REDWatch Convenor’s Report 2010-11
Over the past 25 years, the digital revolution
has changed the way we work and play almost beyond recognition. Increasingly,
smart devices — portable tools that connect to the internet —have left many of
us feeling bombarded with change from every direction, feeling stressed,
overworked, confused, and with too little time to appreciate and enjoy life.
Our rapidly changing world is rapidly stressing us out and leaving our
communities suffering from information overload. Redfern and Waterloo is going through at time
rapid change, (although some may say that in certain areas change is too slow)
this indicates to me that REDWatch’s role within the community is even more
important today than when it was born all those years back.
REDWatch’s role of obtaining information,
sifting through the spin, and assisting in its dissemination in way that is
relevant, appropriate and assists the community to debate the subjects that can
impact on the future of our community is now even more essential. We work hard to try to ensure the community
has an independently informed influence over local policy and decision making
as possible, whilst attempting to keep the Government honest and accountable.
The task at hand with limited resources isn’t an easy one, but due to the passion
and outstanding commitment of our members, volunteer coordination group,
partners and supporters, we have had many successful moments over the year.
This year we have covered a diverse range of
‘hot potato’ subjects including:
- understanding Planning
Controls, - exploring and
responding to the draft BE2 framework - exploring the future of
housing policy and the local preliminary master plan - heritage
- dialogue with our
federal member of the redevelopment of housing estates - an election candidates
forum - community transport
forum - assisting in the birth
of the Groundswell residents /NGO coalition - supporting the
formation of Alexandria Residents Action Group - holding meetings with
the highest levels of Government - presenting formal and
informal submissions based on the views of our membership - raising funds to
sustain our website - participating in the
Roll Up Redfern project - facilitating wider
community engagement within Redfern/ Waterloo social housing structures - continuing to be
represented at the local ministerial advisory groups.
We hope by this action focused agenda our
members and the community are better informed about the issues that matter and
that we have been able to influence Government in a positive and constructive
manner where possible.
The year was not without its challenges when
our good friend Trevor Davies died. He was a previous convenor and one of our
founding members and his passing left us with a legacy of inspirational passion
and wisdom. The sudden loss of a key individual like Trevor I believe means
that we need to reflect as a group, and as a community, how we must consider
our future and how we ensure that our work continues. If REDWatch influence is
to be sustained in the years to come we must expand our membership and our volunteer
pool. We need to grow our capacity and use the evolving new technology to
connect with the community, as we continue to aim to fulfil our mission
statement.
With this in mind, I want congratulate the
membership on their collective achievements to date and to thank the Coord
group for their hard work behind the scenes.
The various speakers who attending and briefed our membership, and those
in Government and the non-government sector who have worked with us in a
constructive manner we also thank. I thank you for the opportunity of being your
convenor for the past year, I know that without a shadow of doubt, our group’s
ability to make a difference in this community does not go unnoticed, and our
influence is probably far greater than you know. It is a privilege to work with each and every
one of you, and I look forward to continuing to support the group as it grows
in the future.
Congratulation to you all with best wishes for
the future,
Mike
Shreenan (Convenor 2010-11)
REDWatch Spokesperson’s Report 2010-11
2010-11 has been a hectic year for REDWatch.
With the RWA preparing for the Built Environment Plan 2 (BEP2) and HNSW
preparing for what became its Preliminary Master Plan, REDWatch’s main focus
this year moved to the proposed redevelopment of the Redfern and Waterloo
Public Housing Estates.
Over the last year REDWatch has played an
important role in raising questions about what is proposed both with government
agencies and in the community. A discussion paper on public housing
redevelopment in August 2010 was sparked by HNSW “Cuppa with a Designa” and put
many key issues into the public domain.
As with previous campaigns REDWatch set up a
section of its website to capture information relevant to the housing
redevelopment and to make it available. One of the early issues to arise was
about the benefits or otherwise of changing the area’s social mix. REDWatch
held a forum on the issue and pulled together many articles and papers on this
topic so that the community had access to various perspectives on this policy
direction which was being pushed by HNSW and the RWA.
Following problems with the BEP1 exhibition,
REDWatch had argued strongly for a non-statutory exhibition on BEP2 and we were
pleased that the Government decided on this action even though we were less
than impressed with the length of time allocated for the exhibition and many
parts of the exhibition process. REDWatch played an important role in analysing
the BEP2 documents and in preparing a briefing document about the issues which we
managed to make publically available before the close of the exhibition so that
the community had access to our concerns before making their own submissions.
This discussion paper, along with the clarifications obtained from the RWA,
enabled REDWatch to prepare a detailed submission on BEP2.
With HNSW starting work on a Preliminary Master
Plan before the BEP2 planning controls are finalised, REDWatch has been busy
both trying to get key concerns with the BEP2 addressed as well as trying to
ensure the Master Plan comprehensively deals with public housing issues without
pre-empting the BEP2 discussions. This has seen REDWatch representatives have
meetings with the RWA, HNSW and the Planning Minister about these issues as
part of our ongoing push to ensure a transparent inclusive process.
