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From the Tas Executive Director

17 June 2019

Thank you to all who came out to the opening of the 2019 Tasmanian Architecture Awards Exhibitions – both in Hobart and Launceston. We had an amazing turn out for both events, 210 and nearly 100 respectively and it is heartening to seeing so many people interested in our built environment. The Hobart exhibition is on show till July 14 at Brooke Street Pier and I encourage those who haven’t visited to have a look at the range of architecture that is being produced in Tasmania. Also please encourage your networks to engage in the People’s Choice as this is a public advocacy tool providing the Institute with a valuable platform to promote Tasmanian architects and architecture.

The awards will be presented on Saturday 6 July at the Odeon Theatre Hobart, at a dinner creatively directed by Adam and Emily Ouston – we’d love to see you all at that event! I would like to thank Emily and Adam for the exciting event that they are curating, one that highlights the creative dynamism of the profession and should be a night to remember!

There have been a handful of changes in our committees, with Shane Cox stepping down as chair of the Practice Committee after many years in this role. I’d like to thank him for the commitment he has shown to the Institute, this committee and the National Practice Committee over many years. Roles like this take considerable effort and time and his contribution has been significant – thank you Shane. Misho Vasiljevich will step into this role, and I know he will represent our members well – thank you Misho for taking up this challenge. I am also happy to announce that Brad Wheeler is the new chair of the Education Committee. With his background in government and his knowledge of the Chapter I believe this will serve us well as we move forward – thank you Brad for your ongoing commitment to the Chapter and the profession. It is the volunteer contribution of our members that highlights the great strength of our organisation and should be valued by us all.

In the office, Philippa Grainger has stepped into a permanent role as Events and Finance Coordinator and I feel very lucky to have her permanently as part of our close knit team. As always the commitment to the profession of our staff is inspiring – always going above and beyond their roles to do their best for the profession.

Jennifer Nichols
Executive Director, Tasmanian Chapter
Australian Institute of Architects

From the Executive Director

17 June 2019

With both the National Architecture Conference and Victorian Architecture Awards approaching, it’s a big couple of weeks for us all. With that in mind, there are two major things to mention.

It is not too late to buy tickets to the conference and we would love to see our Victorian members turning up in big numbers to support what is a brilliant and thoughtful program. If you are still in two minds or trying to justify leaving your desk, have a further look at the program and that should provide all the inspiration and rationale you need.

2. Our Fringe events have mostly sold out however there are still are few tickets remaining for the Walsh Street, NGV Commission and RMIT tours. Book here

3. Tickets to the Vic Awards night officially closed on Friday. We still have a couple of tables spare, so tickets have been extended until 5pm Tuesday 18^th June, if not sold out prior. If you wish to fill any of the remaining spots please call or email our Awards Coordinator Jason Stanton today for more information. Don’t miss out!

So, let’s show the rest of the country how we do things in Victoria and really show our support for these two fantastic and important events. We look forward to seeing you there.

Ruth White

From the SA Chapter ED June 2019

11 June 2019

I want to update members regarding three interrelated areas of change for Architects – Continuing professional development, the Accredited Professionals Scheme and Acumen. All relate to how architects access and apply the knowledge to practice as a registered architect.

Continuing professional development

You may have heard that the Architectural Practice Act is being amended to include compulsory professional development requirements. If so, you may be wondering what is happening and when this might come into effect.

The Act is currently being redrafted by DPTI, with a draft due to be released for review later this year. Once the review is concluded the final document needs to go to Cabinet for sign off.

As with any legislative process this is taking longer than anticipated! However, the Institute remains quietly hopeful that the amended Act will come into effect early in 2020. We will continue to liaise with the APBSA and will provide architects with information to assist them in understanding what this means in practical terms. The Practice Committee is reviewing the key information that architects need to know and how to effectively deliver this to the profession.

Accredited Professionals Scheme (APS)

The APS falls under another relatively new piece of legislation – the Planning Development and Infrastructure (PDI) Act. The APS provides a mechanism for determining who is suitably qualified to perform assessment tasks in relation to building and planning approvals.

So, what does this have to do with architects, I hear you ask?

