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Cinema Culture PROTECTING APARTMENT COMMUNITIES We must act fast to tell the NSW Government that apartment communities should have the democratic right to set the rules for short term letting in their buildings. Short term letting has a place in the economy but unchecked it has serious impacts for areas in high tourist demand. It has already taken an estimated 6,000 homes out of the Sydney rental market, contributing to escalating rents. In apartment buildings there are additional concerns about security, use of common property, waste and costs. I have petitions calling for reforms to protect apartments and neighbourhoods and I need more signatures – 10,000 – to get this matter debated in Parliament. Petitions are available from my website www.alexgreenwich.com/petitions or by contacting my electorate office: 9267 5999, sydney@parliament.nsw.gov.au Ground Floor, 21 Oxford Street Darlinghurst.
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Darcy threatens to book state By John Moyle In an audacious move Inner West Council mayor Darcy Byrne has threatened to send the State Government a bill for $30 million after receiving the findings of the independent report Rat Run Study for five precincts, commissioned by Council. The report findings state that WestConnex will have an impact on inner west streets and arterial roads next to the motorway, with some expected to experience enormous peak hour increases as early as 2021. “This report shows that rather than solving traffic congestion in our community, WestConnex will create the mother of all rat runs in many streets across the inner west,” Mayor Byrne said. In response to Mayor Byrne’s option to send a bill, a Roads and Maritime Services spokesperson said,”The NSW Government is yet to receive advice from Inner West Council regarding their traffic study, funded by rate payers.” The $16.8 billion and rising WestConnex motorway is a 33 kilometre toll road being billed by State Government as “Australia’s largest infrastructure project”, has much of its construction concentrated in the inner west, which will be further impacted in 2019 when another two stages valued at $33 billion are completed. These are the construction of the new M4 East tunnels between Homebush and Haberfield and the new M5 tunnels from Kingsgrove to the St Peters Interchange, with both expected to open to traffic by 2019. Tunnels linking the M4 and M5 make up a third stage of the motorway and is expected to be completed by 2023. Inner West’s report looked at traffic projections for 2021 and 2031 around all the WestConnex entry and exits and ‘analysed every street in those precincts,’ Ken Welsh, environment and planning, Inner West Council said.
Sydney Traffic. Photo: Alex Proimos
The report’s found that by 2021 traffic along Barton Street, Haberfield, would increase by an extra 490 vehicles, or 250 per cent. An additional 400 vehicles in peak hour are expected in Julia and Chandos Street in Ashfield as some of the traffic tries to get on or off the WestConnex tunnels. By 2031 an extra 300 vehicles are expected to use Northcote Street in Haberfield and Waratah Street, also in Haberfield, would experience a 50 per cent increase to 750. Roads and Maritime Services dispute that the project will increase traffic and said “Roads and Maritime Services have already carried
out detailed traffic modelling which supports building WestConnex. “It shows WestConnex will help reduce traffic on inner west roads.” Also in the Inner West Council area, residents of Balmain and Rozelle say that they will also see an increase of traffic onto their side streets as a result of WestConnex construction. Henry Johnston lives at the Victoria Street end of Lilyfield Road and fears for the future. “With the onset of WestConnex what we fear is basically a pinch-point on Lilyfield Road and there will be an upswell of traffic using Lilyfield Road to avoid getting onto
WestConnex and paying the toll,” Henry Johnston said. “Lilyfield Road is going to become a default road to get around it and this whole end of the road is definitely going to become a rat run.” Mr Johnston also denies that there has been any traffic modelling done for the area. “The only modelling we have been informed of was for a bike lane proposed along Lilyfield road that has 1,000 cyclists a day,” he said. “The whole problem with WestConnex is that there is no real information coming to the citizens of this area, and this has been going on since WestConnex was mooted.” Another resident voices concerns starting with construction for the Balmain/Rozelle section of WestConnex and the Western Harbour Tunnel approach at the old Tigers football club site that he says will see an increase in the number of trucks in the area. “The original justification for WestConnex was to take trucks off the road and traffic off local streets, but with over 5,000 trucks a day on Victoria Road over five years during construction is the opposite of what was promised and cars will be forced into rat runs,” Sunil Badami said. Mr Badami added that the rat runs will also present a danger to children attending Balmain Public School and Rozelle Public School. Mayor Byrne said “The report shows that a slew of local streets and arterial roads will be overrun with traffic, with some hit by massive traffic increases in peak hour by 2021. “The study estimates it will cost up to $30 million to put real traffic calming measures into the local area - a drop in the ocean for this $20 billion project.” The five precincts covered by the Rat Run Study are Ashfield, Haberfield, Leichhardt West, Johnston Street and St Peters. An Inner West Council spokesperson said rat run mitigation includes footway widenings, pinch points, speed humps, pedestrian crossings, bicycle lanes and landscaping.
