Page 842 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 21 March 2018
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
I hope I am proved wrong. I would welcome being proved wrong. I will get up in this place and I will apologise. I will commend you for seeing the light on this. As Ms Le Couteur is laughing, I doubt that that is going to happen. I will quote from the submission, which has been made available certainly to the members for Murrumbidgee and to the minister. It states:
… Waramanga Shops has no playground or barbecue facilities for residents and users of the shops to enjoy.
That is indeed the case. I have been there many times, as has Mrs Jones, as have, I am sure, all of the members for Murrumbidgee. The submission continues:
Studies show playgrounds increase health, social connection, aid the environment and have positive impacts on the local economy.
According to the 2016 census data, there are 697 families that live in Waramanga, and the median age of the population is 40. This highlights the increasing number of young couples and families living in the area. What we are seeing across all of Weston Creek is a rejuvenation of those suburbs with the older original residents moving and younger families coming in, but not having the facilities that they need for their young families. That point is made in the submission:
Waramanga has received limited investment over the past decade. Given the changing demographic of Waramanga, it is important the ACT Government maintains the appropriate levels and quality of playgrounds and social green spaces to keep up with the growth in the area.
It is abundantly clear, if you go not just to Waramanga but across Weston Creek and Woden, that that is not happening. I know from having spoken with people who are behind this proposal that they would love to see not just this proposal happen but also other proposals happen across Weston Creek and Woden as well. The submission notes:
Various studies indicate many benefits that playgrounds and community play spaces provide. Four major benefits are that they increase health, social connection, aid the environment and have significant positive impacts on the local economy.
Historically—this is a point made in the submission—you could go to the shops and you could use the playgrounds in surrounding schools. But what you see—this has happened in Mrs Jones’s home suburb of Duffy as well—is that the local schools now have fences around them and you cannot access them. Certainly, I used to go to the playground with my kids at Duffy. It was excellent but it is the school’s playground and it cannot be used anymore.
Basically, we are not just saying that we do not have adequate facilities in Weston Creek. The action of placing fencing around local schools has actually taken facilities that we used to enjoy away from the community. There are far fewer there than there used to be.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video