Page 3893 - Week 15 - Tuesday, 15 December 1992
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The critical question for the time being was: Should the Minister be able to proceed with plans for urban development? That was critical in the minds of some members of the Tuggeranong community. The committee as a whole - I am delighted to say that it is a unanimous report - believes that there is room for residential development on that site without having any further impact than there is there now on the Tuggeranong Homestead.
Madam Speaker, in conclusion, I would like to thank members of the committee for their work and time in looking into this issue. I would like to thank members of the public who took the time and effort to make their submissions. Considering the short time that was available, the submissions were particularly sensitive to the issues. They were of high quality, without exception, and it seems to me quite appropriate that they be recognised as such. I would also like to thank the members of the department who were made available to us. Most of all, I wish to record the very good work of Mr Bill Symington, the secretary to the committee. The often difficult task that committee secretaries have is recognised by members, but not perhaps so much by the public. The efficiency with which they carry out their tasks needs to be recognised by members. I would like to thank Mr Symington. Members, I commend the report to you.
MS ELLIS (4.58): Madam Speaker, I was very pleased to be involved with the Tuggeranong Homestead inquiry, not only because of my interest in the Tuggeranong Valley but because this homestead is part of the rich history of the Canberra region. Also, Madam Speaker, I had a close involvement with this inquiry because of my knowledge of community opinion on this issue. The future of the Tuggeranong Homestead and its surroundings has been debated many times in recent years. I was determined that this particular chapter of the debate would be well constructed and would have a positive and lasting effect. To this end, I heartily agreed with Michael Moore that an inquiry of this nature would be constructive and would also provide for differing views to be expressed and heard. The Freeman report, commissioned some months ago by the Government, provided excellent background material on the history of the homestead building, the associated buildings and the environs.
From the very outset I was of the view that the homestead should be preserved. The information available to me, at first anecdotal and later confirmed in greater detail by the Freeman report, impressed on me the historical significance to the ACT of this important homestead. Like many in the community, I believed that the homestead should be preserved, as I have said; but, also like many in the community, I was not sure how. This inquiry recommends what I believe to be a very sensible approach to the preservation of the homestead that will provide money to be spent to preserve it at a level we would all expect. At the same time, however, this preservation does not mean that sensible urban renewal planning should be delayed in this part of Tuggeranong. The committee is recommending, unanimously, that, in consultation with the Heritage Council, restricted development take place to complement the historical and pastoral nature of the homestead.
You will also see from the report that some commercial development conducive to the architectural and historical design of the property is also recommended. I see these two initiatives as a means by which financial investment to preserve the heritage area can be made. As we know, Madam Speaker, the national capital was developed in an old settled rural area. We call ourselves the bush capital, a title that I hope we never see disappear. It is essential that we remind ourselves of this heritage and do what we can to preserve and enhance it.
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