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By Lanie Tindale Inner West Mayor Darcy Byrne has been rounding share-bikes off pathways, saying that “we now have to use the stick.” Three months ago, 6 Sydney councils proposed guidelines for bike share companies. The Inner West Council announced a trial period of three months for the companies to comply, which has now come to an end. Mr. Byrne says that the guidelines are “simple” but that the dockless bike share companies “haven’t done enough to lift their game.” The Mayors announced that if inactive bikes are not moved after a fortnight, they will be impounded. “Impounding bikes sounds simple but comes at a real cost for our ratepayers. Council would like to see the share bike guidelines extended into a formal service agreement, where bike share operators are liable for Council costs if our rangers have to remove bikes” Said Mr. Byrne. He says that “disabled, immobile and elderly residents are unable to go to their local shops because bike share operators are leaving bikes dumped all over our streets.” A spokesperson from bike share company ReddyGo said: “We understand why Inner West Council has begun impounding broken bikes, and whilst this is an additional challenge, it pushes us as a business to do better and will help the industry be more responsive going forward.” ReddyGo uses GPS to track bicycles, and has had problems with bike theft and damage. “Helmet theft and bike damage are an issue
Mayor of Inner West Darcy Byrne impounding bikes. Photo: Inner West Council
for us as well as the bike sharing industry as a whole. Being both a market disruptor and a start-up, we recognise the importance of maintaining good relationships with the public and the local councils. We have strived to do this from day one, but along the way, various factors have contributed to a decline in trust in the industry.” “Despite some of the difficulties, Reddy Go sees a positive future for share bikes in Sydney, and we look forward to continued dialogue and cooperation with councils.” The guidelines devised by the six Sydney Councils - including the Inner West, Woollahra, Waverley, City of Sydney, Randwick City and
City of Canada Bay say that operators must use geo-fencing which creates a virtual perimeter in which the bike may be monitored, “preferred parking and exclusion zones in high traffic areas, such as sections of waterfront or for large events where public safety is an issue.” Mr. Byrne places responsibility on both the bike share operators who he says “have got to do more to get on top of issues like vandalism, public safety and accessibility” and the state government. The bike operators found in Sydney are OBike, ReddyGo, Ofo and Mobike. Bikes have been found in waterways, beaches, trees and parks. city hub 31 MAY 2018
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Clearway for abortion clinics BY Erika Echternach The NSW upper house passed a bill on 24 May to implement 150-metre safe access zones around reproductive health clinics. The safe access zones would protect women seeking an abortion by making interfering with, harassing or recording people entering or exiting a reproductive health clinic without their consent a criminal offence. Violating the safe access zones could result in up to six months in prison, or up to 12 months for a second offence. Parliament’s approval of the safe access zone bill comes in the wake of last weekend’s Irish Referendum, which repealed a constitutional amendment essentially banning abortion. The Irish voted to legalise abortion by an overwhelming 66.4 percent. The bill passed by the Legislative Council on Thursday was co-sponsored by Labor’s Penny Sharpe and the Nationals’ Trevor Khan in a surprising display of solidarity between the MPs’ parties. A long-time advocate for women’s rights, Ms Sharpe has spent her political career fighting for individuals’ reproductive rights and to shield those who choose an abortion from harassment. “Women should have the right to seek medical treatment with privacy and dignity and without the interference of others,” Ms Sharpe said. Mr Khan said he had known that protesting had become an issue in Newcastle but was more recently made aware of the larger scope of the problem, which prompted him to co-sponsor the safe access zone bill. “The bill came along, and I thought it was a worthwhile bill,” Mr Khan said. Ms Sharpe echoed the sentiment that the lack of safe access zones is a pervasive issue: “The current laws in NSW are failing women. Women are being harassed, abused and photographed with
A protester outside Marie Stopes Australia clinic. Photo: Marie Stopes Australia
when they are trying to enter reproductive health clinics.” Paul Nattrass, the practice manager at The Private Clinic, said disruptive protests have taken a toll on the clinic for the past 15 years. Mr Nattrass added that some receptionists have quit because they found strangers calling them by name and attempting to engage in religious conversations on a regular basis too stressful.
The protesters have an even bigger impact on patients, who are already emotionally vulnerable. Protesters often strategically place themselves directly in the path of women entering the clinic, sometimes moving from the front to the back entrance to better target patients. “They call it peaceful protesting, but what they’re really trying to do is intimidate and discourage patients from having the procedure,” Mr Nattrass said. Kitty Grozdich, the nurse unit manager at the Marie Stopes Australia Clinics in Sydney, said every abortion provider in NSW faces intense harassment from protestors, which is why safe access zones are a necessity. In addition to local reproductive health clinics, the Australian Medical Association, the Council for Civil Liberties and the Country Women’s Association are all in favour of free access zones. Although a party-room decision required Labor Party members to support the bill, both the Liberal and National parties voted by conscience, supplying the additional votes needed to reach 21 and send the bill to the lower house. Now the only obstacle separating the bill from becoming a law is the approval of the lower house, which is expected to vote on the law in early June. If the lower house passes the bill, NSW will join the ranks of Victoria, ACT, Tasmania and the Northern Territory, each of which have already passed legislation to enact safe access zones. Based on the Green Party’s position in favour of safe access zones and how the other Legislative Assembly members will most likely cast their votes, Mr Khan said he is tentatively optimistic about the outcome. “We’re quietly confident at the moment,” Mr Khan said. “I think we can get enough votes to put it across the line.”
