Page 4398 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 25 October 2017
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Downer—party at the shops
MS LEE (Kurrajong) (6.49): A few weeks ago I had the great pleasure of joining locals in Downer for their annual party at the shops. The celebration was held on a gorgeous mid-spring day at the local shops in Downer, which is beginning to bloom as an essential community space since its redevelopment two years ago. I was pleased to join in the fun and activities, which included live music; workshops for seed bombing, wicking garden plots and worm farming; and face painting for the children. The courtyard was lined with stalls offering food and information as well as second-hand clothes, plants, books and games.
It was also great to see the recently opened Gang Gang café buzzing with locals and busily brewing their awesome coffee. The Gang Gang cockatoo is cherished as our territory’s faunal emblem, and I am sure that the Downer shops will be cherished by locals in much the same way.
The Downer shops are structurally unique, with a complex that goes all around and encloses the courtyard, with a raised round grass knoll in the middle where the fountain used to be. It is now a safe and inviting area ideal for community engagement, and it was wonderful to see this lovely space used and enjoyed by the community at this particular event.
We all know that Canberrans have a strong relationship with our local shops. I spoke about the future of the Kingston shops in this chamber only a few weeks ago. Our local shops play an integral part in providing vital services that are nearby and easily accessible. But they do more than that; our local shops are vital to bringing the community together, and our beautiful city was designed around these community hubs.
It is absolutely crucial that we encourage business activity and development in our local shops. The residents of Downer deserve vibrant local shops. It was great to see some of the first fruits of this vibrancy at the Downer shops, and I can only imagine what the shops will look like in the years to come if supported and allowed to flourish. The physical shops have great potential, with an oval nearby should the community wish to hold larger public events, and there is an abundance of residences within walking distance to make it a convenient gathering place.
To ensure the vibrant future, we need to make sure that the government does not allow it to deteriorate in the same way that the Giralang shops did. I have previously asked the government about its commitment to the local community and about investment in the Downer shops from the sale of the old Downer primary school. The government has stated that no specific funding from the sale has been set aside to improve the shops. If the government is not willing to invest a tiny portion of money made on the sale of a community asset in the local shops, which would benefit the entire community, then what confidence does the community have that their government is looking out for their best interests?
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