DYNNYRNE RESIDENTS SAY SOS ON ROADS

Meg Smith represents a group of Dynnyrne Road residents facing compulsory acquisition of their homes to make way for a fifth Southern Outlet lane.

“Two days before Easter my family were advised by engineers from Pitt & Sherry and WSP that our homes were facing poten­tial compulsory acquisition to enable a bus/T3 northbound lane to be built on the Southern Outlet. Like the rest of our street that weekend we were as devastated as we were unprepared by the news. Our street is beautiful. It is old and some of it is listed as a Heritage Precinct. Our home was built in 1910 by the Morris family, we are only the second family to live there. Eric and Trish have lived in their home since 1964. Anna Maria, now in her eighties, has raised three generations of her family in her home. People have been married here, died here. We have new families who have joined us and those who have been in the street for decades.

The proposal, as we were told by the engineers, included a) the compulsory acquisition of 18 homes (almost one side of the entire street), b) underpinning the Southern Outlet from Davey Street to Olinder Grove (the current road surface is so fragile a new lane could not be added without significant upgrade) and c) a cantilevered lane for part of the road. The dolerite rock uphill from Cats Eye corner prevents any expansion of the road into that cliff face, hence the proposed 4km Italian-Alps-style expansion. All this for the bargain price of $35 million dollars of taxpayers funds.

Frustratingly the engineers advised us (later confirmed by the CEO of Infrastructure Tasmania) that no low cost/no cost alternatives to impact the traffic congestion had been considered. Not staggered work hours. Not better before and after school care options in Blackmans Bay. Not Hospital in the Home or Community Rapid Nursing Response services in Kingston and Huonville. Not working from home options. Not better bus services. Not better school bus services. Not banning heavy freight during the morning peak hour. None of these alternatives had been considered. The opportunity cost of that initial $35 million investment is eye watering, but the total cost will be significantly more. What regional economic development options are missed? What community development ideas remain unfunded? What opportunities to deliver high quality healthcare to people in their own homes/communities will not be pursue? What educational programs that keep kids in their own com­munities will be lost? In the meantime, 18 homeless families will contribute to tighter rental and hotter real estate markets. Commuters will face years of traffic delay during construction. Property prices will be impacted in affected areas. Others will face years of construction noise. And for what? International research shows us new lanes only temporarily relieve traffic congestion. At its absolute best it’s a short-term fix.

But the symptom of traffic congestion is indicative of a deeper malaise. Unrestricted urban sprawl will only feed this problem and proper park and ride solutions will be required. The engineers told us only a 4% change in behaviour was required to solve this issue. Only 4 in every 100 drivers needs to have alternatives to driving their car to save our homes and resolve the congestion issues. Why can a community campaign come up with a number of low cost/ no cost alternatives that might actually address the issue, when well paid international engi­neering and state growth think tanks can’t? Why are dinosaur responses to modern challenges con­sidered good enough?

What can you do? Join our campaign by emailing us at SOSHobart2021@gmail.com or follow our social media cam­paigns on Facebook and Instagram as we await for the public consultation process to open.”

OPENINGS

Mewstone Wines (11 Flowerpot Jetty Road, Flowerpot), who also produce the Hughes & Hughes label, are set to open their new, and very lovely looking, cellar door in a few weeks time. Dave Macgill, the former head brewer at Moo Brew is a whisker away from opening Deep South Brewing Co (220 Argyle Street, North Hobart). The venue opens this month with Macgill teaming up with friends Warwick Deveson and Ben de Rue. And keep an eye out for Overland Brewers & Distillers moving in soon at 284 Argyle Street, strengthening the line up for a North Hobart beer crawl. Young’s Table (Shop 58, 1 Channel Court Shopping Centre, 29 Channel Highway, Kingston) is now open in Kingston serving all the Korean classics, as well as kids meals. Metropolitan Pizza (70 Brisbane Street, Hobart) has had a facelift and is reopening on 16 June as Metro Pizza, for takeaway and alfresco dining. Panko Chan (23 Beach Road, Kingston Beach) is now serving breakfast, but with a Japanese twist, open from 8am. The Maker has expanded from Salamanca to their new digs in Midtown at 173 Elizabeth Street adding to the bustling little strip. Next door at 175 Elizabeth Street, Hikka’s is now serving authentic Sri Lankan dishes and some classic Australian cafe faves for breakfast, lunch and dinner, seven days a week. Sick of cooking? Order a home delivered fresh or frozen lasagne from Delpino Lasagne, available in two sizes and can be gluten free. They also deliver free to Sandy Bay. The Emerald Duke will open at Channel Court in early July, with coffee and flowers on offer.

