Page 4286 - Week 14 - Thursday, 24 October 1991
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That is the attitude of these young people. They believe that the world owes them a living, and if they want to wreck other people's property they are quite entitled to do so. So, I definitely take a different point of view from Mr Wood. Also, work was done on the seats and the railings in front of the Canberra Centre only last year. The paint was not even dry and these people were doing their balancing tricks along the seats and the railings. Within about three days of it being painted, it looked like it had not been. I suggest that rejuvenation of the city centre and Garema Place will be a total waste of time and money if the skateboarders are not moved on to a more appropriate location.
MR CONNOLLY (Attorney-General, Minister for Housing and Community Services and Minister for Urban Services) (3.55): I will be very brief. I think it is very important for politicians to take a hands-on approach to their rule and not be overly concerned for their own physical safety. I am able to report to the Assembly that at lunchtime a band of courageous members of my staff and I ventured down to the skateboard infested wilds of Garema Place. We sat down under an umbrella and had a plate of pasta, reflecting on the fact that if Mr Stefaniak has his way it will soon be a gross, almost capital offence to consume alcohol in a public place. We even had a glass of wine with our pasta.
Looking around, it is indeed a pleasant environment in Garema Place. I always favoured open-air dining, and enhancements to open-air dining in Canberra, probably because I came from Adelaide, where it was booming for some period. In fact, the Government has moved, in a number of minor ways in recent months, to assist proprietors of outdoor dining establishments. A couple of women run a very nice antique-cum-tearoom on a corner of the Yarralumla shops and unfortunately a recycling bin had been established right where they had their tea tables. That was rather unpleasant for people who want to have a cup of tea; so we moved the recycling bin. We did something similar near Baileys Corner, where a proposal for some minor municipal works would have rather upset their layout of coffee tables.
There are two problems with the proposal to redevelop Garema Place that is being promoted by Mr Petersilka. I notice this week that he has been paying for open letters to me in the Canberra Times, saying that the Government is terrible and miserable, will not listen to community opinion, wants to be a bunch of wowsers and does not want people to enjoy open-air dining in Civic, which is, of course, nonsense. The problem with Mr Petersilka's position is that, in effect, unless we hand over Garema Place to him he is unhappy. I think everyone would accept that in an area like Garema Place, where there is a range of commercial activities, we really need to ensure that all the traders are happy.
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