Swans sky writing & Town Hall crowds

Asking for tips while young Richard looks on. Councillors (L - R) Tony Pooley, Verity Firth & John McInerney

Below left - The premier said 'This photo will not do Shayne's political career any good'.

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And the last picture above.

City of Cyclists debates Congestion Tax as it struggles with Traffic Grid-Lock

World wide the debate continues about congestion taxes or road fees as they are called in Copenhagen. In Sydney we could call them road tolls as you can argue that they already exist- the only problem has been that the new Cross City Tunnel with its expensive tolls has forced more traffic than planned to divert through the maze of surface roads with accompanying road changes and traffic snarls. William and Park streets in the CBD are now bumper to bumper car parks most days. However, on a recent lecture in Sydney Dr. Enrique Penalosa, Former Mayor of Bogota Colombia, advised us that traffic jams are the environmentalists and new urbanists' good friend as frustrated private vehicle drivers abandoned short car trips in favour of alternate transport modes such as walking, cycling and public transport. Increased patronage for alternate transport force governments and private sector providers to upgrade services and infrastructure to meet the growing demand and raised expectations of the new consumers. The irony is that the CCT and increased petrol prices are already forcing a rethink on transport usage in Sydney. The figures are showing a increase in patronage of rail and bus services in the inner city. Reminds me again that we had to have a 'petrol summit' focused on reducing the price of petrol and not a summit to decrease dependency on petrol in our city (see my earlier blog on the petrol summit).

On a related thought - was I dreaming when late on Tuesday night I heard US President George Bush ask people to think twice before making a car trip to help conserve petrol stocks? But then the White House issued a clarifying statement a few hours later saying the President still firmly believes that using a private motor car is a fundamental freedom and right to all Americans.

Copenhageners ready to pay to drive As traffic congestion grows in the capital city, Copenhageners warm to the idea of paying road fees


Jan JÃrgensen / Scanpix Denmark

Heavy traffic in Copenhagen down town

With local residents purchasing more cars and commuters adding to the congestion, road fees might have a future in Copenhagen.
Bumper to bumper traffic in many parts of the city led six out of ten residents to support the idea of road fees in a survey conducted by Epinion for national public service station DR.
Motorists were somewhat more reserved in support of the idea, but 40 percent were nevertheless positive to the idea of road pricing. The fact that even motorists did not completely reject the idea of road fees could be attributed to their recognition that cars have a negative impact on the environment, according to Per Homann Jespersen, a traffic researcher at Roskilde University.
'Nobody is a motorist all the time, so even though people have a car in Copenhagen, they still want a good urban environment,' said Jespersen.
Local residents are behind the wheel in 80 percent of the trips made in the capital.
A majority of city councillors in Copenhagen are prepared to institute road fees, but the Liberal-Conservative state government and its support party, the Danish People's Party, are opposed to legislation that would open the door for road fees.

Transport Politics - Right V Left?

Regular eCouncillor readers know that I am no great fan of the Lord Mayor nor she a fan of mine. But I will give fair credit when appropriate. This is one of those moments. I am a strong transport reform advocate acknowledging that if we don't willingly reform our city transport systems and the active transport mix, it will eventually be forced upon us by the market. Right wing supporters may take a deep breath and argue that eCouncillor is yet again advocating regulations. Governments either lead transport reforms or the market will force it upon us much more painfully and perhaps after we reach the point of no return regarding environmental damage. The market I refer to is the rising costs of fuel and real environmental impacts of spiralling private vehicle ownership. The City of Sydney is approaching a major transport crisis. Investment by Labor in public transport has all but stalled, rail is unreliable and aging and buses continue to run later and later in aging buses. Meanwhile road grid lock continues as motorists avoid the excessive tollway systems. The City has conducted sound research on a new Light Rail system (read it here) and I am a full supporter of that proposal.
Clover Moore issued the release below and I couldn't agree more:

Sydney's car reliance reaches the end of the road
26 September 2005
Lord Mayor, Clover Moore MP today said: "People have had enough of traffic congestion and high petrol prices. We've become too car-dependent - and we're now paying the price. Motorists are being held hostage by high petrol prices and toll roads, because they just don't have any real alternatives".
"Sydney is a world class city and we need a world class transport system. Building more toll-roads is not the answer to Sydney's transport problems. It's time to invest in a major upgrade of our entire transport system.
"All the major cities overseas are seeing a revival of public transport and major re-investment in rail and light rail - even in the car-dependent US! The overseas experience shows that people will happily shift from cars to public transport if it is convenient, comfortable and fast. The potential economic, social and environmental benefits are enormous.
"Sydney urgently needs a range of new transport solutions to move people around far more quickly and efficiently - an integrated network of rail, light rail, buses and cycleways."

MEDIA RELEASE ENDS

Meanwhile the left and right continued to bait each other over 4X4 vehicles. From the Sydney Morning Herald today and emailed around the city by the Pedestrian Council and others with a sense of self justification that played yet again into the divisive agenda on both sides of the argument.

They're big, aggressive beasts - and that's just the drivers

By Damien MurphySeptember 27, 2005

No contest Â… Mosman mother of three Chris Rooney with son Jack, 4, in their BMW X5. Ms Rooney says she chooses to drive a 4WD because she believes it's the safest option for her family.Photo: Steven Siewert
The apparent victory of the giant four-wheel-drive in the urban jungle has prompted much road outrage, but now a profile of city off-roader owners confirms many prejudices, revealing them as aggressive, obese people who dislike gays and Aborigines.
And that's just the men.
The Australia Institute study found women who own luxury 4WDs were markedly different from the 40-to-50-year-old blokes: They're younger, wealthier and, while they worry about weight (their own), they couldn't care less about conspicuous consumption.
"People say, what about the environment?" declared Mosman mother of three, Chris Rooney, who drove a Range Rover for years but has swapped to a BMW X5. "For me, my children's safety is more important." Read more here.

And so 'shock and horror' the right (or right of me anyway) take the bait or throw more bait in fact and we get high profile Australian media commentator and blogger Tim Blair with more provocation against the left anti-car movement. The tit-for-tat polarisation of the issue continues and both sides are to blame.

Tim Blair WHEEL GOOD RESEARCH
Own a 4WD? You a bad person:

A new study has found that city owners of large four-wheel-drive vehicles are less community minded than other drivers, less charitable, more likely to be homophobic and have a low opinion of indigenous culture.The study, crafted by the leftoid Australia Institute, ...... In related news, 100% of Australia Institute studies are composed by idiots. Read more here.

More level heads need to prevail. The concept that vehicle ownership denotes some philosophical political divide is a false, negative and dangerous development (see my blog earlier on this issue here) as potentially destructive and disproportionate in influence as the NRA in USA politics. Vested interests in toll ways, fuel, car sales and advertising related revenues are gaining a serious political foothold across the western world. Not a healthy outcome for a sustainable transport future.

