The process of building new suburbs:
In order to build on this land it had to be outlined within the territory plan that this land was ; 1)Urban capable :Land is physically capable of urban development excluding conservation areas.
2)Urban suitable: Land is urban capable. Land that located where services and infrastructure can be provided in a sustainable and economically responsible fashion.
The Molonglo Valley due to its location as a meeting point between the Weston creek town centre and Belconnen town centre was able to meet this criteria.
(Image taken from: http://the-riotact.com/molonglo-planning-forum-this-thursday/40945,18/4/12)
The Molonglo Valley construction is broken into three stages. The first stage is currently under construction and due to be open soon. The Molonglo Valley will house 13 new suburbs for Canberra and give a population of approximately 60-70,000 people in different types of housing density (http://form.molonglovalley.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/FAQs-Molonglo-Valley-11-June-2010.pdf).
The things I like about the construction is that even though there is no population base here, the government has still remained committed to community consultation within both adjacent town centres of Weston Creek and Belconnen. I think this is important as during the teething period these two centres will bear the influx on infrastructure and amnesties until this suburb is properly development. What do you think of this? Do you think government needed to consult with these people?
Another thing I like is the spatial analysis of the Molonglo Valley. They have put effort into making sure the roads will be wide enough, in terms of arterials and side roads and that there is enough room to make a bus lane in the future when the population develops. They have also ensured that there will be room for trees along the roads which is essential in maintaining Canberra as a “Garden City” .This can be seen in the link below.
What do you think about this?
The only thing I can critique is the affording housing measures taken here. They are in line with the territory minimum of 15 % in each suburb; however I am not sure whether it is appropriate that 350,000 dollars will only get you a 1-2 bedroom apartment. I think more affordable housing should be a part of this plan and governments should come up with more ideas on how to deal with the housing shortage. Therefore it will be essential that government when selling off this land to house owners ensure that the selling off of houses and land will help within making the housing market, rather than continuing to make it more expensive by releasing few houses at a time.
What are your thoughts?
B
x
