Me in the Mercury 23 April on the pending sale of "Heritage Square" (no web link available - click for clearer image):
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Reports recently in the Mercury that the state government intends to sell off a prime development block, bounded by
Murray Street,
Davey Street, SalamancaPlace and Parliament House, should be great news.
Great news because now, after too many years of neglect and inaction from both Liberal and Labor governments, something appears to be happening at last.
Why get excited about what, to the casual observer, might be dismissed as a drab mish-mash of the worst of 1980s modernism, rather banal art deco and fading Georgian grandeur?
Why, because this precinct is vital for the future of Hobart as a workable city.
In terms of town planning and urban amenity, let me put this largely forgotten city block into context.
One of the main planning problems facing Hobart is that the two principal commercial districts, the CBD and the docks, have little pedestrian connection.By this I don’t mean that one can’t walk between them – that is easy enough (leaving aside for another day dodging eight lanes of traffic crossing Macquarie/Davey Streets) – rather that there is nothing to draw people between the two.
The two main pedestrian routes are via
Murray Streetand the top end of
Salamanca Placeand both at the moment only offer drab office doors to the street.Shoppers and tourists subconsciously see these facades as barriers and tend not to cross them.
So Hobart is currently developing two CBDs, one in town and one at Salamanca, and for a small city that is just not sustainable.
Think how much better it would be if there were shops, cafes, hotels and perhaps galleries or museums that continued to invite people to go on with their journey.
The real pity is that it has taken so long to get to even this announcement.And we haven’t seen the heritage or planning guidelines yet.
I recall in 1996 when I was a ministerial staffer for the Rundle Liberal minority government that the sale of this precinct was seriously discussed, only to be confined to the too hard basket.
I also know that when Jim Bacon became premier in 1998 it came back on the table, only to disappear again.
Where have the Liberals and the Greens been on this for the past ten years?The sale and revitalisation of this precinct should have been a hot political issue and part of every party’s policy platform at the past three elections.
The Liberals in particular, supposedly the party of free enterprise and commerce, could have stolen the march on the government over this years ago.
Anyway, it is on the agenda now, so it is important we get it right.
The treasurer, Michael Aird, has apparently dubbed the precinct “heritage square” which is news to me and probably the rest of Hobart but no-doubt a good move when marketing to interstate buyers.
The government included the site within the boundaries of the recently formed Sullivans Cove Waterfront Authority and it is that organisation which will issue the permits and set the limitations.
High on the list of development control criteria is sure to be protection of the many heritage values on the site, including
12 Murray Streetand the old St Marys Hospital in
Davey Street.
I know some people argue to keep heritage buildings in government ownership but that has proved to be a fool’s gambit; governments of all political persuasions in Tasmania have a terrible record in conserving heritage assets.
The deplorable condition of the buildings we are talking about here is stark testament to that fact, so the sooner they are passed to private hands the better.
The best way to protect a heritage building is for it to have a viable, commercial use.The best role for government is to set development control and permit conditions.
The government must also closely control the use the buildings are put to.
From a planning perspective, the best outcome would be a mix of uses:this would be much more interesting at street level.
Think of all the great pedestrian cities in the world – London, Seville, Hong Kong, even Melbourne – and what makes them appealing and exciting.It is walking from shop to shop, “discovering” laneways and routes that are always taking you to something more interesting.
Hobart is half-way there, and the proper development of this site will help plug an important gap.
If I had my way I would sell off the Treasury building in
Murray Streetas well to complete the pedestrian link from city to water – why should a few public service office workers occupy such a strategic site? – but that, like what to do with Davey and Macquarie Streets, is a discussion for another day.