Swans Win! Now Sydney Victory Parade!!

Click on Swans club song to hear it played loud.

Congratulations Swans!

and a great history.

Sydney Swans- A Brief History Australia’s own code of football was played by clubs in South Melbourne and Albert Park as early as 1862, but it was June 1874 when the Red and White received its birthright. That Friday evening in the Temperance Hall, Napier Street, Emerald Hill, a group met to form a football club and four weeks later, on July 15th it was named the South Melbourne Football Club. Read more here.

Town Hall goes red & white

Cheer, cheer the red and the white,

Honour the name by day and by night,

Lift that noble banner high,

Shake down the thunder from the sky

Whether the odds be great or small,

Swans will go in and win overall

While her loyal sons are marching

Onwards to victory.

Opening Night of Fiddler on the Roof

eCouncillor grew up in outer-western Sydney (not Dubbo as some have assumed) and attended four different state schools. Far western Sydney back in the 70's and 80's was a relatively sheltered backwater for cultural diversity. My schools were largely comprised of Anglo-European children. I remember just a few new immigrants kids but I never knowingly came by any Jewish students. Other than media coverage of Israel issues and lessons on WW2, I had little understanding of the complex culture and rich history of Judaism. That all changed when I went to Macquarie University and met a guy who turned out to be Jewish and invited me to his family home in Bellevue Hill for their Sabbath dinner. It was all very new to me and I still remember walking along the streets seeing as I passed windows, the various small families gathered around the table with the candles burning. It had made a lasting impression on me and an interest in exploring the story of Judaism.

That introduction by way of saying that it was not until 5 years ago that I was introduced to the film Fiddler on the Roof which to that point I had mistakenly thought was a kids musical (as the Sound of Music will always remain!). Last night I was honoured to represent Council at the opening night of Fiddler on the Roof at the Capitol Theatre. Opening night for any production is always a special occasion as the theatre crowd vie for attention and the cast put in an almighty effort for the audience and reviewers.

I can thoroughly recommend the show to any eCouncillor readers. Of course Topol (pictured) is the show stealer. He has been doing this production for decades and plays the role of Tevye (the father and narrator) in the film. Other familiar faces (just discernible through extensive costume and makeup) were Maggie Kirkpatrick (as the matchmaker) and Barry Crocker (as the wealthy butcher). The large cast of 39 all standout with robust singing and extravagant dance. The opening night crowd cheered and clapped throughout the production (wouldn't do at the Opera - I know) and much of the crowd gave a standing ovation. Well worth taking a night off.


The Sydney Morning Herald reviewed Topol's dedication to this play in August:
Typecast and loving it - fiddler to perch on roof again
In showbiz, being known by just one name is a sign of real success.
But before Madonna, Cher, Sting or Bono, there was Topol.
"But I think Fernandel was before me just a little," the Israeli actor said yesterday, on a break from rehearsals for the Sydney production of Fiddler on the Roof.
He shot to stardom as the bearded father Tevye in the 1967 London production of the musical and played the same role for Norman Jewison's film version, winning an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe Award along the way.
This Australian show will be his sixth time playing Tevye, and the 70-year-old has no plans to stop any time soon.
"I'll do it any time they ask. I love this show," he said, explaining that he regularly finds new nuances in the script. Read more here

Petrol Summit Should be About Reducing Car-Dependency

It's great to see the pedestrian and bicycle lobby groups working together for the common good of sustainable transport options. The reported dramatic increase in bus and rail travel this month reflect the impact of petrol prices as well as new toll fees biting the hip pocket nerve. I find it inexplicable that the NRMA consistently takes the us and them, with us or against us approach to sharing our finite road infrastructure with all modes of transport. For the hard headed car drivers out there, the more people we get into public transport or on bicycles in dedicated cycle lanes - the more cars will be off your congested roads.

Media Release below.

Tomorrow’s Summit Should be About Reducing Car-Dependency NOT Reducing Petrol Prices

The Chairman of the Pedestrian Council, Mr Harold Scruby and BicycleNSW CEO, Mr Alex Unwin said that tomorrow’s NRMA Petrol Price Summit was focused on the wrong subject. The major issue facing our nation is not about reducing petrol prices, it’s about reducing car-dependency.

Mr Scruby said: “Nowhere in the NRMA’s literature have they mentioned anything about car-dependency. And they have not invited representatives from the public transport or active transport (walking and cycling) groups. This is all about keeping petrol prices low so we can have more cars on the road.

For the last 2 days, 2GB’s Alan Jones has spoken openly about the need for rational debate on this vital subject. Here are some quotes:

· “But we can't turn the petrol pricing debate over to the alarmists.
· “It is not the responsibility of government to make a scarce resource cheaper and oil/petrol is a finite resource.
· “If the higher petrol prices make us think about public transport rather than driving the car, that is no bad thing.
· “We need to drive less, drive more economically, share private transport and make better use of what public transport there is.”
· Mr Jones quoted Robert Samuelson, a member of the Washington Post Writers' Group: "What the United States needs is a petrol price of $4 to $5 a gallon. Now, America currently pay $2.80 a gallon, (or 95 cents a litre). What America needs most is ‘a steadily rising oil tax.’ Elsewhere he argued that the traditional US car companies, General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are the least prepared for change. He said, "They tied their fortunes to the biggest 4WDs and pick-ups, hence the need for a stiff oil tax."

Mr Unwin said: “The fuel crisis is a perfect opportunity to encourage the community to seek more economical (and healthier and more environmentally sustainable) means of active transport like walking and cycling.

“Bike transport is a viable, environmentally efficient and inexpensive mode of transport that will also result in better health and well-being. The issue is not petrol prices. It is educating Australians not to rely on motor vehicles; if we follow the European trend of using bikes as main form of transport, we would be a much healthier nation,” Alex Unwin said.

Mr Scruby added: “We must shake off our western culture arrogance and imagine the price of petrol and the effects of global warming, if the people of China and India were to be as car-dependent as us. Petrol prices would go through the roof and the bitumen would melt. We must start setting an example and reduce car-dependency immediately, before it’s too late.

“We therefore encourage all Australians to participate in Walk to Work Day on Friday 7 October 2005 and ‘Leave the Car at Home’.

