Harvey Jones

2022 candidate for City of Burnside.
Heritage survey responses.

1. Do you think that Councils and community members need to have a greater voice in planning and development decisions affecting their local area?
   Yes. In particular the make- up of Council Assessment Panels (CAP) should be for individual councils to decide. A council might then decide to have a majority or even all CAP members be elected councillors.

2. What role should Councils play in protecting local heritage places from demolition or inappropriate development?
   The City of Burnside recently passed a motion, proposed by me, to oppose the demolition of local heritage listed 2 Wootoona Terrace, St Georges. The motion also called for the State Government to amend the South Australia Heritage Places Act 1993 to extend the protections against damage and neglect that exist for state heritage listed building to local heritage listed properties.

3. How would you seek to improve protections for heritage places in your area?
   Refer above. Burnside Historic Conservation Zones to be local heritage places.

4. We rarely see new places added to local heritage listings. Why do you think this is?
   The City of Burnside during this term applied for all its Historic Conservation Zones to be declared Local Heritage places. This was flatly refused by the State Government. Putting a case for local heritage listing is expensive and councillors don't want to waste ratepayers money if the State Government is just going to reject applications.

5. How has the Planning and Design Code impacted on the heritage, amenity, and environment of your area? What changes would you seek to the Code?
   The City of Burnside has made extensive submissions on changes that we want and I concur with these.

6. What are the impacts of infill development in your area? What changes would you seek in the rules around infill development?
   The most irritating feature is that the planning code should set rules. At present the rules are only "guidelines" with the result that developers are constantly pushing the envelope in their applications. In its recently approved City Master Plan, the City of Burnside is also seeking large minimum block sizes across most suburbs, offering to trade this for higher density development on arterial roads. The tree planting rules for new houses are a joke if you can simply pay a nominal fee not to plant trees. The old rules for significant and regulated trees should be restored. We also need to do something about the unfortunate decision of botanists to carve out a new genus Corymbia from Eucalyptus with the result that trees such as Lemon Scented Gums and Spotted Gums lost the protections they used to have when they were in the Genus Eucalyptus.

7. Construction of new housing typically uses 30% labour and 70% materials. Renovation of existing housing stock typically uses 70% labour and 30% materials. What policy changes would you like to see made to encourage people to renovate, rather than demolish and build anew?
   The only conceivable control would be demolition control.

8. How should the community be informed and involved in decisions about new developments?
   All developments should require to be published to nearby residents.

9. Do you think there is adequate tree canopy across your local government area?
   Adequate yes, Burnside is pretty good. We could always have more and I have successfully advocated for additional planting of small areas of Grey Box Grassy Woodland in my ward.

10. How would you like to see significant and regulated trees in your area protected from removal?
    Bring back the old definitions. If there was more democratic control over CAP's then fewer applications would be approved.

11. What involvement should Councils have in decisions about protecting or removing significant and regulated trees?
    I would prefer that elected members had the power.

12. What actions would you advocate to slow or mitigate the impacts of climate change in your local government area?
    The City of Burnside has a plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030.

13. What issues are there with traffic and parking in your area?
    All the usual ones! In Beaumont Ward there are particular problems with parking on Waterfall Gully Road because of the popularity of Cleland National Park. During this council term we put in an additional 40 parking spaces at Chambers Gully Reserve. We have a project to put in smart sensors that would tell people remotely whether there were parking spaces at Waterfall Gully and we have also investigated the issue of a park and ride bus service from the Burnside Civic Centre at Tusmore to Waterfall Gully.

14. How could transport options be improved in your area?
    In Beaumont Ward, joining up the 142 and 147 bus routes would be helpful. The lack of footpaths in hillier areas is also an issue.

15. What would your top three priorities be for improving planning policy and outcomes in your local government area?
    Planning code to be rules not guidelines.
    Elected members able to be majority or all of the CAP.
    City of Burnside City Master plan increases in minimum block size.