DEVELOPMENT DEVELOPMENTS

A $17 million dollar CBD hotel development was amongst the 56 planning permits issued by the City of Hobart in April. The hotel developer plans to transform the former O’Brien workshop at 125 Bathurst St into a ten-storey boutique hotel, bar and restaurant complex with rooftop gardens, aimed at younger tourists. The art deco facade is to be retained. Council revealed that 794 planning approvals were granted in the 12 months ending April 2021, slightly fewer than the 866 approvals granted in the previous 12 months. Construction began on the new $35 million Glebe Hill shopping centre, on the corner of Pass and Rokeby Roads near Howrah, in late May. The site is close to several new residential estates, and is the first new major shopping centre to be built in greater Hobart in over a decade.

WANT TO MAKE MONEY FROM YOUR CAR?

The Tasmanian government is offering $1000 incentives to locals who lend their car to tourists struggling to find a rental car. When borders closed for months last year, local hire car companies sold off about fifty per cent of their fleet. Now the tourists are back, but the cars are not. Premier Peter Gutwein said the $1million program would help car hire companies increase their fleet and also help private vehicle owners sign up through car-sharing platforms.

GOT A SPARE CAR THAT DOESN’T ACTUALLY GO ANYMORE?

You can donate it to the Tasmanian Fire Service for training exercises. TFS firefighters use real vehicles for road crash rescue training exercises. It’s super easy to donate – they will arrange the collection of your vehicle – contact your closest TFS regional office during business hours. The Southern branch can be reached on (03) 6166 5500.

NEW ROKEBY SPORTING PRECINCT OPEN FOR COMMENT

The Clarence City Council, in collabora­tion Bayview Secondary College and the Department of Education, is preparing a draft master plan to develop a new com­munity sporting precinct at Bayview Sec­ondary College in Rokeby. It’s designed to be a community sporting hub for the Clarence Plains and South Arm Peninsula. The estimated cost is in the order of $35 million, including an indoor sports centre ($25.7 million), outdoor playing surfaces ($4.7 million), site works and car parking ($3.7 million), and a perimeter circuit trail ($2 million). A draft master plan has been developed following consultation with state sporting associations, peak bodies, council staff, and local sporting clubs cur­rently using the site and the college and it’s now open to the public for feedback. Head to www.yoursay.ccc.tas.gov.au before 2 July, 2021.

COVID-19 VACCINATIONS AVAILABLE NOW IN HOBART

The Tasmanian and the Australian Governments are working together to give safe COVID-19 vaccinations to the community. Vaccines are being deliv­ered in phases. All Tasmanians aged 16 and over will be able to get vaccinated for free. You can find out which phase you are in, how to book an appointment or have FAQ’s answered. If you have questions about COVID-19 vaccinations, please call the Tasmanian Public Health Hotline on 1800 671 738 or head to www.coronavirus.tas.gov.au/vaccine for more information.

KINGSTON HIGH SCHOOL 1980 – 2005

Did you attend Kingston High School be­tween 1980 and 2005? A former teacher is facing allegations of sexual abuse at KHS in the late 1980s to early 1990s. Law firm Maurice Blackburn is representing two alleged victims and is calling for anyone who attended the school between 1980 and 2005, and knows anything, to come forward.

HOBART STUDY FINDS PLASTIC IS WARMING BEACHES

A new study has revealed that plastic debris increases the daily temperature extremes in beach sediments. Led by the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) here in Hobart, the study found that accumulated plastics in beach sedi­ments act as an insulator, increasing daily maximum temperatures by almost three degrees. Lead author, IMAS researcher Dr Jennifer Lavers, said the effects of plastic debris were getting worse. “With global plastic production currently doubling almost every decade, and much of the plastic debris that accumulates in our oceans eventually making its way onto beaches around the world, the low and moderate debris loads we observed on Henderson and Cocos are likely to transition to high debris over the next few decades,” Dr Lavers said.

TASSIE MUMS NEED SPARE WARM CLOTHES THIS WINTER

If you have spare warm kids clothes in excellent condition, consider donating them to Tassie Mums. The charity is real­ly low on girls and boys winter clothing in sizes 5-7 in particular. They have a range of drop off points across Hobart and further afield – check their Facebook page for more information.

HAPPY ENDINGS AT APPLE

Author and psychologist, Steve Bid­dulph, who we have interviewed in this edition, recently reported on his Facebook page…”FACEPLANT! People buying my new book Fully Human on Apple iBooks downloads have instead been receiving a soft porn novella called Happy Endings by Bella Green (no I am not making this up!) and gradually (I hope) working out that this is not my book! Don’t buy the book from Apple iBooks until we know this is sorted. Unless you like that sort of thing LOL!”