Ms Sharpe agreed that responses to the bill have been largely positive. “Trevor Khan and I have been buoyed by the strong support our bill received in the Legislative Council, we are working hard for a similar result in the Legislative Assembly,” Ms Sharpe said. Alex Greenwich, the independent member for Sydney, said he will certainly be supporting the bill when the lower house votes next month. Similarly, Jenny Leong, Newton’s member of the Legislative Assembly, said she will 100 per cent support the bill in June. Although the bill has enjoyed broad support, both Mr Khan and Ms Sharpe were careful not to assume victory and stressed the importance of continuing to build support for instituting safe access zones. “We encourage people who feel strongly about the introduction of safe access zones to speak to their local members and urge them to support our bill,” Ms Sharpe said. Regardless of whether the Legislative Assembly votes to make the safe access zones bill a law, abortion remains a criminal offence in NSW. An abortion may legally be obtained only if continuing the pregnancy poses a threat to the woman’s physical or mental health. However, Ms Leong and her party are striving to reform abortion laws. “While this bill is a step in the right direction, we still need to see abortion removed from the Crimes Act in NSW. The Greens will continue to work with the community until every woman can access a safe and legal abortion in NSW,” Ms Leong said. Considering the Greens’ goal to ultimately decriminalise abortion and Ireland’s recent legalisation of abortion, change may be on the horizon.
Public Notice Relocating libraries and customer service in South Sydney The City of Sydney is relocating two of its libraries and customer service centres to a new centre in the Green Square Plaza at 355 Botany Road, Zetland. The new Green Square Library opens in August and will include the new Green Square Customer Service Centre. The current Green Square Library and Customer Service Centre, Waterloo Library and Redfern Customer Service Centre will move to the new location.
Getting there We recommend you use public transport or walk to the new centre. There is no onsite parking. • Train: The new centre is next to Green Square train station, which is on the T8 Airport and South train line. From Redfern station you will need to travel to Central station and change for Green Square trains. • Bus: Catch the 309 from Gibbons Street, Redfern, or the 343 from Elizabeth Street, Waterloo. Other bus services to Green Square include the 370, 310 and X93.
Arrangements during the move Current Green Square services will close on Friday, 1 June 2018 and reopen in the new centre in August. Weekly rhymetime and storytime will continue to run in the Tote Building in Green Square until the new library opens. The meeting and function rooms in the Tote Building can continue to be booked. Waterloo Library and the Redfern Customer Service Centre will close just before the new centre opens. The City’s other library branches and online library services will be available while we relocate. For all library locations, visit cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/library or email library@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au Town Hall Customer Service Centre (behind Sydney Town Hall) on Level 2, 456 Kent Street, is open Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Many City services are also available at online.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au The Green Square Tote and Waterloo Library buildings will be made available for community use. We will consult the community on the future use of these buildings. Thank you for your patience while we move to the new location. For more information, contact us on 02 9265 9333 or email council@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au
For more information call 02 9265 9333 or email council@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au 4
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cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au Sydney2030/Green/Global/Connected
Our services The new Green Square Library will provide access to an even bigger collection of books, CDs, DVDs, magazines and newspapers. Our Russian and Koori collections will move to the new library. The new library features a striking six-storey glass tower and will house community and reading rooms and a technology suite. A music room with a baby grand piano will be available for practice and rehearsals. You will be able ask our friendly staff at the new Green Square Customer Service Centre about rate payments, permits and notifications, Council papers and other City services.
• Village to village service: This is a free bus service for City of Sydney residents who need help with transport. The orange shuttle stops at locations in Redfern, Waterloo and Green Square on Thursdays and Fridays. See villagetovillagesydney.wordpress.com or call 02 8241 8000 for details. • Walk: The new centre is a 10-minute walk from our current Green Square Library and Customer Service Centre and Waterloo Library and 25 minutes from Redfern Customer Service Centre.
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Bondi’s homophobic past revisited BY Paul Paech “...the nation as a whole must remain diminished unless and until there is an acknowledgement of, and retreat from, those past injustices.” Mabo #2 judgement, 1998. Whether in politics or our own personal and family relations, reconciliation is something we all yearn for. But gee: it sure don’t come easy. Typically, they say, reconciliation is a three-stage process. Firstly, you articulate the reality of past wrongs through something like confession; then you seek and provide forgiveness for the damage that has been done; and finally, you make a serious mutual commitment to creating something better for the future. Mandela’s post-apartheid Truth & Reconciliation Commission showed that without truth-telling, there’s no possibility of closure, no moving on. No forgiveness. Last week, I heard the High Court’s gutsy words of warning—and encouragement—as I watched Rachael Perkins’ powerful film Mabo with my fellow Francis Street Film Fans. We’re now two decades on from the first Mabo judgement - and one decade on from PM Kevin Rudd’s moving apology to the stolen generations. Along with more than a hundred others, I’d watched Rudd on a television screen in Bondi Pavilion where, in the 70s, thousands of people enjoyed the massively popular “Rock Against Racism” concerts, with Gary Foley, Peter Garret, Kev Carmody, Paul Kelly and many many others. Rachael’s production company honours the pioneering life of her father, activist Charlie Perkins, the first Aboriginal man in Australia to graduate from university. Last year, her production company’s Deep Water told another tale of a oppression. The compelling five-part SBS series examined
Man from Gay Solidarity Group arrested during 1978 ‘Right to Life’ rally. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
what happened during the 70s and 80s, when gay men were being randomly bashed (and all too often killed) around Sydney, some of them in the parks around Bondi Beach. Now, by strange destiny, gay health organisation ACON has just released a new call for “Truth and Justice” around these violent attacks. ACON’s report confirms that it was gangs of disadvantaged lads (sometimes urged on by girls) which deliberately targeted vulnerable gay men and a few trans women. ACON has done a lot of thinking about how best to remove this awful stain from Sydney’s past and how to prevent similar violence, and this report presents a compelling argument about how the NSW Government should examine the flawed processes that prevented cowardly gay-bashers being identified, charged and appropriately punished. ACON calls for the NSW Government to
exonerate gay men and others who have been found guilty of victimless sex crimes, as has happened already in other states. One thing ACON doesn’t do is directly call for prosecution of the likely offenders. Instead the report wisely prefers to build alliances with police and others which will allow for the gathering of additional evidence of past violence that might support prosecution. Assistant Police Commissioner Tony Crandell has already responded positively to the report, but it deserves a Parliamentary response. Although ACON doesn’t tease this out, NSW’s conservative Catholic morality probably played a role here. This same hypocritical mindset still pervades NSW, blocking legal abortions even after Ireland has done so; it also predictably keeps on delivering shameful scandals that swirl around arrogant Cardinal Pell and others.