See: www.walk.com.au

Mr Unwin said: “And for people wanting to try alternative forms of commuting, Portfolio Partners Sydney Spring Cycle on Sunday 23 October 2005.” See www.bicycle.nsw.org.au
CONTACT: Harold Scruby - (02) 9968-4555 or (0418) 110-011
Or Alex Unwin at Bicycle NSW on (02) 9281-4099 (0425) 221-060
Email: walking@walk.com.au or aunwin@bicyclensw.org.au

Crikey looks at Clover Moore's first 18 months

Crikey.com.au discusses Clover Moore's first 18 months...and picks up the little noted fact that she has managed to unite against her 5 quite different Councillors in the ballot for Deputy Lord Mayor and Committee Chairs. Something it took Labor 11 years to do at the former South Sydney City Council. I have just returned from attending the Council's powerful Traffic Committee - one of the committee chairs that Clover Moore seized control of last week rather than risk a non- Moore Councillor winning the chair position by luck of a draw from a hat. I must report that the Lord Mayor (chair of ten council committees) failed to show to chair today's Traffic Committee and offered no excuse or apology to the Police, RTA, Sydney Buses, community reps, Councillors and staff who sat waiting patiently for their newly elected chair to arrive. Finally defeated former Deputy Lord Mayor John McInerney arrived to take her place without explanation. Not a good start to her new self appointed responsibilities.

What kind of Lord Mayor is Clover Moore?
Christian Kerr writes:
Clover Moore, the Lord Mayor of Australia's premier city, has been getting a lot of press lately. As the independent Member for the state seat of Bligh, Moore built a good reputation among inner-city residents for fighting for their interests. While she usually wasn't able to influence outcomes, she was always able to say “I stood up for you.”Now, wearing two hats, things are different. The Sydney Morning Herald ran a detailed piece on how her shortcomings are quickly becoming apparent over the weekend.The picture which emerges is of a person who isn't a good leader. The skills she had as the lonely MP fighting Macquarie Street or Town Hall don't serve her well as Lord Mayor. The fact that she has been able to unite the Liberals, Greens and Labor Councillors in opposition to her after only 18 months in office tells a very negative story of her leadership abilities.Moore is seen as egocentric, always wanting to be in the limelight with even councillors on her own team constantly sidelined. She cops flak for taking credit for the initiatives of others. There are many examples of this – like Labor's push to establish a Gay and Lesbian Liaison Officer and a successful Greens motion to limit the use of plastic bags in the City. Moore even takes credit for the work councillors on her team do. Marcelle Hoff fought for years to save the Water Police site in Pyrmont from developers for public space. But now it is Moore who is trumpeted as the saviour of the site although she did no work in this campaign.After Moore was able to unite Labor, Greens and Liberals last week, she was in danger of losing control of Council committees and her own power. Suddenly Moore used a procedural rule to seize the chair of all seven Council committees. After being criticised for wanting two jobs, Member of Parliament and mayor, she now has ten.Is that good for accountability?

For those with dogs say hi to Malcolm's Dog Blog

Whilst City of Sydney residents live in the Sydney Federal electorate we look east enviously at the energetic Liberal Member for Wentworth, Malcolm Turnbull. His IT edge is ahead of nearly all other MP's in Parliament. But even I raised an eyebrow yesterday to read that Malcolm had launched a Dog Blog. Now I have received some unfair criticism because my blog eCouncillor strays from the strictly local government 3 R's issues that some readers feel it should only be - (too much Denmark or gardens apparently) but since I no longer own dogs (sadly can't have a Great Dane on level 12 of an inner city apartment) , I guess a dog blog from eCouncillor will not be in the near future. Those who remember my short tempered black cat Crispin will be pleased to know that he continues to thrive on the farm at Dubbo after a thrilling and misspent youth in Darlinghurst. For those with dogs say hi to Malcolm's Dog Blog From the blog below...

"Welcome to Jojo, Mellie and Rusty's Dog Blog!
Wentworth is definitely a dog friendly electorate. The sprawling parks, wide footpaths and vast green reserves in many of Wentworth's suburbs make it a very happy doggy place!
Malcolm Turnbull, Wentworth's own Federal Member loves dogs. He has three of his own – a red cattle dog, Rusty and two Maltese silkies, Jojo and Mellie. Jojo, Mellie and Rusty love living in Wentworth."


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Sexist put-down by Lord Mayor?

"There'll be a lot of things for Verity to do. She'll have to get herself a hat and a pair of gloves."

Clover Moore SMH

Enough women raised the Lord Mayor's comments in Saturday's SMH with me that it warrants further scrutiny. Was it a sexist put-down of Labor Councillor Verity Firth's role as the elected Deputy Lord Mayor?

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Beware Clover's glass jaw & who really knifed McInerney?

The Sydney Morning Herald explores Clover Moore's glass jaw and states that she has more control of Council than any other time to date. In fact Moore's urgent and paranoid seizure of chairmanship of all committees last Monday underlined her opponent's major criticism with her reign. Like a Pope she expects unquestioning obedience or excommunication. From the Lord Mayor's chair up high she issues instructions to her four puppet councilors. Except one - John McInerney who is reported and known to have stood up to her over-lordship. Why then was John not empowered to negototaite with myself or Chris Harris (or Labor for that matter) to save his Deputy Lord Mayoralty? Some have said that she wanted him punished for his independence of mind - but was happy for the opposition and fate as it were, to push the political knife on her behalf. John McInerney is a very good Councillor and the only true 'Independent' on her village people group. It is a disgrace she let him walk the plank without support.

Tim Dick writes today:

Clover Moore's grip on the controls of the city just got tighter, so be careful not to get in her way, warn her colleagues. Tim Dick reports.
Some people thrive on criticism. Some are broken by it. Some just don't tolerate it - from friend or foe - and are prepared to cop the consequences of not hearing it.
This week, Sydney's Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, discovered the ramifications of what her opponents say are the main irritants of her mayoralty: over-sensitivity, exclusion and taking credit for everything the council does, her idea or not.
Her deputy, the planning expert John McInerney, was dumped from office after the Greens councillor Chris Harris withdrew his support. Without it, McInerney lost by lot, a blind draw from a wooden box, prompting Moore to use a procedural rule to seize all seven of the council's committee chairmanships.
After being criticised for wanting two jobs, member of Parliament and mayor, she now has 10, including chairing the Central Sydney Planning Committee, a government-controlled body which approves major development.
Harris and Moore, a community independent with a decidedly green tinge, should be firm bedfellows. But, after Moore's promise last year to work co-operatively and constructively with other councillors, things have soured.
Harris now offers a scorching assessment of a remote leader who tolerates no criticism and rules her turf with the same party discipline she detests in Macquarie Street.
He hopes to run in the new seat of Sydney at the next state election - the successor to Moore's long-held Bligh electorate - which Moore suspects is fuelling his move.
But he says this week's events have little to do with his ambitions and everything to do with disappointment in her mayoralty, which forced him to vote with the Liberal councillor Shayne Mallard to install Labor's Verity Firth as deputy lord mayor. "I don't feel that I've been supported in [the green] agenda by Clover Moore's team. They've let me down on a number of times now on policy things they ought to have been much more active on," he says.
"If we had a good working relationship, where we did consult, I sat down with them and talked with them, and we nutted out these things, then sure, I would've been happy to support them."
Harris says he hasn't spoken to Moore for six months, except for social gatherings and formal meetings, with informal talks between all councillors stopped after just two meetings.
"Everyone was there; we could say what we wanted," he says. "There was a bit of criticism aimed at her, by various members, and she just couldn't handle it, so she canned it after two meetings.
"Any time I criticise her, I get a ferocious reply. You saw what happened on Monday. She doesn't like to be criticised."
Some of those closest to Moore are reluctant to offer criticism, constructive or otherwise, even in private. Even she says it is "probably true" that she takes things too personally.
"[People think] I should just be very, very thick-skinned, and I'm really quite sensitive, but I try to respond on the issue," Moore says.
After Harris's defection, Labor councillors heard Moore call him a Judas, perhaps a symptom of a sensitivity which must raise questions about the quality of her advice and whether it is filtered - consciously or not - to avoid upsetting her.
She is a strong woman with strong views and fires up when responding to perceptions - shared by all five opposition councillors - that she isn't inclusive, moves last-minute motions and controls her team absolutely. In short, perceptions that she talks the talk of openness, but walks it only when it suits her.
"I totally reject that. Council's never been so accountable, council's never been so transparent, there's never been so much consultation, there's never been such inclusion," she says.
But criticism there is, including that she takes credit for projects that weren't her idea, from plastic bags to rainbow flags. She dismisses all but one of the gripes as the stuff of personal ambition.
Moore rails against "the major parties" and their practices, but in 18 months the Herald has seen only one instance - she remembers more - of her team not voting as one, when Marcelle Hoff backed a union idea for bans on construction work on long weekends. She says their discussions are robust and critical, but they lead to a remarkably disciplined common line among the five, which she says reflects their "common approach". "If you think they vote in the way they vote because they feel obliged to me, I think you're very mistaken. They vote in the way they vote because they believe in it."
She says the seizure of committees was to stop a genuine threat to her plans for central Sydney, but another interpretation is that the politics of Macquarie Street are colouring her view at Town Hall.
The 10 city councillors are politicians who see the world in a remarkably similar way. From Liberal, through Labor to the Greens and her team, all are progressive.
Firth, her new deputy, says Moore is too nervous. She wants their relationship to be constructive, not adversarial, saying her hobby horses of child care, parks and affordable housing are hardly contrary to Moore's doctrine. "I think Clover is far too stressed about the wrecking role that we could play," she says. "I don't intend to play that at all."
Which should be welcome news to Moore, who pledges to co-operate with her new deputy. "There'll be a lot of things for Verity to do. She'll have to get herself a hat and a pair of gloves."

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Go the Swans - fly the red and white from Town Hall

Go the Swans

When we defeat St Kilda tonight I will call on the City of Sydney to fly the Swans banner from the Town Hall!!!
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Clover takes the axe while Council in recess again!!

News today that the City of Sydney is taking the chainsaw to 34 trees trees in Hyde Park (see Council media release below). This is heart breaking news for those of us who love our trees and especially trees that have been in the centre of this city for generations. I do not question the fact that now we know the trees are dangerous that they have to go. No one wants responsibility for endangering the safety of park users. However I criticize very strongly the handling of this announcement today.

Councillors were summonsed to an 1130am briefing by the CEO. A time of day not suited to those with employment (remember Councillors are paid an allowance only). However whilst Councillors were being told the grim news the Lord Mayor was outside doing a media press conference. The Councillors were treated with contempt by the Lord Mayor. No discussion, no consultation with Councillors. We were told at the same time as the Lord Mayor told the media. This is the style of leadership that gave rise to the five non Clover Moore Councillors joining forces to spill the Deputy Lord Mayor's position and CSPC last week. There has been more spin today than the entire Ashes debacle.

Fingers for this disaster should not be only pointed at the current Council. When elected in March 2004, I discovered that Hyde Park operated without a Plan of Management. In other words there is no masterplan in place for Hyde Park. Michael Lee's ill conceived kids playground is as feasible as a Botanic Gardens style red train ride around Hyde Park. You can see the ad-hoc planning in the park as garden beds pop-up and disappear at the whim of the current landscape architects and Councillors. I was able to get the funding for the development of a comprehensive POM that should have been in place a decade ago. If such a masterplan had been in place the longer term strategic management of the mature trees could have been implemented and the need for a wholesale clear felling avoided. Frank Sartor should be asked why he laid acres of granite in Hyde Park but did not lay a sustainability masterplan for Sydney's most loved park.

18 months ago Council took the Botanic Gardens to court to try and stop the felling of the fig trees in the Domain. We were laughed out of the court room when it emerged the City o Sydney did not even have a tree preservation policy in place! (we do now). I now believe in hindsight the court action we took was in fact emmotive and short sighted. Perhaps we owe the Botanic Gardens an apology and why not offer Hyde Park for them to manage. Time to eat some crow pie Clover.

TREE AUDIT REVEALS SAFETY THREAT IN HYDE PARK
A comprehensive survey of the more than 600 trees in Hyde Park has revealed many are diseased and dying (as pictured), posing a serious risk to public safety.
The City survey, considered the most wide-ranging of its type undertaken in Sydney, showed many of the affected trees have badly decayed trunks and roots, making them susceptible to falling. The results of the audit have been supported by independent assessment.
Lord Mayor, Clover Moore MP announced the implementation of a Tree Management Strategy to help save the park's trees today.
To address the problem, 34 trees will be removed in the first instance. Over the short to medium term, the City will go about the huge task of replacing and replenishing the existing soils and installing new drainage systems to counter the worsening affects of the contaminated soil from the 1930s railway construction under the Park.

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The Politics of Cycling - Address to Bike Sydney Forum

Bike Sydney Forum Saturday 10 September 2005
Lord Mayor's reception Room Sydney Town Hall
THE POLITICS OF CYCLING
Getting politicians to see the light
By Councillor Shayne Mallard, City of Sydney

Good afternoon, First of all I want to say thank you to Bike Sydney for organising today's seminar and inviting me to come here and speak on one of my favourite subjects of cycling. I thought today I would talk on 'the politics of cycling'.

We have all seen stickers on the bumper bars of cars (usually when we are stuck between their exhaust emissions on clogged roads) that promise; 'I fish and I vote' or 'I smoke and I vote' and my favourite 'I own a gun and I vote'. But I have never seen one that says, 'I ride a bike and I vote'.

I think this is because in the eyes of most politicians, the bureaucracy, media and the public the advocates for cycling in Australia are left wing environmentalists. For too long the advocacy and support for cycling in Australian politics has been viewed as the preserve of the left and this needs to be changed.

It is a disturbing development in Australian politics and in fact world wide that to be a 'freedom loving right winger' you must own a big 4WD and to scramble around on a pushbike you must be a tree hugging greenie.

