Just who are we making improvements for?

Has anyone else heard about the 1.5 mil retaining wall going in to replace the one between the lake and the round-a-bout at the intersection of Parkes way and Anzac Pde. 1.5 mil for a retaining wall which provides a better view of the lake. Someones got their hand in the purse on that one.

Gnt – have you ever been to Amaroo? Man, all those shitty little rendered blue-board boxes … gives me the willies just thinking about it!

Big Al – What’s so special about you that you feel you can attack someone based on the fact that they live in Amaroo? Feel free to divulge your personal details for us to disect. People in glass houses…

The Lakeshore development is probably one of the few ways the Belconnen towncentre can develop a bit of culture outside the mall. I think its great to see the govt putting a bit of cash towards this – even if the developers leaned on them to cough up the cash. It would be good to see more money spent on improving other areas of Lake G, like the other foreshore areas, and fixing & widening the pathways around the lake.

Sorry vg – are you saying that its bullshit that the GDE is being built by the Government? I don’t follow … maybe you should engage brain before fingers.

I’m not disputing that you lived in Amaroo – after all, where else would could you afford to live on a plods salary, and good for you for aspiring to a better life for you family and all, but I digress – I suspect that once again you’re narrow focus on personal experience has caused you to miss the boat – the street you lived in may well have had at least 25 different builders but they sure as hell didn’t all build a little 25m section themselves … those were the good folks building homes for all the other mediocre families like yours who had bought blocks of land from the people that built the whole suburb so that you could aspire to living in the boondocks. The people who effected the subdivision and built the infrastructure had taken their millions and moved on well before joe-tradesman pulled up in his ute to build your triple-fronted homage to the mundane.

Now as a rule, this big engineering side of things is handled by the private sector but there are instances where the Government will establish a corporate like structure to deliver the same result – the ACT Government dabbles in this sort of thing on and off but generally it accepts that the people it can attract for the pissy money it pays means that most land development is best left to the private sector.

Actually the infrastructure costs are being built into the land costs nowadays – everywhere not just in the Kingdom of ACT. This explains why the cost of building a house has gone up by about 35% in the past decade, while land costs are up about 1000% [all in equivalent dollars] Then the Government hits you again in the inflated unimproved land value rate charge.

Al

Bullshit. The govt is paying for the GDE to be built. It just contracts out the actual work.

Lived in Amaroo for 7 years and watched the govt contracttors build the roads. Hell, I even spoke to them about it.

Certain infrastructure will be paid for by the private sector, but being as the street I lived in had at least 25 different builders what, did they all build a little 25m section themselves?

If it makes the lake area more attractive then I’m all for it.

Areas such as Forde are different, but you’re wrong generically.

You trying to bait me is like my child doing the same. Doesn’t work, and easily combatted through logic

Projects like the GDE are always going to be governmnet built unless common sense prevails and a private consortium is allowed to build it as a tollway. We’re taliking about the suburban streets here. For the sake of bringing people up to speed (albeit walking pace at this stage)- governmnet sells the land to property developers who then put in a planning application to sub-divide the land for residential properties (or leases in the ACTs case). The Government then makes the construction of services and infrastructure a condition of approval – its like saying to the developers: sure you can have a 500 lot sub-division, but you have to cover the cost of stormwater, sewage, electricity, roads etc. The developer builds this stuff and the Government takes over the asset for free once the sub-divisions up and running.

About bloody time!!!

The new resaurants there will add a bit of Batemans bay foreshore to the area.

At least there will be an altenrative to the beer hall at the Lighthouse.

Way to go Sonic!

“Governments have been getting the private sector to pony for the cost of infrastructure for as long as … well ever since they grew a brain.”

That’s right. It’s the private sector that is paying for the Gunghalin Drive Extension, isn’t it?

It just hit me vg – you really think that you can tell that the Government paid for the roads to be built because they maintain them … sorry to pinch one of yours buddy but if we’re going to have a battle of wits … lets go back to the begining shall we (apologies for use of big words)…

Governments have been getting the private sector to pony for the cost of infrastructure for as long as … well ever since they grew a brain. Long term management of the assets becomes a Govt responsibility once they’re built, as you would expect, but they sure as hell dont build them.

If so sim_m_o perhaps it would have been nice for it to be spent on something that won’t be of most use to residents of the new development.

I could be wrong, but my understanding of it is that every state and territory gets an allocation of funds from the commonwealth, that go into the maintenance of roads and public places. The assessment for those funds is based on the previous year’s spending, so perhaps this could explain it.

Ah, right…

So what are the guidelines for which developments get nearly a million bucks of development assistance and which ones don’t?

How much extra do you think the gov will reap from new businesses that are setting up in the area? Increased stamp duty on property sales? The fact that any Belco resident will be able to use the improved facilities?

Seems like one of the better uses of $800k they have managed to me.

The government must be dumber than they look then given that the construction of all services and infrastructure is generally a condition of development approval … then again when you look accross the spectrum at the sort of dipshits on the Government payroll, nothing would surprise me.

In any case, the roads that link places like Amaroo (including the bike paths) to the rest of the world are owned, built and maintained by the govt. This is a housing development, not just an individual’s home.

Al

I lived in Amaroo for 7 years. The govt paid for the roads. That’s why they maintained them

No vg I guess what he’s saying is that if you build a private development, its only reasonable that you foot the bill for integrating it ino the surrounding services rather than seeking to externalise that cost onto ACT taxpayers. It’s not a new, nor unreasonable idea. You don’t honestly believe that the roads and gutters and pavements and other services in places like Amaroo were built by the Government do you?

So what you’re saying is that people, just because they live in a privately owned development, shouldn’t be allowed to have a pedestrian and bike path link to the lake they live next to.

Maybe we should remove all those government roads that link privately owned houses as well.

You may have liked the lake the way it was but, from last guess, you live a fair way away from it. I think the people who pony up to live next to it should be allowed to enjoy its amenities. I see nothing wrong whatsoever with the public purse paying for it.

A people here call other people NIMBYs!

so a whole bunch of schools get closed down for this? they really are idiots

Is this where we put our comments about how many schools could be funded for the money?