An unconscious role was also possibly played by the Federal Government’s dramatic “Grim Reaper” TV commercials which used fear to prompt popular action against AIDS. Fanned by the Murdoch media, it was a short step to stigmatising and thus legitimising violence against gay men. In the face of all this nastiness, a few dozen men and women found themselves marching along Sydney’s wintry streets determined to stake a claim for their disruptive desires. That they were savagely set on—not by wayward lads here but by uniformed members of Sydney’s police—confirms a complicity of values, but the vision of those marchers can be determined by the swelling numbers of uniformed NSW police who now march in the joyful annual Mardi Gras celebrations. As further confirmation of the courage, vision and effectiveness of Sydney’s 1988 Gay Rights marchers, Bondi Pavilion is hosting a festival during July to celebrate the “power, beauty and diversity of Sydney’s LGBTIQA+ community”. Under the waaay-too-cute title We, the people who live for the beautiful, the festival links with the joint Waverley Council/ACON Bondi Memorial Project which will install a public artwork in a Bondi Park to acknowledge the dark stories of LGBTIQ+ violence that happened in Bondi. All over the world, people of all colours, cultures and sexualities visit beaches like Bondi precisely because these are places of delight and hedonism, places of play, display and—inevitably—desire. The lessons taught by these violent stories are many. Perhaps the most useful during a time of increasing division and suspicion, is to consciously reject messages of fear, and to resist those quick and easy classifications of people that serve the people who maintain their own power by turning us against each other.
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Sydney remains unaffordable BY LANIE TINDALE Sydney house prices have dropped by 4.1 per cent, but that doesn’t mean that housing is affordable for those on the lowest incomes. The most expensive properties in Sydney, mostly concentrated in the inner city, have dropped in price significantly in the last year. However, affordable housing is still in short supply despite being in high demand. Sydney house prices have fallen by 2.3 per cent since December 31 2017. In the same period there has been a 21.3 per cent increase in properties for sale in Sydney. At the same time, an Anglicare report found that less than one per cent of rental housing in Sydney is affordable for those on the minimum wage or welfare and another report found that between 2011-2016, homelessness in the inner suburbs of Sydney increased by 53 per cent. It isn’t just the welfare dependant who struggle. People on very low to moderate incomes also struggle to find affordable housing, especially in Sydney’s inner suburbs. An affordable residence costs less than 30 per cent of a household’s gross income: a household paying over that threshold is considered to be in ‘rental stress’. According to NSW Family and Community Services, a household classified as being on a very low to moderate income ranges from a single person earning $25,300 a year, to a couple with four children with a household income of $164,000 a year. A single affordable housing tenant may not earn more than $59,990, while the maximum combined income allowed by a couple is $89,990, with an additional $18,000 for every child. Often key workers such as nurses, teachers and emergency ambulance workers are
Homelessness in Sydney. Photo: Alex Proimos
considered for affordable housing in expensive and middle class areas. Affordable housing is distinct from social housing, in which a single person may earn no more than $395 a week. The expected waiting time for social housing (2 bedroom property) is 5-10 years in inner Sydney and the Leichhardt/Marrickville area, and 10+ years in the eastern suburbs and the inner west. Sixty thousand people are waiting for social housing in NSW. A recent report by the Australian Homelessness Monitor reported that
homelessness increased in inner Sydney by 53 per cent between 2011 - 2016. The report claimed that between 2012 - 2017, investments in social housing fell by eight per cent. Rough sleeping in Sydney has increased by 28 per cent in that time period. The report claimed that the State Government’s two new initiatives to address housing affordability, the Social and Affordable Housing Fund and the Communities Plus public housing estate renewal program, will provide “ at best, little more than a quarter of the output required to meet NSW’s need for 100,000 social and affordable rental homes over the next 20 years”.
