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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 8 Hansard (29 August) . . Page.. 2527 ..

MR QUINLAN: My question to the Chief Minister relates to the Kingston foreshore development. I have to say that as things stand the suburb of Kingston, with a larger number of relatively small high and medium-density developments, each with its own engaging style but which seem to aggregate into something that is less than perfect, is no advertisement for town planning. Also, many local developers cannot undertake large projects that would bring with them some degree of innovation in urban design and uniformity of quality and level of presentability.

Some concern has been expressed around town that the method of release of blocks will be such as to advantage very large-scale developers and possibly very large merchant banks, squeezing out the locals. What process does the government intend to adopt to balance the competing strategies of large projects to allow better planning and design versus small projects that permit maximum local participation in the overall project?

MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, I am happy to take this question as the minister responsible for the Kingston Foreshore Development Authority. Mr Quinlan has raised a very important point about the way in which large developments have occurred in the past in the ACT. I can indicate that this very issue has had some ventilation in Kingston Foreshore Development Authority meetings. It was in fact raised in a recent meeting that the Chief Minister and I had with the authority, where we talked about the way in which the development of that site would be progressed. It is the intention of the authority to manage the development of the foreshore area in stages, to make each stage small enough and discrete enough to be able to be attractive to local as well as interstate developers.

Engineering particular results is always very dangerous in these circumstances and the government would not wish to do that or be seen to do that. But it is certainly our view, and I can say the Kingston Foreshore Development Authority's view, that the development should be handled in such a way as to provide that chance for competition by local developers as well.

The sequencing and the mechanism to be used have not as yet been finalised. There are a number of issues which the authority is currently dealing with for its program of release of the blocks. I believe that the issue Mr Quinlan has raised is certainly one that the foreshore authority is aware of and it will be taken up as the development plan is actually implemented.

MR QUINLAN: I ask a supplementary question. I thank the minister for the answer. In fact, he has pretty well answered my supplementary other than the following: can he give us any indication when the Assembly and particularly the building industry, post-Olympics, post-GST boom, will be advised as to the program of release?

MR HUMPHRIES: At this stage the best estimate for release of the first stages in the staged development of the foreshores is the last quarter of this calendar year. There are a number of issues which the authority has raised with me with respect to contamination of the site and working through issues about removing contamination on the site. Assuming that they do not hold up the progress in the matter, it should certainly be the last quarter of this year or, if that is a problem, then the first quarter of next year.

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