Page 2535 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 31 July 2019
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What am I trying to do with my amendment, given that I am in furious agreement with Mr Parton, including with his amendment? As someone who has done a few of these things before, I am trying to make the motion stronger and make it clearer as to what the government has to do. Importantly, we need to have some firm dates for when the government has to do what it has to do.
It requires the government to release an action plan. One of the reasons for the dates in my amendment is that the biggest problem with Mr Rattenbury’s 2015 motion was a lack of clear dates by which the government had to actually do anything by. It also adds some more important points around what the government might consider doing.
One of the things we are looking at potentially is that some precincts will have to be dealt with differently. For example, what you do in a town centre will probably be different from what you do for EPIC. As I mentioned, a few years ago EPIC was not even an issue because there were not enough people close by.
We probably need to identify a key site or two that can be used for music festivals and other events which are going to be really loud. EPIC is used for festivals, for the much louder festivals and for a much louder event, that being Summernats.
We also need to have clear areas that can be regarded as entertainment precincts, where noise levels can be louder for longer hours. That is probably places like Garema Place and the town centres. I am pleased that Mr Gentleman’s media release seemed to help, although possibly not quite enough. Extending noise limits on Friday and Saturday nights from 10 pm to midnight is a step forward, but I would suggest, particularly in the summer months, that people in Canberra stay out well after midnight, and they still keep making noise during that time.
There are areas that should be considered to be shared spaces, and both residents and live music need to respectfully share spaces, with a clear understanding on both sides of allowable noise regulations and building requirements. Also, homebuyers need to understand what type of area they are moving in to. I understand that has been one of the biggest sources of problems, particularly for the Transit Bar, because people have moved from their very quiet suburban homes into the middle of town. As I said the biggest problem, I understand, has been garbage collection, which is relentless, and it is not a particularly attractive noise. But for the homebuyers who came out of very quiet suburban areas, it did not even occur to them that there would be garbage trucks in the very early hours of the morning.
I thank Mr Parton for raising this issue today, and I thank him for his forthcoming support of our amendment. I also want to thank the government for their work on this issue. I particularly thank Minister Gentleman for his announcement today. As I said I would like to see a lot more than this, and I am hopeful that when Minister Gentleman speaks there might be some more information about steps going forward. I do thank the government for taking some action. I look forward to tripartisan support for more loud, wonderful, vibrant noise, otherwise known as music, in the right parts of Canberra.
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