Community forum to shape Southbank

By Sean Car

If you have an interest in the future of postcode 3006, then pencil Tuesday, March 23, 6pm (for a 6.30pm start) at Metropolis Southgate in your calendar.

In response to a number of local issues including the sale of land at Boyd Park and delays to major projects at Southbank Boulevard and City Rd, the Southbank Residents’ Association (SRA) will stage the Southbank Community Forum to allow locals to hear directly from the City of Melbourne’s senior management.

In addition to Lord Mayor Sally Capp, Deputy Lord Mayor and chair of planning Cr Nicholas Reece and deputy chair of planning Cr Rohan Leppert, the council’s deputy CEO Alison Leighton will be in attendance along with the council’s capital works and infrastructure managers Roger Teale and Jonathan Kamouris.

The three members from the council’s senior management will sit on a professional panel, which will also include planning experts Hodyl & Co founder Leanne Hodyl and RMIT University Professor Michael Buxton.

The theme of the event – Southbank - Where to from here? – will explore the visions laid out in the Southbank Structure Plan 2010 to see how Southbank is tracking on both current and future projects.

With the support of Lord Mayor Sally Capp, from 6.30pm to 7pm, the SRA will launch its history book Tall Storeys & True Tales in celebration of the association’s 20th anniversary in 2018. Written by long-time resident Lynne Lumsden with a foreword by Member for Albert Park Martin Foley, the book covers SRA’s entire history representing the Southbank community and will be available to purchase on the night. The forum will then begin at 7pm and include 30 minutes towards the end of the night for Q&A.

SRA president Tony Penna, who will moderate discussion and questions on the night, has billed the community forum as the most important event in the SRA’s history.

He said that while the evening had been triggered by many delays and setbacks to City of Melbourne-led projects, the event was not an opportunity to “bash the council” but rather have a dialogue about the next chapter in Southbank’s evolution.

“Everything will be coming back to the Southbank Structure Plan. Are we on track to achieve what was originally planned? Or was it a pie in the sky idea?” Mr Penna said.

“The whole motivation for the meeting is because of that concern and that frustration from the community. We were all excited when we heard about the City Road Master Plan and Southbank Boulevard but the delays combined with the sale of land at Boyd Park was kind of like the icing on the cake. We’ve had enough.”

“If this is the first 10 years of that 30-year plan, well what are the next 20 years going to look like?”

“This forum is not going to be an opportunity to beat up the council. It’s a positive forum to look forward to what’s coming.”

One major project proposed in the Southbank Structure Plan, which Mr Penna said would be up for discussion on the night, would be the illusive plan to connect the “two halves of Southbank” by creating a park across the freeway at the entrance to the Domain Tunnel.

History book launch

To kickstart the night, SRA will launch its 20-year history book titled Tall Storeys & True Tales, The first 20 Years of the Southbank Residents’ Association from 6.30pm to 7pm.

Speaking with Southbank News this month, the book’s author Lynne Lumsden, who compiled the history during her time on the SRA committee between 2017 and 2018, said she was really pleased with the outcome.

From what was originally established as the Southbank Resident’ Group under the inaugural leadership of Ray McDonald and Bill Stephen in 1998 through to the current era under president Tony Penna, the book details every success of this integral community association.

Lynne Lumsden said the story of SRA was an important one to tell.

“There was a lot of impetus to do it [establish SRA] in the early days. They [residents] were going to be completely overtaken by relatively high-rise buildings. I was really pleased to do the history because it shows how a dedicated group of volunteers can make a difference,” she said.

“I think the tenacity of the original presidents, and Tony [Penna] of course, is just amazing. They could have given up. Working with the City of Melbourne is never easy!”

“We can be very proud of the work SRA has done. Their biggest victory was Boyd in my opinion. It’s a lovely building and a great centre for people; the heart of the community.”

For more information or to register for the Southbank Community Forum scan the QR code on page 6 of this edition or refer to Tony Penna's monthly column •

For more information: southbankresidents.org.au