Posted on June 25, 2012 by Western Suburbs Alliance

London architect Bernard Hunt has observed, ”We are good at putting up buildings, but we are bad at making places.”

Writing in theSydney Morning Herald, Brian Dollery and Bligh Grant observe that the empowerment of local authorities and local communities through the devolution of local planning powers now being re-introduced in NSW echoes the ‘place-shaping’ approach to local government reform developed by the Lyons Inquiry into Local Government in England in 2007.

Creating communities involves far more than buildings and infrastructure. It is the residents that bring a place to life and help it to gain its own particular identity. However, much more is known about the physical and environmental challenges involved in development how to plan, design and places that enable residents and visitors alike to share common interests, agree on local priorities and work together to create…