MT WELLINGTON CABLE CAR DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION OPEN FOR FEEDBACK

You have until Tuesday 22 June to have your say on the proposed cable car on kunanyi / Mt Wellington. The Mount Wellington Cablecar Company’s planning application and all accompanying information is available to view online and in person at Hobart City Council. Feedback provided as a formal representation can be considered by the planning authority (the Council) as part of the assessment process. Information on how to lodge a formal representation can be found at hobartcity.com.au/ planningapplications. It is expected that the Council will consider the application in July.

TUMOUR HUMOUR OPENS IN MOONAH

An exhibition of comics reflecting a young artist’s experience of living with a brain tumour and cancer has just opened in Moonah. Jai Sutton-Bassett was diagnosed with a brain tumour after he had a seizure 18 months after graduating from the Universi­ty of Tasmania with a fine arts degree. “I decided to express my feelings about having brain cancer in visual form by making a digital comic series. Working in a digital format was a new approach for me and my initial Tumour Humour work was in black and white. More recent works in the series use colour. In this, the works illustrate my devel­opment as a digital artist,” Jai said. “While the works track personal experience, they con­front more universal themes such as medical treatment, dealing with relationships, coping with emotional stress, other people’s reactions to a person with cancer, the health impacts of a cancer diagnosis and facing death.” They’re also funny, and very moving. See them at the Moonah Arts Centre until 26 June.

DARK MOFO

Dark Mofo is just around the corner. Running from 16-22 June, the 2021 version of the quirky midwinter festival has already been as controversial as ever. Organisers were quite late to announce the program this year, leading some to wonder whether the festival might be called off following the cancellation of a Santiago Sierra piece in which the artist invited First Nations people across the world to donate their blood so that he could soak a Union Jack flag in it. In response to intense backlash and an online – and ongoing – boycott call, Dark Mofo organisers employed a number of Aboriginal artists and advisers. This year’s program includes a number of Aborigi­nal acts and events, including opening night’s Home State Reclamation Walk, in which a growing number of Aborigi­nal people will lead audience members through the city to a street where vegetation is taking the space back. For many, that is not enough to repair the damage done by the original inclusion of Sierra on the bill. Jamie Graham-Blair, a trawlwoolway pakana man from North East Tasmania, said: “Heed my words, Dark Mofo is absolutely going to put their foot in it again and Blackfullas are gunna have to educate them and the masses all over again…how many free passes are y’all going to give them before they are held to account? That being said, pls support the Blak events and pakana artists on this year’s program. Not for Dark Mofo but to hear the yarns and learns what the mob have to offer.” There’s also perfor­mances from artists like Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore, or take up the offer to launch a loved one’s ashes into the Derwent. Favourites like the Ogah Ogah, Winter Feast and the Solstice Swim return too.

NOT SO NICE RICE

A recent study by the Uni of Queensland found we may be consuming three to four milligrams of plastic through a single-serve, or 100 grams, of rice. In pre-cooked or instant rice, it was four times higher than in uncooked rice, averag­ing 13 milligrams per serve. Washing rice before cooking reduced plastics contamination by 20 to 40 per cent.

UTAS SKIPS KANGAROO BAY

The Kangaroo Bay Project was dealt a blow recently when the council was formally advised by The University of Tasmania (UTAS) that it’s no longer in a position to commit to delivering a Tourism and Hospitality School in Kangaroo Bay in partnership with Chambroad Overseas Investment Australia (Chambroad). Clarence City Council Mayor Alderman Doug Chipman said the University outlined the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly on international student enrolments and the negative impact on supply and demand dynamics for hospitality personnel worldwide, as the major reason for this decision. “Under the current sale and development agreement (SDA) Chambroad have until 13 October 2022 to commence substantial works on the site. If substantial works are not commenced at that time the buy back clause will come into effect,” Mayor Chipman said. “The SDA did not specifically mention UTAS, simply referencing an education provider, and therefore council’s understanding is that Chambroad can seek another education partner and stay within the current SDA.” Council is working with Chambroad to understand how they are progressing in finding another education partner and other options they are considering for the project.

AFLW KICKING GOALS

Olympic gold medallist Chloe Dalton (who incidentally is a triple threat professional sportswoman – basketball, then rugby then AFLW) recently reported as part of The Female Athlete Project (www.thefemaleathleteproject.com) that the AFLW smashed records in the recent season. It was the first time games were ticketed and 13 games sold out. She also shared that there was a total TV audience of more than 5 million viewers during the home and away series which was up 35% on 2020 and 49% from 2019.