As part of our response to the redevelopment
REDWatch encouraged the establishment of the Groundswell Coalition to bring
together non-government agencies to help facilitate greater community
understanding and engagement around the proposed redevelopment. REDWatch
participates in the Groundswell meetings and REDWatch members are also involved
in the Redfern Waterloo Community Learning and Research Group.
REDWatch’s work on Heritage Issues continued
over the year but with the work of the Redfern Waterloo Heritage Task Force
(RWHT) and the Eveleigh Heritage Steering committee the discussions were only
held ‘within the tent’ rather than through the media as they had been in the
previous years. The final RWHT report proposes a RWHT type mechanism continues
but there have been no meetings of these Eveleigh Heritage groups now for 6
months and REDWatch will need to carefully monitor what happens here. With the
winding up of the RWA it is doubtful the Sydney Metropolitan Development Authority
(SMDA) can easily plan for heritage across the entire Eveleigh site and there
is a danger that responses may become more ATP centric. We are yet to see the
final Eveleigh Heritage Interpretation Plan for the entire site, the Draft ATP
Conservation Management Plan or recommendations on how heritage co-ordination
can be effectively continued. REDWatch has made a substantial contribution to
shifting the Government thinking about the value of the Eveleigh Heritage but
much more remains to be done.
REDWatch continued to work on a wide range of
issues across the area as required. We encouraged people facing ongoing issues
to form new groups. In the last year have seen the formation of the Alexandria
Residents Action Group taking some of the ATP impact issues off REDWatch’s
plate as well as the formation of Residents Acting In Defence of Darlington
(RAIDD) who are picking up on some of the issues connected to Sydney
University’s redevelopments. REDWatch has been supportive of these new groups
and provides assistance and a broader perspective as needed.
One of the major changes throughout the year
has been the establishment of the SMDA and the movement of many RWA functions
into the new SMDA in preparation for the winding up of the RWA. REDWatch was
formed nine months before the RWA came into existence and has monitored the
RWA’s activities for the last seven years. With the movement of some functions
to the SMDA our role monitoring continues. We will need to become familiar with
the Growth Centre’s Act and the Redfern Waterloo Precinct Brief. We will also
need to keep an eye on what happens to the functions divested by the RWA such
as Human Services and Employment and Enterprise to ensure the issues identified
and are adequately addressed (e.g. Human Services Plan Evaluations) are
followed up by Government in some other way.
Two members of REDWatch sit on the RWA Human
Services Ministerial Advisory Committee (HSMAC) as individuals and I sit on the
Built Environment Ministerial Advisory Committee (BEMAC). These committees will
cease with the winding up of the RWA but the SMDA is looking at some form of
continuation of these MACs. The MACs continued to provide little opportunity
for input into the RWA’s plans with the BEMAC being shown the BEP2 two days
before it went on public exhibition. Similarly no details about the options for
Redfern Station have yet been shown to the BEMAC.
Ironically while the RWA does not consult the
community about its plans prior to exhibition the Department of Planning
encourages developers in the area to discuss their project proposals with local
community groups before they go to the Department. As a result REDWatch has had
the opportunity to be briefed early on some projects and to make comments early
on about these developments.
The REDWatch website continues to be an
important part of REDWatch’s activities. It fills the role of a virtual
resource centre where people can access information about the area and this
certainly helps handle some of the enquiries received over the phone. As an
indication of the importance of the website in October 2011 the REDWatch
website averaged 894 visits / 2716 pages and 5990 hits per day.
The REDWatch website was originally set up by
David Tickle and Nicholas Lam. Nicholas acted as our systems administrator and
has personally covered the hosting costs for the website since early 2005. We
are very grateful for Nicholas’s practical support of REDWatch over many years
which made a key aspect of our work possible. Jose Perez has now taken over as
our systems administrator and the site now is now commercially hosted
necessitating income to cover these costs. We acknowledge the assistance of the
RWA which contributed $1800 to REDWatch in July 2011 towards the costs
associated with our website.
The website plays a crucial role not only in
making news available but also in REDWatch’s lobbying and campaigns. The
Heritage Section set up to campaign over the Blacksmith Shop, the Large
Erecting Shop and Eveleigh heritage more broadly, has been important to those
campaigns and now provides a significant public repository of Eveleigh heritage
information. The new section on Public Housing similarly aims to provide a
resource for the community in its discussion with HNSW as we have previously
for people in Darlington during the North Eveleigh Concept Plan. The importance
of the section dealing with public housing is underlined by the fact that HNSW
is not placing its consultation material on the internet and so the only place
that material can be accessed now and in the future is on the REDWatch website.
The website has not been updated as frequently
as in previous years. This is partly because more is happening and it hence
requires more time and partly because I have had less time to do the work. This
has been compounded in the last few months as Lyn has taken on greater
responsibility on the South Sydney Herald and has not had the time to post
material on the website. We are looking for people who are interested in
learning how to post material to keep the news and events sections of the site
up to date.