The PDI Act includes provision for assessment of design quality. This is a first in Australia, and something that the Institute lobbied for over a number of years. For this to be a meaningful process that the community respects, the Institute advocates that architects need to be involved in assessment of design quality.

Architects who have been members of planning assessment panels or want to be involved in the new design review process will now need to be accredited. Currently architects need to undertake an assessment that provides similar information to that required to register as an architect, as well as paying an assessment fee of over $700.00.

The Institute is working with DPTI and the APBSA to have the registration process recognised as a substantially equivalent assessment. This will significantly reduce the cost and time required to become an accredited professional. We will keep you updated regarding progress and will provide suitable CPD to meet APS requirements.

ACUMEN

ACUMEN is the digital resource that replaced the printed practice notes. They are updated on an ongoing basis and the new format includes an improved search function as well as the ability to collect notes of interest for easy future reference. Importantly, there is a list of recently published information on the landing page plus a tab for providing feedback and proposing new material.

The SA Chapter staff receive regular queries regarding this valuable resource and are happy to assist members to find the information they seek. We will also be holding an information session later this year to assist members use ACUMEN more effectively.

While there will always be some members who prefer the hard copy format, I encourage you to give ACUMEN a go next time you want to check something. If you have a younger staff member who is recently registered or preparing for registration ask them to give you a quick tour. I know it will be different to using the Practice Notes, but it will become familiar with use.

If you have any queries or concerns regarding any of the above, please contact the SA Chapter and we will assist as best we can. Being an architect is a very responsible position to hold. The Institute is committed to supporting our members to meet this responsibility.

Nicolette Di Lernia
Executive Director
SA Chapter Australian Institute of Architects

From the Tas Chapter President

03 June 2019

^{Image: Jonathon Wherrett}

Are you an attendee or an activist?

This is the question posed by the curators of the 2019 National Architecture Conference.

Tasmania traditionally has many of the most politically engaged communities in the country. With our small population, overly proportional political representation, and a contemporary history littered with environmental and community battles played out in the political sphere, we are a population with a heightened political awareness. As a chapter, our members are naturally representative of the microcosm of the community we draw from.

A year has passed since 36 Tasmanians made the trip north to attend the 2018 conference on the Gold Coast. As this is my last e-news message before the 2019 National Architecture Conference takes place in Melbourne on 20-22nd June, I thought it important to reflect on why the conference is important for the profession generally and for our chapter.

Hosting 1000 delegates each year, the National Architecture Conference is the profession’s largest annual gathering. Over a two day period the conference will host 26 renowned local and international speakers over eight sessions. In addition to the conference program there are many fringe events including an opening party, workshops, site visits and walking tours. It’s great that our chapter is represented with Mat Hinds and Poppy Taylor as speakers.

This year’s conference has been curated by Monique Woodward (WOWOWA) and Stephen Choi, (Living Future Institute Australia) and the theme is, Collective Agency. The theme raises the notion that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, and with unity comes an ability to affect an outcome. The conference will hear from architects and thought-leaders, challenging the status quo and celebrating projects from small, medium, and large practices inside and outside of architecture.

Speakers will encourage attendees to reflect on today’s challenges, the articulation of more meaningful protocols, and the willingness to act towards change. Attendees will be challenged to re-examine their professional aspirations.

Our beautiful state and strong sense of identity are virtues, however with the national conference so close to our shores, this represents an excellent opportunity to take time from practice and reflect on the amazing work being undertaken interstate. It is also an unrivalled opportunity for networking and continuing professional development opportunities (10 massive CPD points!).

I dream of a day where the national conference might be held on our shores. The first political act toward this end must be a strong presence at the National Conference – we currently have 35 attendees and would love to see this number grow. So please take this chance to be part of a national conversation about architecture and join Mat, Poppy and the rest of us in flying the flag for our chapter and state on the national stage.

Shamus

Note:

The Australian Institute of Architects has organised preferential rates for conference attendees at a number of hotels in Melbourne so if you are interested check out the conference web site here for more detailed information.

