News from Council Meeting - 23 November
Published on 23 November 2020
Sustainable plan endorsed
An action plan that will help the City of Hobart to achieve more sustainable operational outcomes has been endorsed by the Council.
The Sustainable Hobart Action Plan: Towards a zero emissions Hobart comprises 46 actions grouped into six categories: Leadership, Mobility, Energy, Resilience, Waste, and Governance.
Following the recent community consultation, three key targets were added to the plan: a corporate greenhouse gas reduction target of 20 per cent by 2030; the setting of a community greenhouse gas target by the end of 2022; and a target to achieve 100 percent net renewable electricity by 2040.
The targets are designed to be achieved by local action and are economically achievable, with low upfront costs and medium-to-long term financial returns to the City of Hobart.
The full action plan can be viewed on the City of Hobart’s website.
Changes to North Hobart parking
Parking will be made free of charge at North Hobart’s off-street carparks after 6pm as part of a plan to improve parking at peak times.
To make it easier to find a park for short stops and pick-ups in the main dining and entertainment precinct, parking on Elizabeth Street between Federal and Burnett streets will be limited to 30 minutes, at a cost of $1 for half an hour, from 11am-2pm and 5pm-8pm. Parking will be free of charge at other times but the half-hour time limit will remain.
To cater for longer visits, the off-street carparks at Condell Place and Lefroy Street will be free of charge after 6pm for stays of up to three hours. Prior to 6pm, parking will be $2 an hour, which is a 30 per cent reduction on current charges.
In addition, line marking will be implemented in six surrounding streets where commuter parking has caused problems for residential access.
The changes are part of an ongoing program to improve accessibility and travel options in North Hobart, and are being undertaken in full consultation with residents and traders.
New members for panel
The Council has appointed four new members to the Urban Design Advisory Panel, which provides advice on building design and urban development in Hobart.
The new members of the panel are:
- Scott Balmforth (Chair) – Director of TERROIR
- Dr Helen Norrie - UTAS Masters of Architecture Course Coordinator
- Leigh Woolley – Architect and Urban Design Consultant
- Ian James – Director of Architecture at GHD
- Keith Drew – Representative of the Tasmanian Chapter of the Australian Institute of Architects
- Susan Small – Representative of the Tasmanian Chapter of the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects.
The City of Hobart is the only local government in Tasmania with a panel of this kind, having established the panel in 2012.
All developments that meet a determined scale and value are required to go to the UDAP for assessment, with the advice then provided to both the developer and the Council.
Price set for fast-charge
A maximum “park and charge” fee has been set for the recently installed electric vehicle fast-charger at Dunn Place.
A maximum fee of $20 an hour will be set to recover costs associated with the provision of infrastructure and electricity.
Parking will be time limited to 1 hour. The high-flow charger can power up most vehicles in around 30 minutes and the average charge time to date is approximately 17 minutes.
Public art guide
The City of Hobart will actively encourage the inclusion of public art in private developments to further enhance Hobart’s reputation as a creative and cultural hub.
A Public Art Private Development Guide has been established and will be provided to developers of large projects to foster consideration of public art in their developments.
In addition, a Public Amenity Policy for the City will be developed, with public art being noted as one way a developer might contribute to the public amenity of the city.
City’s resilience recognised
The City of Hobart has been selected as a finalist for the 2020 Resilient Australia National Local Government Award for its suite of May 2018 flood projects, collectively known as ‘Resilient Hobart’.
Among the projects implemented include the Stories of Resilience podcast series, photo gallery and short film; Rain Coming public artwork adjacent to the rivulet at South Hobart; the family-based community art project Afloat; and a pilot project that established community-based working groups to assess their respective suburbs’ resilience.
The award will be presented in Canberra on Friday 4 December.