And don't think that all the corporates who do the weekend rally rides - out there today as we speak in their new Lycra and hyper priced bikes are breaking down this divide. They are the hairy chested conservatives corporate types doing their bit for fitness and mental endurance with their mates. Most of them do not identify with our cause of Monday to Friday commuter cycling reforms. I would like to see a whole lot more of the weekend cyclists riding to their offices each day.

One of the biggest challenges we have today is to break down this counterproductive political divide.

It was recently reported that the state Labor government had slashed the budget from the RTA for cycling by as much as 50%. This came from a Labor government that has built more tollways and roads than any government in NSW history. The vast majority either without separate cycle paths or dangerous shared lanes.

You all know that I am a Liberal endorsed Councillor on the City of Sydney. I am one of the strongest advocates to turn Sydney into a city that embraces the cycling lifestyle. I see this as a ten-year mission. I set this as an objective over three stages.

Achieve political will for change
Change approach of bureaucracy, media and public
Set plan to deliver infrastructure.

We are well on the way on all three stages.

Yet when I ran for Lord Mayor I raised eyebrows not just in my party but also with the media when I advocated removing on street parking to create safer and separate cycle paths.

I recall an ABC journalist saying to me; 'your policies are not much different to the Greens or Clover Moore, shouldn't you be distinguishing yourself politically?' And of course I had the usual backlash from car owners, small business and tabloid media types against any notion to remove on street parking in favour of wider footpaths, more trees and safer cycle lanes.

Even those we think are our allies in trying to win over the hearts and minds on public policy can be just a little strange. I will never forget when I was fighting in the Council chamber to force a review of $60 million of gateway road contracts so as to incorporate safer cycle facilities when the Lord Mayor referred to cyclists as 'feral!' And when working specifically on Oxford Street, the DLM stalled the plans with an argument about fast cyclists running down tipsy club goes late at night. Never mind the impact of cars and buses on the drunken clubbers or the concept of personal responsibilities.

I know I am preaching to the converted here today. But we all believe in the benefits that cycling can bring to the whole community and not just those on push bikes. Benefits such as healthier community members, reduced obesity and heart disease, reduced traffic congestion, reduced public transport congestion, environmental benefits as well as a greater sense of community cohesion.

Currently Sydney ranks amongst the lowest users of cycling in Australia and pathetically at the bottom of world trends. In Melbourne 6% of daily journeys to work are by bicycle and in Sydney less than 1%. Compare to that Amsterdam with 28% Hanover 16% and Copenhagen at 34%. Copenhagen has targeted 40% by the end of this decade.

At a time when our city population and density continue to grow and our public transport infrastructure is clearly suffering under the stress and roads continue to be bumper to bumper traffic jams, cycling presents a low cost complimentary option to help reduce the burden on the whole transport system.

I have always argued that if we could just aim to increase cycling journeys by 5 times ie up to 5% that would reduce pressure on other modes of transport. The cost benefit analyses of such a strategy are clearly apparent. I refer to this as the 'low hanging fruit' for transport infrastructure and reform.

This great vision of a sustainable, cleaner and less cluttered city of cycle ways and mixed modal transport is not as far fetched nor is it impossible, as it seems. It is only hindered by the ignorance and prejudice of our political leaders and their powerful road oriented bureaucracy.

The Politics of Cycling - is in fact confronting an attitude-based problem, where in Australia we are brought up with reliance on the car. That goes back to when Ben Chifley drove the 1st Holden off the production lines. Our culture is inextricably entwined with the journey and love affair with the motorcar. From holidays to consumer trophies the car is with us to stay. And somehow cycling has been painted into the corner as being an anti-car movement. And it's not just the private car.

Recently I met a senior taxi industry person and decided to discuss cycling with him. I suspected he might not be a regular cyclist. I asked him the attitude the industry had to cyclists? - his response was not positive. It was the usual cars need the entire road and cyclists cause delays argument. I then asked him his views on the Danish system where a cyclist can order a taxi with a bike rack so he or she can put their bike on the rack and travel home in a taxi. This might be necessary if say you had worked back late at night - or been out for dinner and had a few drinks. He had not heard of this concept before but was not opposed to it when demand became evident. I had suddenly made a cycling opponent look at the issue in a different way - a new market in fact. He was now less hostile to cycling.

The advocates of cycling are faced with those unable to see or don't want to see the benefits that cycling can bring.

We do have the space, resources and skills to make fundamental changes in Sydney. What we need is bipartisan political will.

When I was elected to the City of Sydney I was confronted with a mindset that cycling was unsustainable, impractical, an annoyance to city planning. This was dramatically made clear when in the early part of the council I stood up and fought against the design of the multimillion dollar gateway projects one of which Broadway had no provision for cyclists, Oxford Street had a 70cm wide cycle lane wedged between buses and cars and William Street where cyclists dodged parked cars, buses and T2 clearways.

With the help of other councillors such as Chris Harris and the ALP we were able to force through a review and make the bureaucrats pay attention to our calls for a cycle friendly city.

It was inexplicable and disappointing that the independents led by the Lord Mayor took so long to join us in this sustainability quest. And it appeared all too hard and too late to wind back the change and design of the gateways.

Can it work?

For Sydney, cycling for work purposes and leisure with dedicated cycle lanes is a possibility. The infrastructure is starting to be rolled out. It is not perfect and it is under-utilised but itÂ’s a start.

Sydney is relatively flat (compared to the US/Europe and Australia is arguably the flattest continent), Sydney has enjoyable outdoors weather, sunny but not unbearably hot most of the year. Australians enjoy being in the outdoors. For tourism Sydney is one of the most attractive cities in the world - and that gives rise to the growing market of cycling tourism.

Sydney and Cycling go hand in hand and I believe will I the future

For cycling advocates there needs to be a real effort to unite the political divide? To break down the notion that cycling is some sort of left wing issue.

I have a few practical suggestions on how to do that.
Inviting a diversity of politicians to speak at events like this
Identify cycling champions across the political divides
One on one development of champions - like one on one rides etc
Make the business case for cycling - eg retail studies
Make the economic case - transport reform and cost effectiveness
Make the lifestyle and stronger community case
Support your champions - in media- in their forums
Creation for my part of 'Liberals for cycling' group

My partner is Danish and I have visited Denmark twice. I have taken the opportunity to spend a day with Copenhagen's cycling planners. I even rode around city on their official GPS monitored bike. I came to really appreciate the difference it makes to that city. Cleaner streets, less cars, more people, safer streets, greater sense of community.

And cycling is not a partisan political issue. I spent an hour or two with the Infrastructure and Planning Mayor of Copenhagen, Liberal Soren Pinn (traditional Liberal such as myself) and asked him about the politics of cycling. How did the Danish make the decision in the 1970's to be less car dependent and how today cycling was a brad and butter issue for any politician. Mayor Pinn said to me that 'Anyone who ignores cycling damages their political career.'

