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This week Council debated a cat management proposal that saw us discuss by-laws, registration fees, and the benefits of a Council vs. State approach. We also discussed the Premier's consultation on traffic calming measures on Dulwich Avenue as part of his capacity as Minister for Dunstan. We also discussed the benefits of participating in the Business Friendly Council Initiative and looked at how we can better support local businesses in our City. Finally, we endorsed the draft Disability Access and Inclusion Plan, which is now available for public consultation, before agreeing to lower the Hallett Road speed limit to 50 km/h to reduce the number of crashes along that road.
I was also glad to host a meeting at Penfold Park with Councillor Grant Piggott and Minister Vincent Tarzia to discuss what local residents would love to see in a future redevelopment. We got some amazing suggestions and I want to thank everyone who turned up and had their say. I can't wait to present some of these options to the council in the coming weeks.
It was also amazing to see all the elected members of the Burnside City Council visit the Newland Reserve Pump Track. We all had a blast and it was nice to see people of all ages and abilities having a great time and we will definitely be looking at creating a permanent structure in the future. I successfully scooted around the track, and a couple of other Councillors gave it a red hot go.
Finally, October is edging ever closer. October is going to be an exciting month for Burnside, with work set to start on the Kensington Gardens Reserve upgrade. This upgrade will see it become a community hotspot, with nearly $4 million combined in grants from both State and Federal governments. This upgrade will increase disability access, increase the amount of paths and fitness equipment, as well as a complete revamp the South-East corner.
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Fighting For:
Following our recent meeting at Penfold Park to discuss future developments, Councillor Grant Piggott, Minister Vincent Tarzia and I have all been given some great suggestions to think about. We will incorporated these suggestions into the masterplan.
Cats can be wonderful additions to any family, but they can also be a menace towards native wildlife. Achieving a balance between these two needs needs much thought and discussion and cannot be achieved through 5mins worth of debate at the council chamber.
Hallett Road is key road in our community; it also unfortunately sees a higher than average rate of collisions. Curbing the number of collisions rate along Hallett Road will need further discussion as I think speed is perhaps a contributing factor but I think there are other opportunities to reduce the hazards faced by drivers along this road.
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Agenda Summary | 13th July 2020
Here is everything we covered at our last meeting:
10.1 - Dulwich Avenue community consultation
13.1 - Cat Management in the City of Burnside
13.3 - Participation in Small Business Friendly Council Initiative
13.5 - Proposed Introduction of 50 km/h speed limit on Hallett Road
13.6 - Burnside War Memorial Hospital lease
13.7 - Draft Disability Inclusion Action Plan
The Cat management proposal was certainly the most contentious issue of the night, with debates taking up nearly two hours of our council meeting. The Hallett Road speed limit debate also created some excellent discussion and I think the outcome from that debate will focus our attention on finding the root of the problem.
To download the full agenda and minutes for the meeting please click here
To watch a live stream of the meeting please click here
Community Matters
Penfold Park: On Saturday, I hosted a meeting a Penfold Park with Councillor Grant Piggott and Minister Vincent Tarzia to discuss some potential upgrades for Penfold Park. We had so many amazing suggestions from the locals and we are all very excited to implement some of these ideas in the future. Some highlights include (but are not limited to):
Formalising the pathways
Create a walking trail and install exercise equipment
Increase seating along pathway and in the shade
Increase the amount of bins, especially near the barbecues
On behalf of Councillor Piggott and Minister Tarzia, we want to thank everyone who was able to attend and everyone else who contacted me to discuss their thoughts. If you have any ideas you would like to share about the future of Penfold Park, feel free to contact me:
0410 466 779
Cat management: Cat management is something the Burnside City Council takes very seriously, and our last meeting saw us debate it for nearly two hours. Unfortunately, due to a lack of research about what we're actually addressing and how to address it best, combined with concerns regarding council powers, we were unable to pass a motion on it. However, we will continue to discuss this as we advocate for a wider State approach. You can read more about it in our last agenda here. Pump Track: We're currently running a pump-track trial in the City of Burnside, and at the moment it is at Newland Reserve. We've recently passed 200, 000 laps on the track which is an amazing response! Recently, all of us elected members visited the site and had a blast zooting around the track on our bikes and scooters. We loved seeing how many people were embracing the track, regardless of age or experience. You can read more about it here. Small Business Friendly Council Initiative: The Small Business Friendly Council Initiative is a charter of which we have recently become a signatory. The Initiative plans to increase the promotion of small businesses and allow for more economic growth within the community. The Initiative sets out some great initiatives for us to implement, but it is important that we continue to discuss ways to help local businesses further. More information can be found here Hallett Road speed limit change: Connecting Greenhill and Kensington Roads, Hallett Road carries approximately 11, 000 cars daily and has been host to 26 crashes in the last 5 years. After conducting a community consultation, the council elected to apply to the Commissioner of Highways to have the speed limit changed from 60 km/h 50 km/h. While this is a good first step, I am of the belief that more research needs to be conducted into the cause of the crashes and what other measures we can take to reduce the risk of crashing along that road. More information can be found our last agenda here Kensington Gardens Reserve: October is fast approaching, meaning that the Kensington Gardens Reserve upgrade is going to start work soon! With the inclusion of disability access, footpaths, and fitness equipment, this is set to become an excellent community hotspot. More information is available here and here. Draft Disability Access and Inclusion Plan: The Draft Disability Access and Inclusion Plan is an exciting proposal that I think the whole City should be excited about. The Plan puts the accessibility and inclusion of our disabled residents at the forefront and includes many great initiatives to increase the quality of life for those living with disabilities in all facets of life, including but not limited to:
Employment
Education
Infrastructure
Community leadership
The Plan is a great initiative and I would advise all residents to take a look here. The Plan is now open for community consultation which you can participate in here.
That's all from me this week! If you have any queries or just want a chat, I will link all my social media down below. I hope everyone has a lovely week and I look forward to updating you all again very soon.
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