Shamus Mulcahy RAIA
President, Tasmanian Chapter,
Australian Institute of Architect

From the Vic Chapter President

4 June 2019

Dear Victorian Members,

Over the weekend I was reflecting on the state of play.

With the National Novation Survey results starting to take form and with regular queries being raised by members in reference to EOIs/RFTs requesting unreasonable scope of works, it has become evident that now is the time to reflect on where we are at and to take action to address the issues being raised.

This is not about pointing the finger but rather understanding why these issues are arising and finding ways to make the industry a more equitable and reasonable playing field. This is about working together.

There are reasons why we are in the position we are in. There are reasons why state and local government procure projects in the manner that they do; however, we need to constructively find solutions to improve these processes in order for there to be a sustainable future for our built environment.

Evidence based research is assisting with highlighting the pitfalls so that the holes can start being plugged. It is also about acknowledging the positive outcomes and experiences of our members and building on these.

On behalf of the Victorian Chapter I would like to thank those members who have given their time and professionalism to these issues. We look forward to working together to continue to strengthen our industry.

Strength in numbers. A collective voice.

Kind regards,

Amy Muir

Victorian Chapter President

PS. Don’t forgot that the month of June = The fabulous National Architecture Conference curated by Monique Woodward and Stephen Choi and held in Melbourne between 20—22 June.

And the Victorian Architecture Awards Presentation Dinner Friday 28 June where we are able to celebrate the collective efforts of so many of our members.

I look forward to sharing an inspiring month with you all.

From the SA Chapter President 27/05/2019

ARCHITECTURE, SHEDS & HERITAGE……… the loss of public space and buildings

On my first day of University, Professor David Saunders (whose name enshrines our coveted Institute Heritage Award) challenged us – during our careers, perhaps the quest for finding the holy grail in defining the meaning of architecture would be found in the opening sentence of Nikolaus Pevsner’s “An Outline of European History”:

“A bicycle shed is a building; Lincoln Cathedral is a piece of architecture. Nearly everything that encloses space on a scale sufficient for a human being to move in is a building; the term architecture applies only to buildings designed with a view to aesthetic appeal.”

Well, it seems to be a relevant discussion at the moment. We are passionately and emotionally embracing the call to rebuild & restore the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral and closer to home demolishing (or trying to save) Shed 26 at Port Adelaide.

We have over the last few months seen the re-ignition of the cyclical Heritage debate. In Adelaide like the Parklands it comes around every few years. I’m not sure how many iterations we require of what should be a simpler process offering certainty and clarity. A process that has become a continuous procession of listings, delistings, re-classification, dismantling, redefinition of items of significance, assessment criteria or simply creating confusion by interim retrospective listings.

As is the case for Shed 26 interim listing instigates confusion and uncertainty for both the community and the developer. Each has their own interest. In this case the selling of the land without protection, open to subjective interpretation of feasibility for retainment of the Shed and the feel good public consultation without any statutory adaptive re-use mandate, was always going to end in the way it has…………demolition approval. In the interim, it has had it all… protests, unions, arrests, Kevin McCloud of Grand Designs…….

The listing of buildings has been the responsibility of successive Government and Councils for many years. If after all this time we still require interim retrospective listings and cannot offer clarity and certainty then we have sadly failed.

The ever-changing is at it again, we have now resumed the sell off of State Significant Places. Edmund Wright House is back in private ownership. After being saved from demolition by Government in 1971 and framing a process that changed much of our mindset to protecting Heritage, owned thereafter by the State why are we privatising ownership of Significant Places again….?

Coupled with all of this is the significant loss of public urban space over the years. The Riverbank is becoming a prime example of how this erosion is gradually eating into our City’s fabric. I’m not sure why an exclusive expansion and additions of multi level commercial buildings adjacent and diminishing the status of Parliament House has come to be on public space that once housed inclusive public baths and green frontage onto the River. Private control of reinvested public spaces are borne out of decisions based on political and economic outcomes, not cultural benefits. And in the case of Port Adelaide we are hell bent on turning our backs on the Riverfront in this State rather than connecting with it.

