We support responsible development
On Saturday 7 February, 1998, support St Kilda Park Primary School by coming to this great musical event, hosted by Raymond J Bartholomeuz.
Bring your own picnic and blanket; fine foods and wines are also avaliable. Take a tram or park at the end of Aughtie Drive.
Tickets are avaliable from Ticketek, Chronicles Bookshop and the George Cinema. $10/$1 for kids.
A community campaign is being launched to save the Esplanade Hotel, one of Melbourne's great cultural landmarks from a development fiasco. It has been under threat before, and it's under threat again.
Stay tuned for updates!! They will be here soon!!
In a recent letter published in The Age newspaper, ASRA President, Michael Pearce, noted that there had been some misunderstanding about the status of the Acland Courtyard development. While the Minister for Planning, Rob Maclellan, has not yet approved any planning scheme amendment for the Courtyard:
"[I]t may be that only the Minister can prevent it from proceeeding in its present form. It is certain that only the State Government can fix up the Sea baths fiasco [as well].
These two deeply (and deservedly) unpopular developments, both bequeathed to the City of Port Phillip by the State Government-appointed commissioners in a process which excluded public consultation, are a real test of the Government's commitment to good urban design.
They will demonstrate whether the commitment is genuine or whether the real commitment is to development at all costs."
The St Kilda community is disappointed that the independent planning panel has ignored the community's concerns and granted developers the right to build a 19-metre multi-level development despite calls from ASRA and Acland Street traders to limit the size of the site. ASRA is appealing the decision, and is also calling for the developer to negotiate in good faith with the community.
The time has come for Council and the State government to ensure that new developments suit the specific nature of St Kilda. There are at least 3 other major development sites coming on stream soon in the Acland Street area. If the Courtyard project goes ahead in its present form it will set the precedent for massive overdevelopment in the area which will entirely destroy its unique character.
Contact ASRA at 9525 5213
Acland Street Traders Association at 9525 5977
or just email us
Many of you will be aware that an empty shell resides on the historic St Kilda foreshore replacing the old St Kilda Baths.
The design of this project has been in dispute for many months now with the developers, who have been reluctant to cooperate with either the council or community on how the site should be developed. Allan Powell's vision for the site's reconstruction has been abandoned !
The President of ASRA, Michael Pearce, in response to the AAT's decision, said that the development was a disaster. He called the roof structures "a pimple on the backside of this unfortunate building."
For many years, the Sea Baths had been an icon of Melbourne life. Now they have been turned into an inappropriate monument to selfishness, and are symptomatic of the crisis of planning in Victoria. Problems with the building result from decisions made by the Commissioners who imposed over the people of Port Phillip in place of a democratically-elected council. It was they who permitted plans for a bigger building without consulting the community.
ASRA urges you contact the Minister for 'Planning', Robert Maclellan c/- Ministry for Planning and Environment, 477 Colllins Street Melbourne to condemn this vandalism.
The Acland Street Residents Association was formed in April 1994 in response to actions taken by the Victorian Minister for 'Planning', Mr Robert Maclellan.
Mr Maclellan overrode the democratic procedures of St Kilda Council to permit the conversion of the massive Diplomat Motel into over 90 apartments for overseas developers, without going through the normal planning process. The Minister's intervention meant that residents' concerns about parking and traffic were ignored despite the impact of other residential developments in the area. He scoffed at the right of appeal.
However, not even Maclellan could help the developers fulfill their dreams for an easy profit on the Diplomat Motel. The building has now been sold to another developer. Time will tell...
Interviewed on the ABC's Background Briefing, 8 September 1996, the Minister said that he did not share a passion for local government and that " I'm a sort of ratepayer in more than one municipality sort of thing, so I mean which one do I woe my allegiance to? Is it where I live? Is it where I work? Is it where I have my recreation? You know, I'm perhaps more modern in the sense that I feel a citizen of the world, I don't feel a citizen of some particular patch. My interests are broader than a patch...."
ASRA understands postmodernist identity crises, and it doesn't really matter with which part of the planet (nay galaxy) the Minister identifies. The problem is with process. In this case, Maclellan's interests are so broad and unfocussed that he neglects the people most affected by his decision-making.
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Port Phillip Conservation Council
January 28, 1997