Letters 8 August, 2003

The facts about the Games village

The Commonwealth Games village will not be built on "21 hectares of Royal Park", as claimed by Kenneth Davidson (Opinion, 7/8), but will rejuvenate the site of a disused psychiatric hospital. The Games village development will retain the bulk of the heritage buildings on the site while removing the weeds, asbestos pipes and a series of dilapidated, poorly designed buildings.

Davidson also claims that the advisory committee's final report "made no mention of increasing the height limit to 11 storeys". In fact, the committee dealt with the issues on pages 83-86 of its independent report. Recommendation 35 was that the Government modify its commitment to restrict building heights to six storeys. The report notes on page 85 that it could "see no particular reason why a six-storey height limit is preferable to nine or even more storeys".

The report also confirms that the Government will deliver a minimum of 200 units of social housing. Davidson continues to claim a figure of only 100.

Finally, Davidson suggests the land "is worth in the order of $250 million", a baseless figure which stands in stark contrast to the Valuer-General's valuation of $33 million.

Age readers deserve analysis based on fact rather than Davidson's ignorant assertions.
Justin Madden,
Minister for the Commonwealth Games,
Melbourne

Misplaced nostalgia

It is irresponsible of Kenneth Davidson to romanticise Kew Residential Services. Consistently the reports of Community Visitors have called upon successive governments to close it. Kew is an outdated and substandard institution belonging to a bygone era.

The redevelopment of Kew will allow people with a disability to live as part of the community and have the same opportunities as other Victorians. Every dollar from the sale of Kew will be put into new housing for people who currently live there and directed back into services for people with a disability across Victoria. We are doing this to give people with disabilities a better life - better housing, 24-hour support and better access to day services.

It is extraordinary that Davidson also chooses to couch his argument in term of loss of parkland. Kew cottages is not sited on public parkland. However, under the Government's proposal the Kew site will become available to the broader community, with more public open space for local people in future.

In my view, all of us need to respect the personal rights of people with intellectual disabilities to live in an integrated and supported way. If Davidson shared that view, he might see that enlightenment comes from moving forward - not from holding on to the practices of the past.
Gavin Jennings,
Acting Minister for Community Services,
Melbourne

Who can we believe?

Community groups were shocked to discover, when Games Minister Madden unveiled plans for the village on Tuesday, that he had included three 11-storey tower blocks on the western wall of apartments along CityLink.

Back in August 2001, when Major Projects Victoria was involved in designing the village, plans were put forward for two 12 to 20-storey apartment blocks up against the freeway wall. Following September 11, however, minister Madden announced that plans for the twin towers had been scrapped as being vulnerable to terrorist attack. Subsequently, on August 7, 2002, the MPV director wrote to residents with assurances that future development on the site would be low to medium rise.

Who can we believe about the shape of a new suburb in the heart of Melbourne if we can't believe ministers of the Crown or high-ranking state bureaucrats?
Julianne Bell,
convenor,
Royal Park Protection Group,
Parkville