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The Communities Plus Program is a $22 billion initiative. The project closest to completion is the Ivanhoe Estate in Macquarie Fields, which will provide 1000 social housing units, and 128 affordable rental units in the next 10-12 years. The N SW government recently allowed the City of Sydney to put on public exhibition a proposal to extend affordable housing levies for developers across the whole government area. The levies currently exist in the Green Square, Ultimo/ Pyrmont and Employment Lands precincts. “Any council in the Metropolitan Sydney Region is able to apply to enter into [the State Environmental Planning Policy 70]”, a spokesperson for the Department of Planning and Environment has said about the policy that allows councils to force developers to contribute to affordable housing. Recent affordable housing developments in the inner city include the Harold Park renewal, which is a $1.1 billion project and will provide 75 affordable homes in Forest Lodge. City West Housing, which is managing the development, has another 640 residences in development in inner Sydney which are expected to be completed by 2023. Between 2016 and 2017 the Australian population increased by 1.6 per cent, largely from by immigration. A reduction in house prices may cause problems for Australia, a country reliant on domestic mortgages, where household debt is one of the highest in the world. 60 per cent of major bank loans rely on domestic mortgages and a high mortgage loan default rate would cause significant economic problems.
The greening of the Cross by JOH N MOYLE A neglected pocket of land above a car park in Kings Cross is about to get a big injection of love as a small slither is transformed into a community garden. Called 12 Fine Oranges, the parcel of land in the Lawrence Hargrave Reserve on Ward Avenue has passed the last hurdle of approvals with the City of Sydney and construction of the gardens will begin in early Spring. “Community gardens give people a practical way to meet each other and build community,” Lord Mayor Clover Moore said. Ninety eight per cent of Potts Point and Elizabeth Bay residents live in apartment buildings making it one of the most densely populated areas in Australia. “The group first met in 2015 at a talk by Indira Naidoo at the Community Centre, and after the meeting it was by word of mouth and now we have around 120 people interested,” Terry Chescher, founding member, Kings Cross Community Garden said. The 230sqm garden’s first stage will be located on the western edge of Lawrence Hargrave Reserve with the 180sqm stage two located at the southern end of the Reserve. Both stages are designed to integrate with the existing Vietnam Veterans memorial at the south-western corner of the park. Stage one will consist of seven raised beds and eight large planters for small trees with the produce being available for community use. “We came up with three guiding principles for the garden, which was community, as we want to give locals a chance to grow and harvest produce and give to charities such as
Clover Moore announces the community on Ward Avenue. Photo: City of Sydney
the Wayside Chapel, the second was to use organic gardening principles and the third was to respect the existing uses for the park such as dog walking and integrate with them in using the Reserve,” Edwina Morris project landscape architect said.
Back in 2015 when the group had garnered that interest was strong enough to take the project forward they looked at what in what form its organisation would take. “We did a workshop and a site analysis and we talked to people about what they wanted and
came up with the communal approach rather than individual beds,” Terry Chescher said. The first stage has a budget of around $100,000 that includes all site work to be carried out by professional workers who will be responsible for levelling the site and laying a membrane to protect the car park underneath, before building up the garden beds and fencing. The walls will be made of sandstone that will integrate with the stone used in Lawrence Hargrave and the adjacent Fitzroy Gardens. The City of Sydney has stipulated that no power tools be used during this phase. To meet the outlay the gardeners have applied to the City of Sydney for a matching grant of $10,000, valuing their time at $20 per hour against the cash input. Additional monies will be raised from sponsorships, donations and a small fee applied to each garden club member. Filling the planters will be an array of root vegetables, berries, salad greens, herbs and fragrances supported by worm farms, compost bins and a tool shed. A rain water tank is planned for the garden’s second stage. “One of the benefits of going along with such a long design process is that we have lined everything up and now things can move quite quickly,” Edwina Morris said. The name 12 Fine Oranges refers to the fruit submitted to the 1870 N SW Horticultural Society’s exhibition and the garden will be built on land and gardens once owned by Henry Moore whose house Barncleuth has given its name to the nearby street and square. This will be the 21st community garden created by the City of Sydney.
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FEATURE
65th SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL
By Mark Morellini This prestigious film festival, which is regarded as one of the most prominent in the world amongst filmmakers, celebrates its 65th presentation and audiences should be mesmerised by the alluring program showcasing 326 films from 65 countries. The program boasts an assortment of culturally diverse films, shorts and documentaries which includes 21 world premieres. The popularity of this iconic event is exemplified by the expansion in venues, with the newly added Hoyts Entertainment Quarter. Highlights at the festival include the gala opening and closing night parties, Q&A’s, red carpet premieres, meet the filmmaker talks and the expanded Virtual Reality program which collectively highlight the ever-growing variety of entertainment available to film festival enthusiasts. This year, an astonishing 25 percent of the films screened are from Australia. Audiences should embrace Jirga, a war drama which resonates the impact of war and 1%, a high-octane thriller which should appeal to the younger audiences. In The Land Of Wolves, Ghosthunter and Teach A Man To Fish are three Australian documentaries which showcase the lives of people from different walks of life and should be quite popular at the film festival. West Of Sunshine is an Australian feature film which centres on a man who has less than a day to pay back a gambling debt to a violent loan shark, while looking after his young son who is on school holidays. “It’s about a man who is not functioning as a parent or husband and who is forced to confront his past that will test everything that he knows and learn something about love and connection which he didn’t realise before”, explained film director/ screenwriter Jason Raftopoulos. The story for this film came about when Jason was about to become a father. “I was exploring what fatherhood was and I knew consciously that fatherhood was coming but I didn’t quite know whether I was prepared for it psychologically. I started to meditate on fatherhood as a whole and the birth of the film came from that. When I started to write the screenplay, I was keen on exploring the theme of love being an action in spite of how you feel and the things that you do. I found this flawed human being called Jimmy, who really had to learn something about love which he hadn’t understood before.”