And now we are off again with the review of Heritage & Character in the New Planning System. The Practitioner Overviews informing the proposed new Planning and Design Code proposes new “overlays” trying to realign consistency. My concern is that when we start using words like……. performance assessed, and in the case of Local Heritage Places demolition will be subject to review of…. economic viability, structurally unsound and then increasing the power of direct decision to the Minister we may just be adding another subjective layer on an already subjective topic and aesthetic. As with engaging lawyers there are always differing expert reports that will be friendly and responsive to both sides of the argument.

There is no point having multiple layers of statutory Acts, Authorities, Registers and Trusts, and then once a Place is deemed to be protected it can be overturned by a Minister. It is important to our community that once identified and listed they are not there to be exploited for commercial advantage, that argument needs to be had before listing, not in retrospect.

Governments are transitional, are here for a term or two, these Buildings and Places are here for generations, they require independent governance free of political and developer lobby groups, they should not require a defence lawyer.

It is probably time for an independent non-political Heritage Commissioner that is accountable for the governance and control to protect our Heritage. This will require realistic capital and maintenance expenditure not token grants.

Cultural Heritage is a new concept in this Country, we are one of the youngest developed countries in the World and it is our moral responsibility to protect our history for future generations. We are currently developing a disposable public space mentality.

We have international recognition in the guidance of Cultural Heritage conservation in this Country. Emerging out of the 1964 Venice Charter and the formation of ICOMOS (International Council of Monuments and Sites), each country was responsible for applying a non-governmental plan within the framework of its own culture and traditions. In 1979 the Burra Charter was born, adopted in the old mining town of Burra in our own backyard.

Through my involvement at The University of Adelaide on International Design Workshops supported by the UNESCO Chair in Architectural Preservation and Planning in World Heritage Cities at the Politecnico di Milano, the conversation has always started with culture, and the buildings contribution to the community, history and the storytelling of society. It is devoid of era and economics. Against this backdrop it then examines architectural design in contemporary cities in relation to the value and identity of the historical built environment. It sequentially progresses to suggest analysis and management of territorial preservation policies. Uptake on the importance of this strategy has highlighted that the community and Government is passionate about the fabric of their City. The question here is are we passionate enough to have an ongoing commitment to Heritage in Adelaide… or do we join the disposable….?

Imagination and innovation is required to provide solutions that contribute to adaptive reuse of buildings and in the case of industrial buildings and precincts, there are many examples in our own backyard such as the Internationally awarded Tonsley and Plant 4 at Bowden. It is interesting to note that the Burra Charter is being heavily referenced by architects in Shanghai in their work on the adaptive reuse of waterfront industrial buildings.

The struggle to readapt these buildings to Building Code standard always raises the economic feasibility argument. The Rundle Street East experience in repositioning Local and State Heritage buildings through private development offers an interesting case study in regard to how this was achieved without wholesale demolition based on economic grounds. Instead the Developer recognised the true value and importance of Heritage and worked with it to create a long term vision based on contributing to the cultural fabric and value of the Precinct through individual incremental projects based on a Master Plan. Retention and readaptation of Heritage Places in this instance was the economic driver of an internationally awarded Mainstreet, not demolition.

Heritage Places should not be museum pieces, they are not defined purely by age, they are able to be repurposed and expanded to cater for our way of life.

The sublime of Heritage is often intangible, we know we feel good around it, it is often not imposing, and like everything in our lives that has an emotional connection we will never miss it until it is gone.

Heritage is like that, buildings have a heart and soul, we visit them, they are holiday destinations and economic tourism drivers, they capture emotion, define cities and local neighborhoods, and offer storytelling and memories.

As architects, we are the generational parents of these buildings and we need to be their custodians and voice.

So Prof. Saunders, it’s taken a few years…. my answer is…… Pevsner was wrong, he forgot about the inclusive emotion, and the heart and soul of a building, regardless of its exclusive grandeur.

