Sky's Vic Park Newsletter #8: climate action on the agenda and having your say
Kaya!
I hope that you’re all well, and are finding these newsletters helpful! If there’s anything you’d like to see included, please do let me know.
And, if you are enjoying the newsletter, could I ask you for a favour? Could you suggest it to any of your friends in the Town who care about a diverse and inclusive community, climate action, more affordable housing, or more accessible transport options?
The agenda for the June council meeting is relatively short, so I’ve taken this opportunity to tell you a bit more about what’s happening behind the scenes.
I’ll also highlight some ways you can provide feedback, and an important accessibility and climate action draft policy up for the vote in June.
Behind the scenes
This week, I’m particularly looking forward to another meeting of the Mindeera Advisory Group, which will be considering Dual Naming and pathways in the Millen Redevelopment.
I’m also trying to move a few ideas for climate action and inclusion forward.
Starting off on council, it felt much easier to react to existing plans than to put forward my own ideas. As I start working out the processes, I’m getting a better sense of how to (very slowly) get items onto the agenda.
Of course, one way to do this is for us to just put forward a motion. Elected members (a fancy way of saying “councillors and the mayor”) can do this at any meeting, but putting forward a motion without giving others time to fully understand and consider it isn’t likely to succeed - and even where it does, it doesn’t give as many options for feedback and improvements.
So how do we put ideas forward?
Often, it starts with a request that the staff provide us more information. This might happen in a meeting, through emails (directed through the CEO, and with all elected members getting replies so we all have the same information), or at a workshop where we’re discussing policies.
There are a few different ideas that I’m slowly working on at the moment:
Divesting from fossil fuels
When the Town has money waiting to be used (for example, money put aside to fund future rounds of Urban Forest planting), this money goes into term deposits where it can accrue interest. The problem is that many banks still use that money to fund fossil fuel projects, meaning that despite our Climate Emergency Plan your rates are indirectly fuelling the climate crisis.
As I mentioned in the last newsletter, I’ve asked the CEO to present us with more information on how we might follow other cities around the world in divesting from fossil fuels. The next steps will be for this information to be presented to us at a policy workshop; to get a sense of what other Elected Members think of the idea; and then finally to put forward a policy proposal to be voted on.
Incorporating accessibility and safety upgrades into road repair
One of the concerns many people have raised with me is that often roads end up being resurfaced without safety upgrades like better pedestrian crossings, traffic management, or bike lanes being added.
Our staff do perform Healthy Streets assessments during the road repair process but at the moment the funding for these upgrades, as well as for other sub-programs like Skinny Streets, is separate from our road repair budget. This means that staff can’t always incorporate changes during the repair process.
I’ve been asking for more information about what the impact on our budget and resourcing would be if we ensured that road repairs always made any necessary improvements to make streets safer, more accessible, and more inclusive.
Local street closures for community events
Did you know that our Local Planning Scheme 2 (currently awaiting approval by the State government) sets out that local roads are intended “To balance space for vehicles with the need for local social and recreational space”?
I’ve had several people ask about the possibility of closing their street for Street Meet N Greets or other events (like Halloween). I also thought that this might be good for streets that want to have a Christmas light walk to encourage community decorations.
As part of the budget process, I’ve asked whether we could consider a few small grants for road closures. Hopefully the staff will present these as one of the options for us to consider within the events budget, and we’ll see whether other elected members might support the idea.
Get involved
If there are items coming up on council that you care about, it’s important that you let elected members know. Our individual contact details are here, and you can also email councillors@vicpark.wa.gov.au to reach us all.
There are also a couple of items open for public comment:
The draft Strategic Waste Management 2024-2029 - our climate emergency plan notes that waste makes up an estimated 85% of emissions, so action on this is important!
A community consultation on Christmas decorations (which I know have been a hot topic in the local Facebook groups).
Items on the June Ordinary Committee Meeting Agenda
Climate action on the agenda
The most important item in the upcoming meeting from a climate action and inclusion perspective, I believe, is Item 12.1: Consent to advertise draft LPP23 - Bicycle and Car Parking for Non-residential Development (pg 23 on). As I’ve set out previously, changes to parking policy can do a lot to help make cities more accessible and less car-dependent.
The staff recommendations note that if we do eventually adopt this policy (after sending it out for public comment) this is unlikely to have a drastic effect on parking provision, but will allow a small shift towards achieving the goals of our Integrated Transport Plan.
If adopted as written, this policy will:
Remove the current minimum requirements for non-residential car parking, allowing businesses to make their own choices about how much on-site parking they need;
Introduce better design requirements for parking, such as requiring a safe and accessible pathway to entrances and requiring the provision of shade trees;
Significantly increase the percentage of ACROD bays that are required to be provided to better meet the needs of the Town’s demographic;
Introduce requirements for short- and long-stay bicycle parking and end-of-trip facilities.
You can read the full draft policy here, and you can hear questions elected members asked at the latest Agenda Briefing Forum here (starting at 4min 30 seconds).
Other items of note
More details of these can be found on the ABF minutes page, and you’re welcome to let me know if you have any questions or thoughts!
Item 11.2: Adoption of minor amendments to the Strategic Community Plan 2022 - 2032. This Plan sets out some of the high-level plans for the future of Victoria Park, as well as giving details on how we are measuring progress. Upcoming state-level changes will probably mean we need to develop a similar plan in a different format.
Item 11.3: Annual Review of Delegations: this sets out what Town staff can do on their own authority, and what council needs to make decisions on.
Item 13.1: a potential lease for the Aqualife Cafe (an exciting possibility for those of us who feel that hot chips are an important part of the family swimming experience).
Inspiration from elsewhere
These case studies show how cities around the world are working to cut waste.
Transportation activists in California are putting together a campaign and alternative mobility budget to call for a people-first mobility budget, making a clear connection with the urgent need for climate action. Their central goals are a great expression of what it might look like to prioritise streets for people.
Merri-bek council has a program to help residents on a low income make their home more energy efficient, saving them money and cutting down on emissions.
From Seoul to Sydney, there are efforts to provide more affordable housing. Federal policies are important, but there are also steps we can take at the local level to ensure our communities are more affordable for everyone.
The Cheonggyecheon Stream Restoration Project turned a busy road into a stream, reducing pollution, cooling the area, and providing a biodiversity corridor.
We are all connected
Taking action locally for a better future is important. It’s also vital to remember that what happens locally is connected out to the global scale. If you have some money to spare, you might help support efforts to address famine in Sudan, or help Palestinians to resettle in Australia.
That's all folks!
Thanks for reading! As always, I encourage you to get in touch if there's anything you want to ask about or discuss.
best wishes,
sky.
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