RESIDENTS GROUP FORMED
A call was recently made to create a volunteer group from the residents and community members to lead t
he fight against the proposed plan. Many heeded the call, and the Enoggera Creek Residents Advisory Group was formed, comprised of six residents from each of the three of the precincts. These members aim to act as a committee to engage media, council, sporting groups and stakeholders. We met for the first time on the 7th April, 2021, with 16 out of 19 people in attendance.
We are a diverse group of people with a range of skillsets. Here is the Summary from our Meeting:
OVERALL MESSAGE: SCRAP THE PLAN, START AGAIN.
OBJECTIVES: Get the Brisbane City Council to withdraw the whole plan and start the planning stage from scratch. Ensure they undergo public, comprehensive consultation with sporting groups, residents and community stakeholders.
Why we were formed
The release of the Plan drew swift anger and opposition from residents’ and sporting groups due to, from what has been seen to date, a flawed consultation process, a lack of understanding of the needs of the residents, and a lack of environmental concern. There also appeared to be unfair sports ground planning that seems to favour some sports over others. It was claimed by representatives of the Brisbane City Council that a proper consultation process had taken place, but this was refuted by almost all relevant stakeholders particularly the residents bordering the parklands as well as many of the sporting groups.
Community meetings were held immediately, and it became evident that the residents overwhelmingly rejected the Plan and were angry and disappointed in the lack of communication with them in the pre-planning stages. It became very clear from these meetings that the residents were united in their need to have the Plan rejected and proper community consultation to take place.
An online Facebook group of concerned residents was formed which to date boasts some 730 members within a 2 week period of such a group being created.
As the parklands stretch across 2.5kms and border the 5 suburbs of Windsor, Wilston, Newmarket, Herston and Kelvin Grove and the concerns of the residents over various parts of the Plan were diverse, it became evident that we needed to create a centralised committee that represented the concerns of the residents to engage with the relevant stakeholders and champion the opinions of the residents.
Who are we?
This centralised committee comprises 19 residents representing the 3 precincts as set out in the Plan - Western, Central, and Eastern.
Further, as these 5 suburbs consist of a large vocal and unified voter base the committee plans to be a recognised and powerful lobby group to engage with council and other relevant stakeholders.
To date we have also made contact with sporting groups who share our views and concerns and we plan to work with these groups.
The committee has and will continue to engage with our fellow residents by a private Facebook group and through community meetings.
Our concerns.
In representing the concerns of the various residents across 5 suburbs we have summarised the issues with the Plan to be as follows.
Loss of green spaces being replaced with car parking and synthetic fields. This will also affect flooding risk and reflected heat.
Environmental impacts on wildlife especially along the creek.
Changing multi-use green space with recreational appeal for all park visitors into single use venues that will need to be fenced off and only benefit specific sports teams.
Increase traffic to residentially zoned areas which are already stretched to capacity.
Increase parking which is likely to be used by Royal Brisbane Hospital staff to the detriment of the residents.
Increased light and noise pollution to residential areas.
Disingenuous and inadequate consultation process that seems to have ignored proper due processes, environmental concerns and planning requirements.
We are also aware of and supporting concerns from sporting groups who are being displaced without proper consultation.
What we aim to do.
The residents wish to make it clear that they are not against improvements to the Enoggera Creek Sports and Recreation Precinct, but they are wanting to ensure that proper community engagement and representation takes place in the planning and development process considering the above concerns.
The aim of the committee is to be a central point for council, sports groups and stakeholders to communicate and negotiate with on behalf of the residents. We also aim to tally the individual concerns of the residents for their local area problems.
These aims will involve the committee actively commencing communication with sporting groups and council representatives and would want to be involved with communication with planning contractors from this point forward.
In addition, the committee will also start engaging with the media to highlight concerns of the residents with the Plan and to give public attention to the environmental issues.
Immediate issues to be attended.
As an immediate action, the committee requests that the Plan, as currently drafted, be scrapped in favour of an extensive consultation process to occur, after which a new draft plan could be created.
The committee would be looking to meet in person with local members of all levels of government as well as council planners responsible for the Plan.
We would hope that local members and council planners initiate a public forum meeting to hear residents’ concerns about the Plan.
As we indicated earlier, the residents are not opposed to improvements across the Enoggera Creek Sports and Recreation Precinct, there needs however to be proper consultation across all stakeholders including residents. It is the strong view of residents that the Plan was not the result of such consultation.