Governing the Compact City Report Launch

City Futures is pleased to announce the Sydney launch of our Governing the Compact City Report by the Minister for Fair Trading on 21 May.

More than 1 in 10 Australians currently live in strata homes and the effective management of these schemes is essential for their well-being. Drawing on the experience of 1,550 NSW strata owners, managers and peak body representatives, the report comprehensively documents the challenges faced in effective strata management and provides an evidence base to inform future reforms in this area.

The 'Governing the Compact City' report presents findings from multi-year research funded by the Australian Research Council, in partnership with NSW Fair Trading, NSW Land and Property Information, Strata Community Australia, the Owners Corporation Network of Australia, Macquarie Bank and Lannock Strata Finance.

Authored by a City Futures team led by Dr Hazel Easthope, the report can be accessed here.


'Knockdown rebuild': The Incremental Renewal of Sydney's Suburban Landscape

Just completed at City Futures is a 2-year study on Sydney's 'knockdown rebuild' (KDR) phenomenon – the demolition and one-for-one replacement of residential properties. The project has probed the social, economic and financial aspects of this significant trend which is reshaping the suburban landscape both in Sydney and elsewhere in Australia. The research involved an extensive analysis of local authority development approvals data; a postal survey covering 1,200 recent KDR projects; and indepth interviews to explore motivations and expectations of owners concerned.

Local planners, builders and developers were consulted to build a picture of KDR impacts on housing choice, patterns of residential development and broader strategic planning concerns. Papers and presentations generated by the project are available here.


Cooperative Research Centre for Low Carbon Living

The Low Carbon Living Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) is an exciting initiative bringing together key industry, property, planning and policy organisations with leading Australian researchers to develop innovative social, technological and policy tools for reducing built environment greenhouse gas emissions. As well as removing barriers to cost-effective carbon saving opportunities, the CRC will empower communities and promote the widespread adoption of local renewable energy.

This will help transition the Australian built environment to a more environmentally sustainable future, and contribute to national greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets.

Based at UNSW and running from 2012

-2019, the CRC is led by sustainability expert and Built Environment Professor, Deo Prasad. It will also involve City Futures Research Centre through Susan Thompson, Associate CFRC Director (Healthy Built Environments) and CRC Engaged Communities program leader.

Read more about the CRC here


How do Built Environment Features Underpin Independence and Wellbeing for Older People?

In 2002 the ABS reported that 99% of persons aged over 75 had at least one long-term health condition. Therefore, the immediate physical surroundings of this group will become increasingly critical to their overall wellbeing. Yet there has been little direct research on these issues in Australia. Two regional coastal cities, Tweed Heads and Wollongong, are piloting geographic information tools embedded in an iPad application to evaluate older persons' perceptions of their built environment and the degree to which existing built environments facilitate accessibility and, thus, wellbeing.

The study focuses on the 400-500 metre walk zone within the centre/main street area of each town. It aims to inform understanding on the aspects of the built environment that are valued and function well for older persons and the physical features that restrict their access and wellbeing. More


Understanding and Addressing Local Opposition to Affordable Housing Projects

This 2012/13 AHURI research will investigate the causal roots of local opposition to affordable housing projects in Australia. Through case studies in three states, it will generate a robust evidence package to underpin more effective ways of minimising this impediment to the supply of affordable housing. The main aims of the research are to:

  • Improve understanding of the factors that underlie opposition to affordable housing;
  • Consider the efficacy of different strategies that housing providers and government agencies can use to mitigate or address that opposition; and
  • Document the experienced effects of affordable housing projects on local area characteristics, especially in relation to concerns most often raised by communities.
Click here to read more.


Fulbright Scholarship Success

City Futures and Faculty of Built Environment PhD student Laura Crommelin has won a prestigious Fulbright postgraduate scholarship which will see her heading to Detroit this August for eight months of field research. Laura's topic is how cities experiencing sharp industrial decline can reinvent their image through branding. Her PhD thesis pairs the once booming base of US car manufacturing with the Australian city of Newcastle. "My PhD looks at these cities' image and identity and the major social, physical and economic transitions they are going through," she says. "I will be interviewing people about how they

are trying to change their city's image; how they are renewing themselves." Before becoming immersed in cities, Laura studied arts and law at the University of Melbourne and Master's at the US Studies Centre at the University of Sydney.

Click to view article published in Sydney Morning Herald


Forthcoming City Futures Seminar

'Incorporating stereoscopic technology to enhance spatial accuracy: mapping of SEPP 14 coastal wetlands' to be presented by Bruno Parolin (UNSW) and Peter Nelson (NSW Department of Planning) – Wednesday 30 May


New Recruits at City Futures

Dr Shanaka Herath, has joined City Futures as a Research Associate after completing his PhD on house price modelling at Vienna University of Economics and Business, Austria

Ianina Rubinsztein is working as a Research Administrator for the Enabling Environments Program

Dr Klaus Gebel has joined City Futures as Senior Research Officer working for the Healthy Built Environments Program


City Futures Publications: Books, Refereed Journal Articles and AHURI Reports, Q1 2012

Crabtree, L, Blunden, H., Milligan, V. Phibbs, P. and C. Sapideen (2012) Community land trusts and Indigenous Housing Options, Final Report no 185 AHURI: Melbourne
Davison, G. and Rowden, E. (2012) There's Something About Subi: Protecting and Creating Neighbourhood Character in Perth, Australia, Journal of Urban Design, 17: 2, pp. 189-212
Davison, G., Dovey, K., Woodcock, I. (2012) Keeping Dalston Different: Protecting Place Identity in East London, Planning Theory and Practice, 13:1, pp. 47-69
Fishpool, J., & Bridge, C. (2012) Follow-up efficacy post environmental modifications; a guide for clinical practice; Occasional paper
Harvison, T., Newman, R. & Judd, B. (2011) Ageing, the Built Environment and Adaptation to Climate Change (ACCARNSI Discussion Paper, Node 3
Jung, Y. M., & Bridge, C. (2012) Demountable ramps: A qualitative assessment of value for people with mobility impairments; Sydney: Home Modification Information Clearinghouse, UNSW
Legacy, C, Curtis, C, Sturup, S. (2012) Is there a good governance model for the delivery of contemporary transport policy and practice? An examination of Melbourne and Perth, Transport Policy Vol 19(1) pp8-16
Legacy, C. (2012) Achieving legitimacy through deliberative plan-making processes—lessons for metropolitan strategic planning; Planning Theory & Practice Vol 13(1) pp71-87
Milligan, V. and Tiernan, A. (2011) No home for housing: The situation of the Commonwealth's housing policy advisory function; Australian Journal of Public Administration Vol 70(4) pp 391-407
Thompson, S. & Maginn, P. (2012) Planning Australia - An Overview of Urban and Regional Planning (2nd Edition); Cambridge University Press
Wiesel, I., Davison, G., Milligan, V., Phibbs, P. Judd, B. And Zanardo, M. (2012) Developing sustainable affordable housing: a project level analysis, Final Report 183; Melbourne: AHURI
Woodcock, I., Dovey, K., Davison, G. (2012): Envisioning the compact city: resident responses to urban design imagery; Australian Planner Vol 49(1) pp65-78

More publications are available on the City Futures website


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