That's where I would like to see us arrive. When cycling is a bread and butter issue for day-to-day politicians in Sydney no matter your side of politics.

With the will, intelligence and energetic commitment between us in this room today we can achieve that goal and make Sydney 'a city of cyclists' to challenge Copenhagen.

Images - top to bottom. Copenhagen visit 1. Shayne with 'City Bikes' for tourists - note bike parking chaos in background - a growing issue in the CBD 2. Blue painted bike lanes in priority and danger zones 3. Bike retailing is big business 4. Bike parking is an ongoing issue 5. Bike lanes have their own traffic signals to give cars turning right a fair go 6. Cars, buses, bikes, people - all have their own lanes 7. Mayor Soren Pinn and Shayne (Pinns staff were very amused by our similar appearance).

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A bit of Blog Etiquette - a need for editorial policy

Offering a blog has with it responsibilities and risks. Because of the abuse of this site by some activists who have been 'flaming*' my blog, I need to outline a few policies that the editorial committee for eCouncillor have established.

• comments are now moderated through 'Haloscan'
• constructive comments focused on policy interests and blog comments are welcome and encouraged and posted as soon as possible
• abuse will always be removed
• all comment will need to be registered - no hiding behind anonymous comments
• when flaming is detected eCouncillor comments will be suspended and moderated ASAP
• requests by third parties to remove a comment will be respected
• eCouncillor can not take responsibility for comments posted and will remove as soon as possible offensive material posted by third parties
• editorial decisions are final and no correspondence will be entered into

To those who are genuine in being engaged - I thank you and keep the comments coming as they are important feedback. Whilst eCouncillor is an innovative communication tool - it should be noted that my political opponent Clover Moore offers no ability for response or comment in her publicly funded (no public funds are used in producing eCouncillor) dull email newsletter and monotonous web site.

thank you for your support.

Shayne

* Flaming is the act of posting messages that are deliberately hostile and insulting, usually in the social context of a discussion board (usually on the Internet). Such messages are called flames, and are sometimes posted in response to flamebait. Flaming is one of a class of economic problems known as The Tragedy of the Commons, when a group holds a resource (in this case, communal attention), but each of the individual members has an incentive to overuse it.
Although the trading of insults is as old as time itself, flaming on the Internet, like many other online 'actions', started in the Usenet hierarchies. A flame may have elements of a normal message, but is distinguished by its intent. A flame is typically not intended to be constructive, to further clarify a discussion, or to persuade other people. The motive for flaming is often not dialectic, but rather social or psychological. Sometimes, flamers are attempting to assert their authority, or establish a position of superiority. Occasionally, flamers wish to upset and offend other members of the forum, in which case they are trolls. Most often however, flames are angry or insulting messages transmitted by people who have strong feelings about a subject.

Changing Politics at Council meeting

Last night's Council meeting was the first opportunity Councillors have had to pass judgment on the Clover Moore style of local government. The five non-Moore Councillors made the decision to work together to achieve a more reasonably spread, representative and balanced Council. Labor Councillor Verity Firth was elected Deputy Lord Mayor and I was elected to the CSPC - both a result of five vote all ties and subsequent drawn from the hat. (Read link to COS web site for role of Central Sydney Planning Committee). This committee comprises three Council appointments and four state government appointments. The CSPC was created through the City of Sydney Act by the Greiner Government. CSPC deals with all developments valued at more than $50 million as well as all land use proposals (eg rezoning) the later in concurrence with Council itself. It has no staff of its own and is respourced by Council's own planning department. The CSPC will have an important impact on the ambitious City Plan - a new super DCP LEP that is promised by Clover Moore for completion late 2006.

The Sydney Morning Herald covered the election in more detail below:

Moore's grip a little looser as chance intervenes to topple her deputy
By Tim Dick Urban Affairs Reporte

The control of the City of Sydney by the Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, slipped last night when her deputy, the planning expert John McInerney, lost office in a game of regulated chance.
Councillors must elect a deputy lord mayor every year, and Cr McInerney came unstuck after a Greens councillor, Chris Harris, withdrew his support, forcing a tie and a resolution by lot.
He was replaced by Labor's Verity Firth, 32, a lawyer from Glebe, who was supported by two party colleagues, a Liberal and Cr Harris.
The council's chief executive, Peter Seamer, drew the slip of white paper bearing Cr Firth's name from a wooden box.
The loss is significant as it removes the platform from which Cr McInerney performed as the Lord Mayor's representative on planning issues.
Cr Moore responded to the draw by seizing control of all the council's committees, risking delays in decisions and stripping Cr McInerney of two chairmanships.
She now chairs all seven committees - finance, environment, cultural, traffic and three planning subcommittees - which she will do while continuing as both Lord Mayor and state MP for Bligh.
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Fate was kinder to her in the deputy chairmanships. Her team won all four contested votes, and returned Cr McInerney to his seat on the Central Sydney Planning Committee - a joint council-State Government body that approves major projects.
Later she released a statement congratulating the winners. "I look forward to a continuation of the productive and co-operative working relationship council has enjoyed over the past 18 months, with more than 95 per cent of council decisions passed unanimously," she said.
Cr Harris resigned from the Central Sydney Planning Committee last week over "generous extra parking allowances" given to the owner of the Carlton & United Breweries site on Broadway.
"I had high hopes for a progressive agenda from a group of community independents led by Clover Moore," he said.
"What I have seen over the past year is a lack of consultation with other councillors and an election-driven capitulation to the big end of town and a slavish acceptance of bureaucratic directives and recommendations."
He criticised her dual role as MP and Lord Mayor, calling her performance patchy and conflicted. "People who once could count on her standing up for their rights are now ignored," he said.
Cr Harris's decision makes it easier for Labor and Liberal councillors to pursue their agendas, with Cr Moore now dependent on both her team's loyalty and her casting vote.
Cr Firth said the council's first 18 months were frustrating.
"Although the Lord Mayor was elected on a platform of openness and transparency, we have quickly learned this only applies if you are within the ruling clique."

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Well Done Amanda!!

It was a great honour of mine to be an official guest as the City of Sydney Councillor when Senator Amanda Vanstone spoke at a cocktail party last night. Fresh from her razor wire experience (note picture above) Amanda spoke passionately about practical reconciliation as the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs. Amanda is a long time friend and supporter of mine and a great liberal. It is good that both Labor and Liberal politics agreed to abolish ATSIC and to divert the squandered funds into direct assistance for the disadvantaged aboriginal communities. Reassuringly that bipartisan action was supported by many Aboriginal Australians. Well done Amanda for taking away that razor wire too. We need more Liberals and liberals like my friend Senator Vanstone.