Jirga. Image: Supplied by SFF
TOP PICKS
ONE DAY (HUNGARY): This domestic drama details one day in the life of a mother of three. Stressed with the running of a household, work and bringing up the children, her day suddenly takes a bad turn when she discovers her husband has cheated on her. Brilliant screenplay and arresting performances. THE KINDERGARTEN TEACHER (USA): A strangely funny drama which concerns a teacher who becomes increasingly obsessed with rearing the poetic talent of a gifted five year-old child. Does her preoccupation signify that she has inadvertently breached her code of conduct as a school teacher? Clever and unpredictable.
Jason says that this film realistically depicts the problems in today’s society. “We all go through life with problems. People in big cities with financial problems owing to gambling, big mortgages and expenses are under constant stresses. How do we survive and keep what is true and real between us as people without being distracted by the noise that we are constantly fighting?” West Of Sunshine received a standing ovation when screened at the film’s world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. But how does it feel having your film selected for screening at the Sydney Film Festival? “It’s an absolute honour. When my producer told me, I was stoked. I couldn’t be more proud of the film and everyone who worked on it. This is one of the highlights of this experience. It’s so difficult to make a film – it’s a miracle - and then to have that film selected and received well definitely feels like a victory. I can’t tell you how grateful and humbled I honestly am. We’re finally bringing the film back to the audience it was made for and I just can’t wait to be in Sydney to feel and see what the response is from Australians who are watching an Australian film, made entirely in Australia with an Australian cast and crew.”
THE ICE KING (UK): This documentary details the story of John Curry, the first openly gay Olympian who was regarded as the world champion ice skater. In 1976 he won the European, Olympic and world titles and tragically announced in 1994 that he had contracted the aids virus. Well-crafted and informative. OYSTER (AUSTRALIA): The hardships of oyster farming in Merimbula Lake NSW are realistically showcased in this documentary, as a couple are also trying to raise two children. Pollution, diseases and changes in water temperatures collectively increase the difficulty in keeping several million oysters alive. Insightful and inspirational. POPE FRANCIS – A MAN OF HIS WORD: (ITALY): The answers to today’s difficult global questions are candidly answered by Pope Francis in this rare Vatican co-production. Audiences will be face-to-face with this remarkable man as he speaks about immigration, social justice and answers questions from refugees, children and the elderly. Mandatory viewing.
Jun 6-17.Various venues. $17-$159 (10 film pass). Tickets & Info: www.sff.org.au
AT CENTRAL PARK MALL SCREENS OFF, HANDS ON THROUGHOUT JUNE Join us for a series of workshops featuring The Plant Society and collaboration with renowned artist and skateboarder, Brett Chan x U.P.S. x Ironlak. Plus you could win a weekend at Central Park in real life which includes a one night stay for two at The Old Clare Hotel and a Palace Cinema Platinum experience. CENTRAL PARK MALL 28 BROADWAY, CHIPPENDALE NSW 2008 WWW.CENTRALPARKSYDNEY.COM/IRLFESTIVAL
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city hub 31 MAY 2018
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Saint Joan Witness the heroic story of Saint Joan at the Roselyn Packer Theatre this winter as the reworked script sheds light on the rebellion and protest which occurred as Joan fought for freedom from a constitutionalised society. Based on George Bernard Shaw’s script, this adaptation will allow audiences to observe a modern, stripped back version where Joan is at the centre of the story. Costume designer Renee Mulder explained. “We’re shifting the focus to Joan’s personal experiences, so what she could have been feeling at the time and creating more of a character for her instead of having people talk
men basically represent the church and the military. The men are in a level of uniform, against one individual who is being rebellious and breaking out of an institutionalised world.” Mulder hopes that audiences will be provoked throughout the performance to consider the world they live in. “We hope they will be challenged and confronted by this production and witness to the tale that has been brought to audiences by George Bernard Shaw and brought into the now,” Mulder concluded. (JM) Jun 5-30. Roselyn Packer Theatre, 22 Hickson Road, Walsh Bay. $83-$120+b.f.Tickets & Info: www.sydneytheatre.com.au
Sarah Snook
about her. And I guess we’re asking the question, who is Joan in a modern context?” Despite the play being set in a contemporary world, Mulder took historical inspiration for the costuming, which was heavily influenced by the popular TV series The Handmaids Tale. “In The Handmaids Tale, the costuming is highly stylised yet completely believable in a modern-day world that it’s set in which was another inspiration. We’re looking at the men as a force against this one energy which is Joan and the
Things Not To Do After A Break Up
