HANSARD
SITTING CALENDAR
SEARCH
LIVE BROADCAST
Hansard Dynamic Subject Index
Legislative Council - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-02-05 Daily Xml
Contents
Pdf Xml

PORT AUGUSTA

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:10): Will the Minister for Urban Development and Planning provide details of any action taken to assist the future development of Port Augusta?

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY (Minister for Mineral Resources Development, Minister for Urban Development and Planning, Minister for Small Business) (15:10): I thank the Hon. Mr Gazzola for his very important question. Port Augusta is a very important regional centre at the apex of Spencer Gulf. With the proposed expansion of mining at Olympic Dam and other import mining projects in the north of this state, Port Augusta's strategic importance has been renewed.

To assist in the future development of this regional centre, the state government has circulated a draft structure plan. Such strategic planning should provide the city with a competitive advantage as an investment destination. Port Augusta residents have been invited to have a say about this draft structure plan during three months of public consultation.

The plan broadly identifies where future housing, population and commercial and industrial growth would be best located or not located, as the case may be, across the City of Port Augusta and its surrounds. The role and function of different parts of the city are identified, and issues, such as the interface between industry, residential areas and valuable environmental assets, are tackled in the draft. The plan aims to ensure that a supply of well-located, market-ready and affordable industrial, commercial and residential land is available when needed.

Spatially, Port Augusta is a city of three distinct residential villages (Central Port Augusta, Stirling North and Westside) with a centrally located retail and services hub and strategically located industrial estates on the perimeter of the city. The structure plan adopts broad key directions for the future growth of Port Augusta, such as climate change, resilience and sustainability and the facilitation of economic and employment growth. These directions enable short and longer term demand for industrial, commercial and residential land to be sustainably met. These directions are clearly outlined in the detailed document. The draft structure plan was released in December for three months of public comment, with a deadline for submissions of 20 March 2009.

I take this opportunity to acknowledge the collaboration between the Department of Planning and Local Government, the City of Port Augusta council, the Northern Regional Development Board and various state government agencies that have laid the groundwork for this important structure plan.

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins interjecting:

The Hon. P. HOLLOWAY: Sean Holden does a terrific job up there as a public servant and, what is more, he would make a great member of parliament at some stage in the future. He has been working there for a very long time and knows the area very well. I appreciate that his fame has spread to people such as the Hon. John Dawkins, and I thank him for acknowledging Mr Holden so that I can recognise the important work he does in that region.

This document is just one of a series of such structure plans being developed for South Australia's major regional cities. I point out that this plan does not attempt to forecast either the future population or the anticipated growth rate for Port Augusta; rather, what we are attempting to do with the plan is provide a robust framework that can accommodate a range of future population growth scenarios, including high growth. In that regard, the plan seeks to identify suitable locations for substantial population growth if and when it eventuates. This is particularly important because of the projected growth in mining, tourism and supporting industries in the Far North of the state.

When this government came into office, there were just four operating mines in South Australia. That number has grown to 11, with many of those in Upper Spencer Gulf and beyond. Once finalised, the Port Augusta structure plan will form an official part of the state government's planning strategy for South Australia. This gives the document statutory effect and will provide formal direction to council and the private sector. In particular, it will guide the updating of the development plan for Port Augusta that details zoning and other land-use policies.

The development plan, and any proposed amendments, must be consistent with the planning strategy. These development plans and amendments are used to assess the appropriateness of development applications. Hard copies of the structure plan are available from the Port Augusta council and can be downloaded from the Department of Planning and Local Government's website.

Community information sessions are being held throughout the consultation period, and details of these sessions are also available on the Department of Planning and Local Government's website. I trust that the people of Port Augusta, which is such an important regional centre in our state, will take the opportunity to have a say in the future of their city.

PARLIAMENTARY BUSINESS
MEMBERS
GET INVOLVED
ABOUT PARLIAMENT
VISIT
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY
CONTACT