House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2018-12-04 Daily Xml

Contents

King Electorate

Ms LUETHEN (King) (15:27): First, I would like to quickly acknowledge the important members of the Tea Tree Gully RSL who visited Parliament House today, and I thank Bill Bates for arranging the tour today as well as for all the wonderful work he does to bring the community together in the north-eastern suburbs. I would also like to take this opportunity today to talk about some hardworking members of the King community who have been working collaboratively to solve a pressing local issue in Hillbank.

A number of King residents from Hillbank have raised with me, when I have been out doorknocking, an issue involving rogue dirt bike riders across the local region. These riders are causing significant damage to community assets and riding around at high speed, endangering both themselves and local community members. I have been working alongside members of the Sanctuary Rise Neighbourhood Watch group and its chairperson, David Jones, to find a solution to this issue.

SA Police have been involved—and I am very grateful for their support—and have also increased their presence in the Hillbank area with the goal of catching these riders in the act. The community is worried about these movements and increasingly afraid someone is going to be hurt.

I have been so pleased at the level of community involvement in this situation, as many members of the Hillbank area have talked to me about the issues with these riders. I plead with those doing the wrong thing to stop what they are doing, and I also call on the surrounding community to assist with our campaign by reporting these incidents to authorities. We know they are riding about three times a week, usually between 5 and 6 o'clock, and if we can narrow down where they are coming from and on what days that would be really helpful in locating these riders.

Another important issue in the King electorate revolves around the Marshall government's pledge to upgrade Golden Grove Road. Our community was given its first opportunity to see the concept designs at a number of community information sessions held late last month. The sessions were designed to let residents provide feedback, both positive and negative, to staff of the Department of Transport to ensure that the $20 million upgrade will provide exactly what the north-eastern community requires. I attended all three sessions, and it was so exciting to hear from local residents and businesses about just how important this upgrade is to them. The DPTI staff told me that on the first day of consultation they had more people go along to provide their feedback than they had had in a similar three-day session.

This upgrade is a significant development for not just the people in the north-east. When I was collecting signatures for a petition to pressure the former government to commit to this upgrade, a great number of community members were from areas north of Golden Grove, including One Tree Hill and Gawler. The DPTI team said that they are really pleased with the feedback, and I look forward to seeing the impact this has on the next draft of the plan.

Lastly, many King residents would have noticed in their letterboxes our most recent flyer, which outlined, funding announcements which the Marshall government has committed to in King. Funding for an upgrade of the Golden Grove park-and-ride has been delivered in this budget, much to the delight of residents who live in the vicinity, including those in Goodman Circuit, who are often facing pressure from people who cannot fit into the park-and-ride. Look at the DPTI plan and if you contact me, I can give you the specific link to provide more feedback about what this park-and-ride should look like.

The Skyline Drive slip lane in Hillbank has been costed and will be delivered. Improvements to our healthcare system at the Modbury and Lyell McEwin hospitals have been funded and will be delivered. A parking solution at the South Australian Districts Netball Association has been funded and will be delivered. I have been talking to the Tea Tree Gully council about their plans and time frames, as they have been given the money to deliver this. This is on top of the Marshall government's commitment to create more jobs, lower costs and provide better services. Residents would have also felt hip pocket relief in their emergency services bill, and the abolishment of payroll tax for small businesses will take place very soon, in January 2019.

On top of all this, the government has also begun its plan to provide cheaper and more reliable power to all South Australians. The Home Battery Scheme will provide 40,000 households with reduced electricity prices, which will in turn reduce demand on the grid and ultimately result in lower prices for all South Australians.