The romantic comedy which broke box office records when it opened in Melbourne in 2012, premieres in Sydney where it should be acclaimed by critics and audiences alike. Written by celebrated dramatist Wayne Tunks, the play centres on Lauren, a girl who gets dumped by her long-term boyfriend Gideon. She decides that the only way she can get over him is to write a book called Things Not To Do After A Breakup and most of the time she ironically does everything that you shouldn’t do after a breakup! “Melbourne audiences loved it and it’s been retooled a little, repackaged with a brand new cast and I think it’s going to be fun for audiences,” explained Tunks.“I’ve had some big break ups in my time and I’ve done some things which I have certainly regretted. I think it’s very much the Australian way that we can laugh at ourselves and that’s what a lot of this play is about – people will watch it and exclaim: Oh My God! I remember I did that and it was really bad!!” Tunks who also produced and performs alongside six other talented actors, said that if
audiences can’t find something to relate to in this play, clearly they’ve never been in a relationship. Throughout the hilarity, the play makes an underlying comment on relationships. “It resonates that you must always be honest in a relationship. If a relationship is working you must let your partner know and if it’s not working, you must still let them know. We must be truthful with each other and if we’re not that’s how relationships break down. That’s how people get very bitter”. Would this play be a good remedy for couples who have split up? “Definitely! But you know what? I think it’s good for couples who are together as well!” laughed Tunks. “It’s a fun one to bring friends along to, grab a drink and sit back and enjoy a night at the theater. We’re not trying to change the world with this play, we’re just trying to entertain it.” (MMo) Until Jun 16.The Depot Theatre, 142 Addison Rd, Marrickville. $27-$32+b.f. Tickets & Info: www.thedepottheatre.com
By Ann Page & Jamie Apps. FORMDance Projects overarching DANscienCE Moving Well program explores the nexus between dance and science in the fields of health, well-being and longevity. One of the major highlights of the program is the interdisciplinary performance piece, Red. Created by acclaimed choreographer Liz Lea, Red explores her own personal experience with endometriosis whilst also aiming to tell a much more grand, “universal story.” “My intention with the piece was to put my story on the stage so that others wouldn’t make the same mistake,” explained Lea. “Listen to your body and be mindful of what it tells you.” As part of the creation process Liz employed
multiple layers of depth and nuance to the piece. Some of the artists involved in the piece included fellow choreographers Vicki Van Hout, Virgina Ferris and Martin del Amo alongside cinematographer Nino Tamburri, editor Arianna Bosj and finally dramaturg Brian Lucas. “With such a large and experienced team, it was a big job bringing all the voices to the table. We worked on the piece over a fiveyear period and we all spent time in research processes together,” explained Lea. “The work is exhausting - particularly the rehearsals - but rewarding.” Jun 1-2. Riverside Theatres, Cnr Market and Church Street, Parramatta. $28-$35+b.f.Tickets & Info: www.riversideparramatta.com.au
Red
the talents of a number of other creatives from a variety of disciplines in order to add
a&e
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Arts Editor: Jamie Apps For more A&E stories go to www.altmedia.net.au and don’t forget to join the conversation on Twitter at @CityHubSyd
Lola Montez It’s an Australian musical that was hugely popular during the late 50s and 60s, with shows and soundtrack albums selling out, and songs that bumped Elvis off the charts - yet very few people have heard of it.That may not be the case for much longer because a collection of high profile actors and theatre professionals have been working passionately towards a full scale revival.As a teaser and to celebrate its 60th anniversary, Diadem Productions will be staging a full script preview of Lola Montez for one night only. “There are quite a few die hard fans of Lola Montez that can’t wait to see it put back on the stage,” says Debora Krizak who plays Lola. “It’s an Australian work that needs to be seen, it has a lot of history in there that we don’t have a lot of.” Lola Montez was a real person, an Irish woman (she changed her name) living in Victoria in the mid-1800s whose performances, on and off stage, were brash, unconventional and deliciously scandalous. Her signature act was the Spider Dance - based on the Italian tarantella - which earned her fame more for its audacity rather than any artistic skill. “Her allure was, of course, her sexuality but it was also the fact that nobody really knew if she was wearing anything under that dress,” explains Krizak. The upcoming production is mostly faithful to the original, with only a few minor edits, however it does contain one new song, Lola’s Misgivings, written while in his 90s by the composer, Peter Stannard. (Sadly, he passed away only a few months ago.) This production has attracted a stellar cast. Apart from Krizak who is a multi-award winner, Paul Mercurio is providing choreographer, while Red Symons and Peter Cousens play leading roles. It’s a script-in-hand presentation, with only Krizak in full costume and projections to indicate the setting, however it will feature a full orchestra and a lot of enthusiasm - and you’ll be able to join the company for drinks after the show. (RB) Jun 2. Riverside Theatre, Cnr Church & Market Streets. $68.90-$74.90+b.f.Tickets & Info: www.riversideparramatta.com.au
Contributors: Barbara Karpinski, Craig Coventry, Emily Shen, Irina Dunn, Jade Morellini, Joseph Rana, Leann Richards, Lisa Seltzer, Mark Morellini, Mel Somerville, Olga Azar, Rita Bratovich, Rocio Belinda Mendez, Sarah Pritchard, Shon Ho, Jade Morellini, Alex Eugene, Manuel Gonzalez, Tommy Boutros, Riley Hooper, Mohsen Dezaki, Daniel Jaramillo, Georgia Fullerton, Gary Nunn.
