Mystery surrounds the results of a City of Greater Bendigo car parking trial – almost 12 months after it began – prompting one councillor to suggest the council needs to be “open and transparent in its dealings with the public”.
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The council in January announced it would conduct a four-month two hour timed-parking trial in the cathedral precinct, results of which would inform a review of a broader residential parking policy.
The review, which will come with a number of recommendations, was expected to be completed by the end of June, but the COGB now expects this to be completed in 2019.
Councillor Andrea Metcalf sympathised with the frustrations of some residents.
“I think we should be quite open and transparent in our dealings with the public. We’ve gone out, asked for feedback and then they (residents) hear nothing back,” she said.
COGB parking strategy coordinator Jock Schofield said feedback from residents on the trial provided “mixed responses”.
“These ranged from the bays being full all the time, to the bays being under utilised,” he said.
It remains unclear when, or if, the trial results will be made public.
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Councillor Andrea Metcalf on Wednesday alluded to the lack of information available to the public at a council meeting when discussing a planning application for a medical centre near the cathedral precinct.
“Twelve months on from this trial there has been no publicly released findings or outcome,” she said.
“I would doubt that any residents in the area would take comfort from the statement (in the planning report to councillors) that council is undertaking a review of the existing CBD parking strategy and residents will have the opportunity to provide input.”
The results of the trial hold significance for people living in the precinct – some of whom were critical of the trial when it began – due to the growing number of planning applications in the area that had sought to reduce the statutory number of car parks required as part of the developments.
Discussing a planning permit for a medical centre in Don Street, which was approved by councillors on Wednesday, Cr Metcalf said: “Twelve months ago I was advised there had been 15 applications over the preceding five years in this area that had been granted approval to reduce the require statutory car parks. Since then there’s been another three.”
“It is therefore not hard to understand the anger and frustration of residents in the area as looking at each application singularly does not take into account the cumulative effect on the area.”
Fellow councillor Yvonne Wrigglesworth said the objectors argument the medical centre did not provide enough car parking was “tired”.
“The lack of parking in Bendigo, and that claim, is becoming a tired statement,” she said.
“Have a look around. We have plenty of parking and the argument that we don’t is wearing a little thin.”
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