Way Forward for Funding Services in Growth Areas
Source: Victoria. Minister for Planning. Media Release
"The Brumby Government announced it has reached agreement with the peak development industry bodies on a formula for funding vital infrastructure within an expanded urban growth boundary. Planning Minister Justin Madden said it was vital for housing affordability that the Urban Growth Boundary be extended and revenue secured to build infrastructure for new communities. “Both the Government and the development industry recognise the need to plan a long way ahead and ensure our growth corridors develop as compact, sustainable communities,” Mr Madden said.“Through this compromise, developers will pay 30 per cent of the Victorian Government’s Growth Areas Infrastructure Contribution when they purchase land, with the remaining 70 per cent being paid in stages as the land is subdivided.”Mr Madden said the Brumby Government had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Property Council of Australia and the Urban Development Institute of Australia spelling out the details of how the charge would be restructured to make it acceptable to the industry."

Metropolitan Strategy Review: Sydney Towards 2036
Source: New South Wales. Premier. Media Release.
"Premier Kristina Keneally announced the beginning of the formal public consultation on Sydney’s Metropolitan Strategy. The Sydney Towards 2036 discussion paper is the first stage in an extensive consultation process to review Sydney’s Metropolitan Strategy." Discussion Paper.

Australian Government Smart Infrastucture Awards
Source: Australia. Minister for Infrastructure, Transport,Regional Development and Local Government. Media release.
"Nominations are now open for the inaugural Australian Smart Infrastructure Awards for innovative, technology-driven solutions to infrastructure bottlenecks and urban congestion. The awards will recognise project excellence in design, delivery, and use of infrastructure in any of Infrastructure Australia's national priority areas, including the rail freight, water and urban development."

REFORMING QUEENSLAND’S LAND VALUATION SYSTEM
Source: Queensland. Premier. Media Release
"Premier Anna Bligh announced significant changes to the Queensland land valuations system to provide greater certainty and align Queensland with other States. The Premier has committed to moving to site valuation, consistent with other jurisdictions and in line with what the property industry and local government have been seeking for some time. The Government will put in place a new structure to reform the state valuation services including the appointment of an independent Valuer General to provide transparency in the assessment and issuing of valuations."

SCHOOL’S IN FOR RECREATION AS PART OF GREEN SPACE PLAN
Source: Queensland. Premier. Media Release
"Queenslanders will get the chance to have their say on how school ovals and playing fields could be transformed into recreational green spaces in the lead up to the Queensland Growth Management Summit on March 30 and 31.
Premier Anna Bligh said the idea will be included in a series of documents that will be progressively released for consultation over the next four weeks.
Ms Bligh said an important area to be looked at for better growth management was the expansion of land for public recreation rather than conservation.
"We want to open up as much green space as possible, particularly in the South East Queensland corner, to ensure the amount of land for public recreation expands in line with a growing population," she said.
Some school ovals do open after hours on an ad hoc basis but what we are proposing is a structured scheme that can open up schools right across the State."

VICTORIAN ROADS GET SMARTER WITH NEW NETWORK PLANS
Source: Victoria. Minister for Roads & Ports. Media Release
"New world-leading transport management guidelines will reduce congestion and prioritise public transports routes, bringing the best out of Melbourne’s existing road infrastructure, Roads and Ports Minister Tim Pallas announced. Mr Pallas said the Australian-first SmartRoads operating plans would improve the efficiency of metropolitan road network for all transport modes – including trams, buses, taxis, cyclists, cars and walking.“The Brumby Labor Government is taking action to build a better transport system, so people can spend less time commuting and more time with family and friends,” Mr Pallas said.“SmartRoads is an innovative approach to managing Melbourne’s arterial road network – giving priority to different transport modes at certain times of the day.“By designating which modes have priority on particular roads, we can make the system work better for everyone, rather than every mode competing for space all on the one road. The aim is to reduce delays and congestion for commuters and make the most of our existing road space and use SmartRoads to guide planning into the future and encourage smarter road sharing.”

