Curiouser and curiouser…

Welcome and thank you to those of you who have signed this petition since my last update.

The City’s website has now published the unconfirmed minutes from the 21 April Council meeting. In the staff’s replies to public questions relating to the Civic Precinct project, there is some curious information. At that meeting, someone asked (amongst other things) whether there are more trees in the new design than currently exist. The City’s reply was: There are more trees planned in the consultation design than currently exist in the precinct.

This is curious because this is the first time, to my knowledge, that the term “consultation design” has been used. Until now, the term used was “concept design”.

Was this change intentional? Is there a difference? Is there a new design being considered which they are now calling the consultation design?

If they are one and the same, then the reply above seems to contradict earlier information. At the Annual Electors Meeting on 18 December, the City replied to my question about tree loss by saying that the architect’s initial design identified that 18 trees could be removed and 20 could be transplanted, including some ceremonial trees. The FAQs on the project website, which have since been removed, and the printed project booklet handed out on 18 December, also mentioned removal and relocation of trees.

So it is curious that the City is now saying there will be more trees than is currently the case in the civic precinct.

If this was the plan all along, why didn’t they mention this in the original project materials, including the FAQs on the website?

The drawing above is taken from the project booklet handed out on 18 December. It also appears on the Civic Precinct website interactive map. 

Hopefully, the Council will listen to our concerns and save the Gardens as a cool, leafy, tranquil place for everyone to enjoy.

Thank you again for your support.