A VISION FOR LAUNCESTON

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Three crucial things make our city unique and desirable: its liveability, its built heritage, and the kanamaluka/Tamar Valley. Protect and enhance these, and we will become the most desirable regional city in Australia. Lose these and we risk stagnation, and worse, economic deterioration.

We all know the potential Launceston holds: so how do we make it shine to the world? 

Let's start with enhancing liveability. We can all see the developing problems around transport, traffic and parking. We have allowed development and suburban spread without making the long term commitments to accomodate it. Examples would be the hospital precinct, Inveresk, or the suburban shopping areas of Kings Meadows and Mowbray. Get caught at the wrong time of day in one of these areas and you know what I mean. While we might wish that public transport was better, or that electric scooters would solve all our problems, we know that inclement weather and hilly streets means people will continue to use their own cars for the foreseeable future. The recent loss of the Round carpark at Inveresk to the university was a great shame, because it was a chance to get people to park and walk to the CBD. If we truly want cars out of the CBD, lets build the satellite carparks, lets have a decent public transport options: a tram line from Rocherlea to Youngtown, a complete bike and walking path network, and more frequent buses that can carry bikes. Until then, we should not be reducing CBD parking or making it more expensive.

But liveability is more than just getting around. Let's have green spaces in our suburban shopping areas, micro skateparks and playgrounds incorporated for our children, public showers included with improved public toilets, affordable community meeting spaces, and emergency shelters for people who need them. Let's have a hospital/medical precinct that is accessible as well as pleasant.

Secondly, our built heritage is something we are justifiably proud of, from colonial Georgian cottages to our parks, dolerite flagstones, and stately public buildings. It is something that tourists marvel at, yet something council seems unwilling to comprehensively protect. Hard won recommendations on building heights in the CBD has languished in the bottom drawer, while buildings that far exceed the planning scheme have passed through council, even changing the planning scheme to allow it. Not with my vote. Finding a balance between the old and new has been successfully navigated in cities around the world. We can have both in Launceston, but not if we allow developers to do just as they wish. 

Finally the mighty kanamaluka/Tamar River valley is a spectacular, abundant, and adventurous part of Tasmania. We must work more closely with our neighbour councils to capitalise on all the benefits this brings. From well planned housing and industry developments, to wine routes, fisheries, adventure tourism and farm gate experiences, a valley wide approach will see benefits for every municipality. Of course, in Launceston the Cataract Gorge is the jewel of our waterways, while the upper reaches of the river are an embarrassment of mud and pollution through neglect. While I support the efforts of the Tamar Estuary Management Taskforce, I know there is much more we must do: increasing water flow and tidal movement, improve upstream forest and farm practices, and continue to improve our sewage systems.

There is much more to be said about a vision for Launceston: improving our community connections, protecting our most vulnerable, replacing anti-social with pro-social behaviour, creating equity of access and opportunity, embracing our significant Aboriginal community, contributing to housing affordability, and providing far more for our youth and elderly.  

You can find out more about these topics by clicking here. Thank you for reading and please contact me with your thought or contributions.