New programs to provide jobs, infrastructure and a healthier Queensland
Source: Queensland. Minister for Child Safety and Minister for Sport. Media Release
"The Bligh Government announced a new package of sport and recreation funding programs to deliver more than $138 million to create jobs, help build infrastructure and deliver initiatives to encourage Queenslanders to take part in sport and recreation activities. Sports Minister Phil Reeves said the sports funding programs would generate more than 500 jobs over the next three years. “Four new programs will fund sporting clubs and recreation organisations, councils and schools to help them increase participation, recruit volunteers, and encourage disadvantaged communities to participate in sport,” Mr Reeves said."

Ban the banners legislation to be revised for building covenants
Source: Queensland. Minister for Infrastructure and Planning. Media Release
"Minister for Infrastructure and Planning Stirling Hinchliffe has announced the State Government’s intention to revise the “Ban the Banners” legislation as it relates to building covenants. “Late last year the government introduced a series of measures that were aimed at increasing the sustainability of new houses constructed in Queensland,” Mr Hinchliffe said.
“This was in response to concerns raised by home owners who were prevented from doing this by covenants and body corporate by-laws imposed by some developers.”
Some covenants and body corporate by-laws had been used to prevent sensible sustainable housing features such as light coloured roofs, solar hot water and solar panels being installed.
Mr Hinchliffe said he had requested feedback from industry based on the practical application of the policy. During recent consultations, some peak bodies within the property sector raised concerns regarding some unforeseen impacts of the legislation."

First National Forum for Regional Development Champions
Source: Australia. Parliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government. Media release
"Maxine McKew, Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development, has announced that Chairs and Deputy Chairs of Regional Development Australia (RDA) committees from across the country will come together at the first RDA National Forum in Canberra on 18 March. Ms McKew said the Forum would provide a valuable opportunity for the committees to exchange information and ideas about issues facing their regions, as well as strategies to address these common challenges. The first RDA National Forum will take place at Parliament House and will include keynote addresses from pre-eminent thinkers on issues affecting regional Australia."

Draft Legislation Released for NBN Co Operations
Source: Australia. Minister for Finance and Deregulation and the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy. Joint Media Release.
The Rudd Government today released exposure drafts of legislation to establish a regulatory framework for the National Broadband Network company, NBN Co Limited. Exposure drafts of two bills were released:
National Broadband Network Companies Bill 2010 (sets out ownership, governance and sale arrangements for NBN Co.)
Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (National Broadband Network Measures – Access Arrangements) Bill 2010 (sets out the access arrangements for NBN Co that reflect its wholesale-only status.)
The Government proposes to introduce the bills into Parliament in the Autumn or Winter sittings depending on the feedback received.

Infrastructure strategy launched
Source: Tasmania. The Premier
"The Premier said that in developing the Strategy, there had been extensive input from business, community leaders, local government, transport, telecommunications, water, energy and other key stakeholders.
He said that the key priority areas were coordinated infrastructure planning, effective governance and decision-making, viable and sustainable infrastructure, efficient infrastructure delivery and levering Tasmania’s natural advantages to build the Tasmania of the future."

NEW STRATEGY FOR TOURISM RESILIENCE
Australia. Minister for Tourism, Media Release.
"Martin Ferguson AM MP, has outlined the Government’s commitment to a strong and competitive tourism industry, unveiling the National Long-Term Tourism Strategy and announcing more than $8 million in TQUAL Grants funding. The National Long-Term Tourism Strategy provides a work plan for skills, infrastructure and removing barriers to investment, giving investors greater confidence in the sector’s long-term prospects. The work plan includes better research for the industry and improving regulation to encourage more tourism investment.Visit www.ret.gov.au/tqual for TQUAL Grants details."

Roadwork signage safety review to reduce driver frustration
Source: Queensland. Minister for Main Roads. Media Release
"Main Roads Minister Craig Wallace announced the State Government will review signage around roadwork sites to reduce driver frustration and ensure motorists receive a clear and consistent message across the state.“I understand the frustration that motorists must feel when having to slow down through the many roadwork sites across the state,” Mr Wallace said.“You can’t spend $18 billion on roadworks like we’re doing over the next five years without causing a bit of disruption.“What we do want to ensure though is that the signage being used to advise motorists is clearly displayed and consistent at all worksites so it remains effective.“We know we can reduce driver frustration by ensuring smooth reductions in speed around worksites and by ensuring speed reductions through inactive worksites at night and on weekends are only in place when required for safety due to changed road conditions."

