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Redfern Waterloo can not just trust in
Frank
Frank
Sartor is Minister for Redfern Waterloo
and the sole Government spokesperson
for all issues relating to Redfern, Eveleigh, Waterloo and Darlington.
He is also responsible for any NSW Government involvement in building on The Block in Redfern and now for
deciding what will get built there.
Frank has responsibly for the Redfern
Waterloo Authority (RWA) which will take control of all Government land (about one third of the area) including the
Australian Technology Park, North Eveleigh, the railway corridor, public housing
land and disused sites such as Redfern School, Rachael Foster Hospital, the
Redfern Court House and the old police station. The RWA is not funded from the NSW budget. It is expected to fund
its own activities from property sales, land developments and other sources. The
RWA has had some areas declared state significance and the government can set up
their own development controls for such land.
The Authority will be responsible for
development projects like a new
Redfern railway station and for employment creation programmes. The Premiers’ Department Redfern Waterloo Partnership Project
(RWPP) was to continue reorganizing all government and non-government human
services in the area but this now is also absorbed into the RWA giving the RWA
control over all human services as well its initial functions.
A 10 year public Redfern Waterloo Plan to
provide direction for the Authority will be prepared by the Minister. The shape
of Community involvement in the
formation of this Plan and their role in the ongoing decisions about the
Authority is still unclear. All such RWA matters are at the discretion of the
Minister. To date government policy
in the area has been made in response to a community snap shot taken by
consultants and the community has been left out of subsequent discussion about
possible directions and responses. The community needs a more dynamic
consultation process where plans are developed in an on going dialogue and
partnership with the community and the government is held accountable for what it
delivers.
The RWA is now blending together
infrastructure development, human service delivery and urban regeneration in an
as yet undefined model which gives massive power to the Minister.
If the development corporation
and the human service elements are
not well integrated the fear is that government’s property interests will
dominate the RWA’s priorities at the expense of the community and social agenda.
Redfern Waterloo is being asked to trust in
Minister Sartor and his successors to look after our “urban renewal” for the
next 10 years with little up front information, little legislative constraint
and no guarantees of real community involvement in the processes.
REDWatch is a residents and friends group
covering Redfern Eveleigh Darlington and Waterloo (the same area covered by the Redfern
Waterloo Authority). REDWatch monitors the activities of government activities
such as the RWA and seeks to ensure community involvement in all decisions made
about the area. REDWatch meets on the 4th Sunday of the Month at 2pm
at the Factory, 67 Raglan
Street Waterloo.
Only with a strong community voice can we
ensure that the changes that will be made in Redfern-Waterloo will benefit the
community and not just the Government. If you are concerned – become
involved!
Further Information visit www.redwatch.org.au or email Geoff Turnbull at mail@redwatch.org.au
Phone
(02) 9318 0824 or write to: REDwatch, C/- PO Box 1567,
Strawberry Hills NSW 2012
A free Redfern Waterloo email update
service is also available by emailing mail@redwatch.org.au