While the Redfern Waterloo Issue Updates were
not put out by REDWatch their existence did drive traffic to the website and
spread the word widely about what was happening. This was in part because the
information referred to was put on the REDWatch website and because people
received a monthly or more frequent update. I have tried to make the monthly
emails to REDWatch supporters a little more comprehensive to cover the gap left
by the RWIUs. We have managed to get a few RWIUs out this year and still have
the intention on keeping these going but they require a lot of time which is in
short supply.
As spokesperson I continue to be the public
contact point for REDWatch. My office phone and mailbox have been given as the
contact points for REDWatch, and I deal with a range of inquiries from the
media, students, agencies, residents and the general public looking for
information about REDWatch or issues connected to the area. Where possible I
refer these inquires to others to provide the assistance sought.
One of the important responsibilities for the
spokesperson is dealing with many media inquiries, providing background
briefings on issues, doing interviews and making referrals to people who could
be spoken to for a story. This helps to raise the issues of concern to REDWatch
but not necessarily with it always being associated with REDWatch’s name. I
have continued to submit material to the South Sydney Herald especially since
Trevor Davies’ death and the ceasing of his Fast News column in that paper. I
have also spoken on behalf of REDWatch at a range of public and consultation
meetings, liaised with local agencies and addressed student classes and
conferences.
In the last year I have continued to represent
REDWatch on the Roll Up Redfern Committee with Sydney Council, RWA, Chamber of
Commerce and Souths Football Club. While Roll Up Redfern’s brief is aimed at
getting rid of the shutters and looking at ways of reinvigorating Redfern
Waterloo, the focus for much of the year has been on the Redfern Brand smile
logo brand about which there have been differing views within REDWatch.
REDWatch decided to defer adoption of the Brand to see if the promotion’s
strategy generated community acceptance.
I also attend Police Community Safety Precinct
Committee Meetings in addition to meetings of the Redfern Waterloo Heritage
Taskforce, Eveleigh Steering Committee (alternate with Bruce Lay) and RWA BEMAC
meetings.
REDWatch still continues to be like a second
full time job even though I have had to cut back on some REDWatch activities
over the last year. My ability to attend daytime meetings and respond to the
demands of the spokesperson’s role continues to be dependent on the flexibility
offered by my business. This business continues to contract and at some point I
will be unable to continue with the flexibility of the last 6-7 years. This
change has implications for REDWatch. It has been pleasing this year that
Michael Shreenan as Convenor, and other Coord Group members, have taken an
active role in chairing meetings and lightening the Spokesperson’s load.
There have been changes to the Coordinating
Group during the year. At the AGM Michael Shreenan was elected Convenor,
Geoffrey Turnbull Spokesperson, Jose Perez Secretary and Ross Smith Treasurer
with committee members Irene Doutney, Michael Chapman, Wendie McCaffley and
Trevor Davies being elected and Desley Hass subsequently also co-opted. Sadly,
Trevor Davies who was our public officer, long time convenor and a founding
member of REDWatch passed away in June 2011. The Coord Group has met monthly to
discuss issues, arrange events and help guide REDWatch and me as spokesperson.
I wish to express my gratitude to the Coord Group and members for their work
over the year. I wish to especially place on record my appreciation for the
work of Trevor Davies especially in the setting up of REDWatch, working on our
campaigns and in helping it develop into what it is today.
It continues to delight me that REDWatch
represents such a wide range of people with an interest in Redfern Waterloo,
Eveleigh and Darlington. The mixture of housing tenures, political
affiliations, people who work in the area and the diverse networks that people
belong to enables REDWatch to hold together a broad range of perspectives, to tap
into the knowledge of a diverse community and hence provide a credible
community voice in our dealings with Government.
With the change of Government we thought it
would again be good to find someone with a commitment to the local community
from the Liberal Party that might take the place left by Ian Thompson (our
founding Liberal Party member). It was encouraging in our recent meeting with
Brad Hazzard that when we raised our desire to find a Liberal Party replacement
we were assured that REDWatch’s track record and credibility were both good and
that we did not need to have as a member anyone associated with the Liberal
Party to be taken seriously by the Minister.
The Minister also indicated how he had read
many things from REDWatch and had enjoyed our commentary as a shadow minister.
If REDWatch does its job in raising issues Government prefer to avoid, it will
be interesting to see if the Minister holds the same view a few years down the
track!
I look forward to working with everyone in the
year ahead.
–
Geoffrey Turnbull REDWatch Spokesperson
2010-11
REDWatch is a group of
community residents and friends from Redfern, Waterloo, Eveleigh and Darlington
who support the existing diversity in these areas and wish to promote
sustainable, responsible economic and social development.
REDWatch recognises the
importance of the Aboriginal community to the area.
REDWatch has been formed
to:
- Monitor
the activities of the Government (local, state and federal), the Redfern
Waterloo Authority, and any other government instrumentality with
responsibility for the Redfern, Waterloo, Darlington and Eveleigh area, to
ensure that:
(a)
The strategy benefits a diverse community
(b)
Communication and consultation is comprehensive and responsive
(c)
Pressure is maintained on authorities
- Provide
a mechanism for discussion and action on community issues. - Enhance
communication between community groups and encourage broad community
participation.
More details can be found at www.redwatch.org.au.