www.sos.asn.au

Planning Backlash have organised a public meeting to protest about the abysmal state of Planning in Victoria.

Sunday 6th of July
Town Hall
750 Mt Alexander Rd
Mooney Valley.

We will be there supporting the rally, and we encourage everyone to go!

See http://www.marvellousmelbourne.org/drupal/?q=node/87 for more details.

A storm of dissent is gathering in the inner city over the proposed Eddington road tunnel. There has been unprecedented interest in the proposed North Fitzroy tunnel openings onto Queens Parade, highlighted by Clifton Hill community planning group, "3068".

The Eddington Study said the tunnel would have no city exits to avoid exacerbating traffic congestion where Alexandra Parade becomes one long 3-lane exit into the city from the Eastern Freeway and East-Link.

Last August, transport and planning lecturer Dr Paul Mees bluntly criticised the authors of a 2007 Department of Transport report on privatisation.

Then, on May 20 this year, the Age reported that "Melbourne University has demoted one of its most outspoken academics after a complaint against him by the State Government...".

The University should have investigated the veracity of Mees' comments BEFORE action of any sort was contemplated, but it removed the podcast of his presentation from the University website without even consulting him first or informing him of the official complaint.

MEDIA RELEASE 22.5.08
SOS condemns State Government for removing Council Planning Powers

Removing Council planning powers - unnecessary, undemocratic and open to corruption!

Yesterday's announcement by Planning Minister Justin Madden to strip councils of planning power for major activity centre development again shows the State Government's contempt for the community.

It is yet another example of trying to make things easy for developers without regard to planning outcomes or the concerns of the whole community.

If the Planning Minister was really trying to streamline the planning process, he could simply make key planning guidelines mandatory (Rescode, Structure plans etc) which would vastly speed up the planning assessment process - any non-compliant applications would be rejected and the others would be easier to tick off. This would also greatly diminish the number of cases going to VCAT and provide what all parties want - greater certainty.

Today the Victorian Auditor General tabled in Parliament his report on Victoria's Planning Framework for Land Use and Development.

Unlike most other State Governments reports, this one is NOT a white wash saying that everything is fine!

Some highly critical key findings were that -

"In 78% of [permit application] cases examined, officer reports did not give adequate consideration to matters specified in the Act, planning scheme or both."