Tony Giannone
SA Chapter President
Director, Tectvs

From The Tas Executive Director

20 May 2019

As the Tassie weather cools down things are heating up in the Tas Chapter this week as we prepare for the launch of the Tasmanian Architecture Awards Exhibition in Launceston this Thursday. If you are able to attend it is an excellent opportunity to support your fellow peers, the architecture industry and to promote good design to the wider community. The exhibition will be open to the public until Friday 7th June. Pop in and see this year’s entries while it’s up north and cast your vote in the People’s Choice prize. The Hobart exhibition launch will take place on Thursday 13 June 2019 – stay tuned for further details of the evening.

I also strongly encourage firms to get involved with the Discipline of Architecture and Design’s Work Integrated Learning (WIL) Program. This work experience program provides students with the opportunity to experience professional practice and develop their knowledge and skills in a real workplace environment. The placement duration is for 14-15 days and there is a high amount of interest from students seeking placements so please get involved by viewing the briefing document here and sending completed registration forms to Gregory Nolan.

Jennifer Nichols
Executive Director, Tasmanian Chapter
Australian Institute of Architects

From the SA Executive Director 1905113

I’m not sure if this is the case for everyone, but I find that things often occur in clusters. For example, the SA Chapter has recently had a series of enquiries from clients wanting to know what level of service their architect should provide. In response we have discussed how services vary, the reason why there is no indicative fee scale, overarching copyright principles in relation to design and what distinguishes an architect from a building designer. These are all important conversations.

We also ask about what type of agreement they have with their architect. It doesn’t matter what form it takes, but having a written agreement is a requirement of the Architect’s Code of Conduct (Clause 4.4) and is essential for establishing a clear understanding regarding what services an architect will – and will not – provide and the fees for those services.

These details are important at all scales of practice. This is demonstrated in the findings of the Lacrosse Building case, where three of the consultants on the project were held responsible largely due to inadequate definition of what services were included and, more importantly, what services they would not provide. These consultants’ contract did not exclude services relating to monitoring compliance of construction that they could not reasonably be expected to inspect. The architect’s argument that they had acted within commonly expected parameters for a design construct project and that this type of service was excluded in the specification was not accepted by the court.

So, what can we take from these experiences?

· Always have a written agreement with your client. This can be a proforma Client Architect Agreement, a contract or a letter. If the agreement is one prepared by a third party always get it reviewed by your insurer and a lawyer prior to signing.

· Make sure that you are clear who your client is at each stage of a project and that the agreement is suitable for this procurement model.

· Don’t rely on standard construction industry practice – because it’s often not standard. Architects operate in a complex and varied context. Be clear about what you will and won’t do and definitions of technical language where interpretation may be possible. For example, the level of documentation provided at building rules consent varies between architects, so make sure the extent of documentation that you are going to provide is defined.

· Be specific about what happens if things go wrong. Be clear about what the dispute resolution procedure is. In the event of the contract being terminated specify what documentation you will provide, any additional costs for active files and how this will affect attribution for the project.

The Institute has recently re-released the Client Architect Agreement to support architects in this important area of their practice. These are now available in a long and short form as editable, digital documents and are free to members. Even if you have developed your own in-house agreement, we recommend that you review these documents to assist you in having a clear and effective relationship with your client.

Nicolette Di Lernia
SA Chapter Executive Director

From The Tas Chapter President

06 May 2019

^{Image: Jonathon Wherrett}

On the 18th of May Australians will head to the polls armed with a small slip of paper, an even smaller pencil and a sausage, to determine who will govern our country.

Leading up to the election, the Institute nationally has contacted each of the major parties with a series of questions and queries around their policy positions in relation to key issues facing our profession. The Institute is in the process of chasing responses to these questions and once received, will collate the responses and circulate them for all members.

In addition to this, the Institute recently issued a media release titled “Good Design Adds Value” with its 2019 Federal Election Platform. This platform is aimed at improving the enduring health and wellbeing of all Australians and our diverse communities.

The platform includes six key focus areas, with the Institute making 31 recommendations to the Australian Government; these recommendations emphasise the social and economic benefits of quality design, deliverable through use of the architectural profession.

The six key areas are:

1. Fostering Thriving Cities and Regions

2. Housing a Diverse and Inclusive Community

3. Improving Building Regulation

4. Addressing Climate Change

5. Capitalising on Creativity

6. Supporting Australian Skills and Trade

I would encourage all members to please take the time to read this document as there is much relevance in the suggested initiatives for us to implement at a local scale.