From SHM Friday. Vanstone joins Villawood razor gang

Authorities today began removing one of the most potent symbols of Australia's mandatory detention policies - the razor wire topping the fences at immigration detention centres.
Donning gloves and protective goggles, immigration minister Amanda Vanstone used wire snippers to cut away a small section of razor wire from a perimeter fence at Villawood Detention Centre.
"The move along with new landscaping works around the perimeter fencing will change the face and feel of the centre to both detainees and visitors."
Responding to a suggestion by protesters that the wire-cutting was a political stunt, Ms Vanstone said: "Well it amazes me. Are the protesters actually suggesting we leave the razor wire there? I don't think so."
The wire-cutting ceremony was delayed when protesters tried to enter the detention centre.
Fewer than 40 boat people remained in detention in Australia, Ms Vanstone said.
The move - the latest in a string of measures designed to soften the government's approach to asylum seekers, received a mixed response from refugee advocates.
Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul said the removal of the razor wire was a "cosmetic" measure.
"We need the policies to be cut - removing the razor wire doesn't remove the fences. It's completely cosmetic - it's a publicity stunt."
Mr Rintoul said refugees should be granted permanent protection - not temporary protection visas.
However, Refugee council of Australia director Margaret Piper welcomed the move.
"The environment at Villawood has become progressively oppressive with separation of sections, high razor-wire fences and highly visible security.
"Any step to make the environment less oppressive and less intimidating are very much welcomed."
Razor wire will remain around areas of detention centres that hold criminal detainees.

Draft Regulation of Sex Services Development Control Plan

Council will be dealing with a planning report to endorsement the draft Regulation of Sex Services Development Control Plan 2005, and place the DCP on public exhibition (for a period of 28 days). We are also asked to adopt the draft DCP as an interim policy for the entire local government area (LGA).

Sex service premises are defined as premises providing or arranging prostitution including brothels, premises arranging sexual encounters including sex on premises and swingers clubs, other types of sex service premises including strip clubs and premises which sell restricted material such as adult book shops.

Currently there are three different policies applying to regulation of the sex industry in COS. This DCP will bring them into line and remove any conflicting planning policies. It should be noted that Council is deferring consideration of home based occupation sex workers as it will be incorporated into the City Plan due for consideration late in 2006. The DCP does not change or alter the regulation of home occupation sex service premises. However I am suprised that a DCP for the sex industry can so neatly side step the vexed issue of prostitution operating from resiential properties.

The DCP will assist in development assessment and defending any decisions in the Land and Environment Court. It provides more certainty for applicants and residents. The adoption of a development control plan to regulate the development of sex service premises has been identified as a component of the City Plan review programme. The identified timeframe for this project is for public exhibition during October 2005 with adoption of the DCP to be recommended by December 2005.

I support the review and development of a new comprehensive DCP for the sex industry. I know that residents and business owners are concerned about the impact of excessive concentrations of sex industry activities has on different areas of the COS LGA including Kings Cross, Darlinghurst and Newtown (King Street). I do not support any suggestions to remove the 75 metre anti clustering rules currently in place. Particularly for Kings Cross where the excessive concentration built up over several decades has created an unattractive land use monopoly.

More discussions on Kings Cross and Strippers blogged earlier.

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Halloween on Oxford Street Community Festival

Monday's Council meeting will consider supporting the 'Wicked Weekend' - a Halloween festival that comes to Taylor Square, Darlinghurst on the October 28 weekend. The idea of the Darlinghurst Business Partnership is to market Halloween and bring visitors to the area, providing a vibrant community focal point in Taylor Square North and featuring performances, costume competitions, street decorations, shop front displays, late night shopping and on street fashion parades. The night is modeled on the extremely successful programs run in major US cities such as New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles. This would be the inaugural event for the City of Sydney.

Council is asked to donate $10,000 in cash plus $5,000 by way of a fee waiver for banner pole hire and cleansing services. After the huge and ongoing disruption to businesses along Oxford Street during the $20 million upgrade it would seem a very small investment to keep the local businesses afloat. There will be also considerable Halloween-themed activity in the nightclubs and bars in Oxford Street. The event runs simultaneously with the Sydney Food and Wine Fair and it is anticipated that there could be significant cross over from the Hyde Park event. The proposal has my full support and the Darlinghurst Business Partnership is to be congratulated for the initiative.

Carlton and United Breweries Site

It appears Council will be deferring the adoption of the draft planning controls for the CUB site in Chippendale as a result of the delay by our parallel planning body CSPC (Central Sydney Planning Committee). These were to be endorsed by council for public exhibition for a period of 28 days, including a draft LEP. After the aborted development proposal from Australand, Council was criticised for excessive restrictions on the site including strong limits on car parking provisions. The architectural design competition initiated by the previous Council inspired some creative high rise proposals. These should not be thrown out with the dish water. I also note that Council has decided to back down on the hyper-restrictive car parking allocation for the site.

CUB is one of the most important inner city redevelopments currently on the drawing board. Council must be prepared to work positively with the owner and potential developers in order to deliver excellence in urban renewal and sustainable revenue return to the owner and developers. The danger for Council is the new Planning Minister Frank Sartor (lord of the Redfern Waterloo Authority) using his new planning powers will to take control of the site from Clover Moore. Council and local residents will then find themselves side-lined in the development process.

The terms of a planning agreement had not been reached between COS and the CUB owners. Despite this, it is considered that public exhibition of the draft LEP and draft DCP should occur, and negotiations continue on the planning agreement. The report also recommends the Council endorse the draft Conservation Management Plan.

New Alcohol Free Zones

Residents and Business owners have backed a Council plan to introduce Alcohol Free Zones (AFZ) in problematic areas of Kings Cross, Darlinghurst and Surry Hills. Back in November 2004, Council was presented with 94 Alcohol Free Zone requests across 6 Police Local Area Commands. I was very concerned at the significant expansion of the areas to be covered and the impact on social drinkers and business owners. It was not clear whether a smoker outside a local restaurant with a glass of chardonnay would be committing an offence. In addition there was legitimate concern that the AFZ were being used as a blunt tool to deal with homeless people. Whilst it is an appropriate option for police in dealing with disruptive 'street drinkers' it should not be the primary approach to this serious inner city problem.

The state government should be providing more mental health outreach services and more short and long term stay accommodation for the homeless. As a result of these concerns Council requested a revision of the original 94 proposed Alcohol Free Zones. The revision goes before Council this Monday with a recommendation to implement a revised 43 zones. The report states that the requirements for public and stakeholder consultation under the NSW Local Government Act have been met.

The establishment of AFZ enables the NSW Police to confiscate alcohol from street drinkers to prevent the escalation of intoxication and unruly behaviour. The powers do not apply to licensed footpath areas outside hotels or restaurants. The powers granted to Police via the AFZ may reduce the need to invoke more serious offences. AFZ should primarily be located adjacent to licensed venues according to the Ministerial Guidelines; however some areas have exceptional circumstances.

