Without you I’m nothing
BENDIGO’S residential Strategy will be reviewed because of greater than expected growth.
The State Government has announced a grant of $50,000 to carry out the review.
The review is needed because, according to the State Government, 40 per cent of the forecast growth between 2006 and 2031 had already been realised.
Regional Development Parliamentary Secretary Damian Drum made the announcement this morning.
Mr Drum said the Bendigo Residential Strategy Review would deliver greater community and investor certainty, helping the region grow.
“The Bendigo Residential Development Strategy was adopted in 2004 and is currently being audited because of the faster than anticipated growth that has occurred in Bendigo in recent years,” he said.
“Strong residential growth has many flow-on economic benefits and having a clear framework for future development will position Greater Bendigo City Council to undertake more detailed, place-based planning in the future.”
Deputy Premier Peter Ryan said about 40 per cent of the forecast growth between 2006 and 2031 had already been realised.
The Residential Strategy impacts directly on where and how property developments use “infill” parcels of land, range of housing styles and also on housing affordability.
“This project will review the strategy, assess current and estimated land supply and demand and consider various legislative and policy changes,” Mr Ryan said,
“It will also consider the latest demographic data and establish a new strategic framework to guide the long-term residential growth of Greater Bendigo.
“The project will result in a revised residential strategy that will give developers, the community and service providers greater surety and confidence about where land can be developed for residential purposes, and that sufficient land is available to accommodate the City of Greater Bendigo’s future growth.”
Mr Ryan said a contemporary strategic planning framework was essential to the economic development of a large regional centre like Bendigo.
“Clearly identifying future growth options and supporting infrastructure needs will enable the Greater Bendigo City Council and other infrastructure providers to plan their capital works programs well in advance,” he said.
“Identifying long-term growth areas will enable the council and other service authorities to start planning for the delivery of services, thereby minimising the lag time between when residential development occurs and when the services need to be in place.”
Anthony Radford | Bendigo Weekly | 22-Jul-2011
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Paul Northam, managing curator, La Trobe University Visual Arts Centre, Bendigo
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To be able to make things happen for others is a great vocation, should you be lucky enough to find a job with such a description.
As managing curator of La Trobe University’s Visual Arts Centre in Bendigo, Paul Northam’s comes pretty close.
It’s one he takes seriously, preferring the spotlight shine on the artists whose work is programmed in its galleries, than himself.
But I thought it necessary to discover more about Paul when we met to talk about the call for artist proposals for 2012, which the VAC is spruiking.
A former artist himself who chose this work over a chance-in-a-lifetime painting scholarship, I found him quiet and passionate. And inspired by his work at the VAC, making opportunities happen for artists not only from our region, but around Australia and the world.
“It’s the best job going,” he says.
Aside from programming some fantastic public events and shepherding the artist-in-residence program – which attracts practitioners from all over the world – Paul engages in exciting conversations with an ever-growing audience.
“Our numbers are very pleasing,” he says of the Centre’s 13,000+ visitors annually. “They’re increasing steadily.. and we are slowly raising the centre’s profile”.
How? “We’re working hard to break down the barrier – perception – that it’s just a Uni space, not for the general public. That it’s somehow academic or removed from everyday experience”.
He squarely attributes this to the “strength of the exhibiting program – our primary reason for being”.
I’m reminded here of the Sandra Bernhard quote, “without you I’m nothing”. Without the artists particular to the VAC, it would be just another gallery.
Getting the 2012 program right is Paul’s current mission.
Proposals are open for the Access Gallery, a space dedicated to Central Victorian artists (13 exhibitions are available). The VAC Gallery is “open to artists, art organisations and curators who are regional, from interstate or overseas” (eight).
“Anyone from anywhere,” Paul says when I ask him who is eligible to apply.
“There is no age limit, you don’t need a degree or a huge exhibition history, there is no preference given to La Trobe staff or students. All proposals are judged on merit.
“The strength of the proposal is everything.
“What we look for is the ‘curatorial rationale’. What is it about? What is the theme you’re addressing with the public?
“If they demonstrate that, then we know we can expect a strong and cohesive exhibition”.
And what is the selection committee – a mix of folk from the Uni, a BAG senior curator and Paul – looking for when they consider proposals? “The best contemporary art we can show in regional Victoria!” he says.
“Edgy, difficult, radical, interesting – we want our visitors to be challenged, to work a bit. To give them an art experience that wouldn’t otherwise be available in regional Victoria”.
Numbers for proposals have doubled annually since Paul began at the VAC three years ago, something he’s very proud of.
“To an artist, an exhibition is the most important thing happening in their life at that moment,” he says.
“We try to accommodate what they want to achieve as much we can on a very tight budget – we get good feedback.
“Our mission is to be the best in the region,” he smiles. He means it too...
La Trobe VAC 2012 artist proposals close August 31, 2011. Download an application form from www.latrobe.edu.au/vac
BENDIGO’S residential Strategy will be reviewed because of greater than expected growth.
The State Government has announced a grant of $50,000 to carry out the review.
The review is needed because, according to the State Government, 40 per cent of the forecast growth between 2006 and 2031 had already been realised.
Regional Development Parliamentary Secretary Damian Drum made the announcement this morning.
Mr Drum said the Bendigo Residential Strategy Review would deliver greater community and investor certainty, helping the region grow.
“The Bendigo Residential Development Strategy was adopted in 2004 and is currently being audited because of the faster than anticipated growth that has occurred in Bendigo in recent years,” he said.
“Strong residential growth has many flow-on economic benefits and having a clear framework for future development will position Greater Bendigo City Council to undertake more detailed, place-based planning in the future.”
Deputy Premier Peter Ryan said about 40 per cent of the forecast growth between 2006 and 2031 had already been realised.
The Residential Strategy impacts directly on where and how property developments use “infill” parcels of land, range of housing styles and also on housing affordability.
“This project will review the strategy, assess current and estimated land supply and demand and consider various legislative and policy changes,” Mr Ryan said,
“It will also consider the latest demographic data and establish a new strategic framework to guide the long-term residential growth of Greater Bendigo.
“The project will result in a revised residential strategy that will give developers, the community and service providers greater surety and confidence about where land can be developed for residential purposes, and that sufficient land is available to accommodate the City of Greater Bendigo’s future growth.”
Mr Ryan said a contemporary strategic planning framework was essential to the economic development of a large regional centre like Bendigo.
“Clearly identifying future growth options and supporting infrastructure needs will enable the Greater Bendigo City Council and other infrastructure providers to plan their capital works programs well in advance,” he said.
“Identifying long-term growth areas will enable the council and other service authorities to start planning for the delivery of services, thereby minimising the lag time between when residential development occurs and when the services need to be in place.”
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