View the full election platform here.

If anyone has any question or queries, I would encourage you to contact myself or the Institute.

Shamus Mulcahy RAIA
President, Tasmanian Chapter,
Australian Institute of Architect

From the SA Chapter President 29/4/2019

29 April 2019

Following on from our last E-news the upcoming Festival of Architecture and Design / FAD 2019 in July is exploring the theme of ‘IDEAS OF HOME’. It will consider issues including patterns of living, evolving housing typologies, future directions and importantly, what it means to call Adelaide HOME.

Underlying this is the focus on Adelaide, South Australia, OUR unique City Plan, climate, geography, social structure and culture, it is where WE live and call HOME.

As Nicolette points out, housing is always at the forefront of public, political, planning, policy and architectural debate; be it social, affordable, urban / suburban, brownfield / greenfield or simply “not in my back yard”. It is also predominately the single element that determines, defines and influences the make up and character of OUR City. More importantly, it encapsulates our choice and aspirations of lifestyle that we value and protect.

To put all of this in perspective, having worked on the first Common Ground Project in Adelaide and the redevelopment of the St Vincent de Paul Shelter, for those less fortunate it offers refuge, shelter and should foster inclusiveness and transition during difficult times. Unfortunately, it also offers another social derivative, the “not in my street” mentality.

At the sake of being too retrospective The South Australian Housing Trust during the 1970’s – 80’s led the nation in addressing the social impact of affordable and social housing in this State. It allowed housing to be dispersed across central Adelaide and suburbs without distinguishing social demographic. The work of Newell Platten as the Principal Architect and Planner and the academic research and socially inclusive philosophy of Hugh Stretton as the Deputy Chairman was exemplar in defining well designed, environmentally sustainable, socially responsive and economic housing that still stands the test of time today, and at the time copied by the other States.

FAD 2019 also informs an appropriate backdrop to convene a public inclusive conversation and an appropriate time to prod, debate, review and question policies. It should stimulate local thought about what we value, what we develop and what we should protect about calling Adelaide HOME…….

….. in my conversations with my overseas friend who wants to relocate to Adelaide, I tell him about the new Adelaide, continuously ranked as one of the most livable cities in the world. I tell him we are moving the City forward to meet expectations… our city is to densify, build higher, live in apartments to revitalise the City.… why do you want to copy the mistakes of the Cities I have tried to escape, he questions…….. that is exactly why I want to return to Adelaide : to escape the high-rise, where the sky is blue, the air is pure, the birds chirp, the travel is easy…..

Nothing new I suppose, but it poses the questions that our 30 Year Plan (and upgrade) has tried to address in regard to diversity of housing typologies. We like our burbs, our sheds, we like to drive cars, are we able to formulate an innovative, sustainable approach to this model rather than borrow from overseas in converting to high rise?

We agree that it is not sustainable to continue the urban sprawl, but could we not argue that a more ‘metropolitan’ and mainstreet burb model may be more sustainable in our State if a more innovative infrastructure and environmental model was developed that allows us space (albeit reduced) to live in what has been the urban backbone of lifestyle in this country – the backyard – not the balcony.

The reality is we have a population of approx. 1.38 million, growing by under 1%, and one of the emerging oldest populations by numbers in this State. Are our Development Plan Policies perhaps fragmenting the City and suburban form in respect to the landscape and amenity by a vision that says we will grow by 560,000 (since revised to 545,000 by 2045) in 30 years?

…..How can we grow 560,000 in thirty years…? he asks, statistics show that our current rate is 0.8%…. in 1963 it was 1 million, when I left in 2010 our population was 1.28 million, you’re now in 2019 at 1.38 million….?…..

…..Why do we have to go to high rise living…. why can’t we start at 3 & 4 levels and maybe 5, I reckon we could infill that projected population of Inner and Greater Adelaide…… over thirty years in that height…..why do they want to go higher, he asks… you don’t understand I say, they saw this interstate and overseas… so did I, he says, that’s why I want to come home…… why do you want to throw all of this away he asks…. why do you want to be like the rest of the world and live up in the air….? You tried that, he says, in the 1960’s, inserted the three storey cream bricker flats into the leafy burbs, copied social housing towers from other countries, why are you going there again…….?