Staff recommend that Council endorse the Alcohol Free Zones in Kings Cross and Surry Hills and endorse the extension of the Darlinghurst and Kings Cross Road AFZ to include Bayswater Road, Kings Cross. The proposals are strongly supported by local residents and businesses.

AFZ are one strategy to reduce the alcohol-related conflict between City residents, commuters, and visitors. The Safe City and Homelessness Units have jointly produced a draft plan to address street drinking. The report says that the plan uses a long-term, multifaceted, integrated approach to this complex issue. The street drinking plan is an integral part of the Drug and Alcohol Strategy 2005-2010, which is currently being prepared by the Safe City Unit.

Plans (especially 'multifaceted ones) are all very good but residents and business owners want to see a more firm response to heavy drinking on the streets and are appalled and angry at the public displays of violence from street drinkers in their neighbourhood. The State government must respond with more resources to mental health services to assist this group of vulnerable locals.

Significant Tree Register

In March 2004 the Council was involved in efforts to prevent the removal of heritage fig trees in the Domain as proposed by the Botanic Gardens Trust. As part of that legal battle it emerged that COS did not have an up-to-date tree preservation policy. Council lost the battle to save the fig trees but in the process we prioritised the management of trees in the city and developed a comprehensive suite of tree management policies. One of these is the Significant Tree Register being tabled for adoption at the next Council meeting. The STR is an initiative I had advocated at the former South Sydney City Council and for which I strongly advocated at the COS.

The Significant Tree Register identifies and recognises the importance of significant trees in the City’s local government area, an area that has been subject to much change and expansion. The Register will help guide management of the trees that contribute to the environmental, cultural and social character of the City, and ensure their continued protection for the benefit of the community and for future generations. The report seeks the endorsement from Council to publicly exhibit the City’s Draft Significant Tree Register for comment.

Backpacker, Visitor and Tourist Accommodation

Living in Potts Point and being surrounded by lots of backpacker hostels I am only too aware of the good and the not so good side of this industry. In Potts Point and Kings Cross most backpackers are responsibly run with only a few rotten apples spoiling the reputation of the industry. As a local there is something dynamic and cosmopolitan about walking along the street and hearing young people talking in different languages. It is exciting to share our city and country with so many young people just starting their journey in life and who will always remember their stay with Australia.

The ‘rotten apples’ spoil the image of the industry and no doubt also spoil the experience for our young visitors. The Backpacker accommodation industry therefore needs to be better regulated by Council to achieve a higher standard of service and safety for tourists and to manage the impacts upon community amenity. The goal of this DCP is to bring together five different sets of planning controls currently in place to assess backpacker accommodation. Five planning policies has resulted in various methods, inconsistency and confusion amongst residents and applicants. The DCP deals with basic planning policies for hostels including minimum floor space, furniture, facilities and open space. As well as the most important issues of fire and personal safety.

It must be remembered that every backpacker who walks off a jumbo jet is the equivalent in foreign currency earnings to approximately 10 tons of wheat loaded onto an export ship. That does not take into account the thousands of jobs both directly and indirectly created by this growing segment of tourism industry. I will be supporting this DCP and calling on the industry to be more proactive in removing the bad operators and promoting the benefits of the backpacker tourism industry to the broader community.

Save the Chauvel Cinema campaign

News that the art house Chauvel Cinema is set to close in a few weeks has alarmed many theatre and arts patrons across Sydney. It comes on the back of the Valhalla cinema in Glebe closing a few weeks ago. Council is the landlord of the Chauvel located in the historic Paddington Town Hall. When the news broke I quickly enquired of staff regarding a rent free period to help the cinema get back on its feet. To my relief the Council had already waived six months rent to assist the Australian Film Institute make ends meet during the feasibility study period (see below).

Even with Council forgoing all rental income (which would be unusual unless a not for profit were involved) the study demonstrated a loss of $30,000. Council rental return is less than 20% of that figure. So what can Council do when emails and letters plead for our intervention (see letter below)? If the AFI does not want to continue managing the cinema how should Council approach the issue? If the AFI were to request an extension of the lease as a rent free subsidy on the bias of building a successful business model with community support and sponsorships, then I would support such a grant for at least 6 months. The question for cinema supporters is - can they make the Chauvel a viable art house cinema in the current declining cinema market?

The Sydney Morning Herald reported the dilemma on August 4

Art-house cinema to close
By Garry MaddoxAugust 4, 2005
On the day the Valhalla in Glebe closed its doors, the Australian Film Institute confirmed it will shut another art-house cinema.
The Chauvel in Paddington, once famous for the slogan "if it's at cinemas everywhere, it's not on here", will go dark at the end of next month.
The institute will hand the cinema back to the building's owner, the City of Sydney, after a feasibility study found it would lose up to $30,000 a month without improvements of at least $250,000 to add more screens.
The institute's general manager, Geoffrey Williams, describes the closure as tragic.
"There's not going to be any screen culture cinemas in Sydney," he says.
The two-screen Chauvel has faced an uncertain future since its long-term managers, Alex Meskovic and Chris Kiely, handed it back to the institute in May. They blamed the trend to watching DVDs at home and the poor quality of art-house films for box-office halving in a year. Williams says the cinema lost more than $30,000 in June and July. A City of Sydney spokesman says talks are continuing about hiring the cinemas for special screenings.
A study on the entertainment industry has suggested box office will not grow in the next five years. The PriceWaterhouseCoopers Australian Entertainment and Media Outlook says admissions will fall 5.2 per cent this year and only slowly climb back to last year's 91 million in 2009.
"The cinema industry is really in transition," says the study's author, Matthew Liebmann. "Unless it finds some way to pull people back into the cinemas, we will see decline."

Here is a typical email letter asking for Council's support -

Don't let Melbourne get the drop on us!

Dear Shane,
My family and I urgently call on you to intervene to prevent the Chauvel Cinema, in Paddington Town Hall, from closing at the end of September. We ask that you maintain the Chauvel as a centre for independent filmmaking in Sydney and New South Wales.
Great films cannot be produced in an environment where great films cannot be seen, as they were meant to be: on the big screen. If the Chauvel is allowed to close, NSW will lag disastrously behind world cinema culture. We will effectively cede to Melbourne - home of the new Centre for the Moving Image - the role of Australia's premier film culture centre.
Keeping the Chauvel operating is crucial to the cultural, social, and fiscal life of New South Wales. Without the Chauvel, the city and state would be left with no dedicated venue for independent Australian shorts and features, masterpieces of world cinema, great works from film history, and cutting edge digital features. We ask that you do everything in your power to make the Chauvel a vibrant publicly-funded centre for cinema culture in Sydney.
signed resident
P.S. We have already lost the Valhalla Cinema a few weeks ago. That hurt. The loss of the Chauvel, as the last venue for the screening of independent films would be nothing less than a cultural tragedy. Please do not let it happen.