State Government developing pipeline of Public Private Partnership projects

Source: Western Australia. The Treasurer

Treasurer Troy Buswell today confirmed the State Government was planning a significant number of infrastructure projects for delivery as Public Private Partnerships (PPPs).
Mr Buswell said projects announced today by the Attorney General were the first transactions in what would become a pipeline of PPPs in health, education, correctional services and utilities in Western Australia.

JOBS BOOST FOR VICTORIAN SMALL AND MEDIUM BUSINESSES
Sources: Victoria. Minister for Regional & Rural Development. Media Release
"A program linking regional and rural businesses to major infrastructure projects will be rolled out across Victoria beginning this month after the Brumby Labor Government committed $150,000 to the project. Regional and Rural Development Minister Jacinta Allan said the extension of the government’s Regional Industry Link program would offer more jobs for Victorians employed by small and medium businesses across the state.“The pilot connected 3000 businesses from 26 regional and rural councils to $9 billion worth of private and public building projects across Victoria during its 18 month trial period,” Ms Allan said."

Capital City Strategic Planning Systems
Source: Australia. Minister for Infrastructure, Transport,Regional Development and Local Government. Media Release
"State and Territories will have capital city strategic plans by 2012 that meet national criteria for transport, housing, urban development and sustainability.
State and Territory planning systems will be independently assessed by the COAG Reform Council in this major microeconomic reform agreed by Governments at today's COAG meeting."

Assessing the impact of urban development
Source: NSW. Dept of Planning
"Draft terms of reference for the strategic assessment of Sydney’s growth centres have been released by the New South Wales Government. The Department of Planning is undertaking the assessment of the North West and South West Growth Centres under the terms of the Federal Government’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. It will assess the impact of urban development on areas of national environmental significance within the centres.
The North West and South West Growth Centres are areas which will accommodate 181,000 new dwellings and land for employment for about half a million new residents over the next 25 to 30 years. The North West Growth Centre will contain about 70,000 new dwellings and the South West Growth Centre will have the capacity for around 110,000 new dwellings.
The draft terms of reference will be on display until December 23."

Green light for Gold Coast Rapid Transit
Source: Queensland. Treasurer and Minister for Employment and Economic Development. Media Release
"The search is on for a team to build and operate the first light rail project in Queensland, with expressions of interest called for the Gold Coast Rapid Transit project. Treasurer Andrew Fraser said the project would literally change the face of the Gold Coast, and become an iconic piece of transport and tourist infrastructure. “The Gold Coast is one of Australia's fast growing regions, welcoming 15,000 new residents each year,” Mr Fraser said. “Rapid Transit will replace up to 75 million car trips in the first ten years of operation, cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 114,000 tonnes. This is the sort of project that a modern, growing region needs.”

HIGH-LEVEL TEAM TO HELP QLD STAY AHEAD OF GROWTH
Source: Queensland. Premier. Media Release
"Premier Anna Bligh announced a high-level advisory team to help Queensland tackle the challenges of population growth. The announcement comes ahead of the Council of Australian Government meeting where population growth, and planning for it, will be a key issue.
“Growth is real and I’m determined to tackle it head on and protect Queensland’s unique lifestyle,” Ms Bligh said. “SEQ is the fastest growing region in the country and 2000 people call Queensland home every week. We have to seize this opportunity and get this right.
“Next year, we’ll have a growth summit which is a great opportunity to bring together people from across Queensland to help us lead the nation into the next period of prosperity and continue to enjoy the best lifestyle in Australia. This team of experts, with a wealth of knowledge areas such as population trends, climate change, architecture, planning and industry, will play an important role in the summit.”

$30M TO SUPPORT RESEARCH COLLABORATION
Source: Australia. Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research. Media Release
"The Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr, today announced that 71 research projects will share more than $30 million in funding under the Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) scheme."