I am continually amazed at how we sometimes fail to see the fine grain of our City. When we learn that the sum of many small ventures with a sense of ownership by our own, will do more than the single imported large vision craved by some, in a City with a population of only some 1.4 million, then just maybe we may start to reassess our approach to Development Policies.

We may live in a multicultural country but we do not live in a multicultural terrain; this is Adelaide, South Australia.

Once we understand that we don’t need to be like everybody else we may understand that local knowledge is more valuable than any other imported idea that we bring to the table.

Without question we can and must, learn from other parts of the world, in fact, it is the essential ingredient of a knowledge based system, it is part of learning, educating, researching and innovation, but we need to understand, relate and apply that research to ourselves and the local context.

There is nothing wrong with being parochial, we don’t have to aspire to making a point of referencing other states or countries ideas to copy them here, in the majority of cases, they don’t translate very well; different lifestyles, different cultures, different climates – you can’t impose romantic notions of what we are not on people.

….. I read about your Transit Corridors and TOD’s the other day…… What is a TOD he says……. It is a Transit Orientated Development I say…. does that mean it is somewhere where I can walk down the street and catch a bus… I say, yeah, you got it… so why don’t the buses run very often, he says, I say because we cant afford them to run that often and the people like to get in their cars….. well, why do we need TODS…… I like to go in my car, pick up the kids, get my groceries…….. I remember the MFP he says – it turned into Mawson Lakes…

I tell him that we’ve been on study tours to London, Europe, and the USA… We had a Thinker in Residence who said that was the way to go….. they think that we should learn from these ideas…… but he asks…. why do they need to go there, should they not understand their own City first……… why do you need other people to inform you of your livability in your City…. don’t you have your own thinkers in residence……… what do they see….. that you don’t…?

One of the most sensible housing studies over the last few years has been the Missing Middle Ground study instigated in this State as part of the revised, updated 30 Year Plan, to inform densification policies at a sensible urban scale, form and height which contributes to a sustainable model that gives us choice and diversity in housing types.

…. I drove along the main roads (now urban corridors) and into the burbs to see the folks the other day….. where are the trees, where are the spaces for visitors…I saw fragmented and dispersed 3 – 4 level townhouses and apartments overlooking my inheritance, the bedrooms are two metres from the main road, where do the children play…..?

… It will be ok… we will soon have design guidelines and codes that prohibits that………. They will probably say that a 3 bedroom apartment should have a 15 square metre balcony……. how did they get to that figure – research?… I said…… You can go to the park across the road if you need more…… but this is Adelaide, the driest city on the driest continent and we have a desalination plant, we often have water restrictions and the park is barren……. and it’s not safe… not a problem I say, we have passive surveillance from the apartment balconies…. I haven’t seen anyone on the balconies yet….

In fairness, much of the above is a satirical take on our protective aspirations and is being addressed by Planning Reform…. but let’s keep the conversation going from the ground level urban realm and the interactive frontage of the street, lets forget about heights for a while – lets plant some trees, discuss biophilic overlay policies that protect us (and the birds) from climate change and get our neighborhoods active again.

Let’s talk plain – no mumbo TODS, something that the public understands before we build on their boundaries. Let’s talk about what OUR home and city should look like, what we need to preserve and frame policy against reality, local research and the aspirations of our people, and ask the question would I live in / here myself…?

….. where do you live, he asks…. in a two level house with a backyard, a shed, two cars ……then you’re a hypocrite, you agree with me, but you still design these high rise apartments but you won’t go and live in one…. hey, I have grandkids you know …it’s not safe on the balconies and my kids won’t come to visit me because they can’t get a carpark….. plus I don’t make the policies, I only design to them….

I don’t know if I want to move here anymore………he says.

I’m going to leave all of this here before I get into too much trouble, please join the conversation at FAD this year.

Tony Giannone
SA Chapter President