city hub 31 MAY 2017
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What So Not
By Jamie Apps
Dream On Dreamer: Have found a way to transition between metalcore and alternative rock with a fresh new vision and sound that naturally evolves as its members do.Witness this transition live tonight. Thu, May 31, Factory Floor Brother Brad: Sydney soul/pop outfit Brother Brad are set to release their debut EP Get Around tonight. As the creative firebrand behind the Brother Brad project, the boys have whittled away at their sonic gold, combining backgrounds in jazz and pop with their love of reggae and RnB to create their own fun-filled brand of soul/pop. Thu, May 31,The Lansdowne Sarah Blasko: Performing without a band for the first time in her storied career, Sarah will lay bare her extraordinary songwriting and iconic voice.The prospect of taking to the stage solo and stripped back, is something that she relishes,“I’m hoping to reimagine material from all of my albums & premiere some new songs as well.” Fri, Jun 1,The Metro The Paul McKenna Band: Glasgow’s The Paul McKenna Band have built a solid international reputation for their outstanding live performances. This has carried the band to some of the finest music festivals around the globe but tonight they arrive in Sydney for a special intimate performance. Sat, Jun 2, Django Bar FourPlay String Quartet: Australia’s favourite electric string quartet are set to return to Sydney this weekend to
showcase their new original track, Bound. Sat, Jun 2, Camelot Lounge Sydney Con International Jazz Festival: The talents of young Inner West Glebe drummer Chloe Kim will be on display this weekend when she her own ensemble alongside international heavy-weights and Australian stars. Sun, Jun 3, Sydney Conservatorium Of Music Solange: Grammy award-winning singer, songwriter, artist and activist Solange Knowles will perform her acclaimed breakthrough album, A Seat at the Table, for the first time in Australia. Mon, Jun 4, Opera House - Concert Hall Niall Horan: Global superstar Niall Horan will bring his Flicker World Tour 2018 to Sydney on Tuesday. This will be Horan’s first solo Arena tour, and will see him perform smash hits Slow Hands, This Town and the brand new number one iTunes single Too Much To Ask, plus tracks off his forthcoming debut album. Tue, Jun 5, Qudos Bank Arena Knower: Every now and then a group of musicians get together to form a band that combines their own diverse musical backgrounds to create an almost entirely new genre. Knower are just such a group. For the first time in Australia, the acclaimed drummer-producer Louis Cole and the remarkable singer Genevieve Artadi will appear with a truly all star band. Wed, Jun 6, Factory Theatre
By Jamie Apps Since taking over the reigns of the What So Not project as a solo artist Chris Emerson has thrown everything he has into it and watched it explode in notoriety worldwide. “When it all became official in 2016 it was basically foot to the floor from there on out,” reflected Emerson. “It was a very exciting time for me because I had all of these ideas and could now finally just go out and do them.” Whilst the project is now a solo endeavour for Emerson he is quick to remind us that he wouldn’t be able to achieve everything he has without his incredible support group. “I have incredible people around me that allow me to try to execute my really strange ideas. I’m often surprised when they let me do some of the things I come up with.” Earlier this year Emerson took the next step in his career as What So Not with the release of his debut album, Not All The Beautiful Things. Despite this being his first
Shepparton Airplane has a very familiar sound for any fans of The Peep Tempel, Graveyard Train or Tankerville but it also uniquely their own. This carryover of sound comes as no surprise given that Shepparton Airplane is made up of past and present members from those bands mentioned. In their new record Almurta the band continue to showcase a frenetic and jaggy post-punk style.Throughout the record the music is filled with crushing guitar riffs and energetic vocals which urge the listener to sing along. Almurta is a nice second record which has the group continue to grow and find their groove as they occasionally slip in some British punk vibes. This record is a very organic and grassroots sounding offering which is appealing but one which won’t necessarily draw new listeners to the genre. (JA) WW1/2
We Want You!
This role is for you:
cross pollinating in a bad way or lazy.” This dedication to innovation has obviously paid off handsomely with What So Not being able to headline the Hordern Pavilion with his own show. “I can’t believe that I’m playing at the Hordern Pavilion, that is blowing my mind!” Emerson excitedly said before his show earlier this week. “That venue for me is the place I’d go and see multiples of my favourite acts playing on the one bill let alone me playing there by myself.”
Shepparton Airplane - Almurta
The CiTy hub is looking for volunTeers To regularly ConTribuTe. These roles will involve professionally covering various topics in arts & entertainment. This role is a practical internship/contributors position and one in which a number of our current editors have undertaken.
This role is noT for you:
4 If you relish the opportunity to work in a real news environment 4 If you are passionate about Sydney having an independent local voice 4 If you want on-the-job experience and training for your portfolio 4 If you are organised and can hit deadlines
record as a solo artist Emerson continued to employ his collaboration abilities by welcoming the likes of Toto, Daniel Johns and KLP into the studio. “I never could have imaged crossing paths with them, let alone working on a record together,” said Emerson. When welcoming in such a diverse cast of performers into the creative process of the record Emerson said it was important for him to have a strong connection with the other artists. “My writing process is quite unorthodox and frantic, it’s usually about 90 percent experimentation which can make things much more difficult.” The major example of his unorthodox approach that Emerson pinpoints for this record was the decision to not reuse any single sound twice. “By shying away from predicable or simple formulas it means it takes me a lot longer to bring things together but it also means that when it does come together nothing is
Photo: Luke Eblen
Live Music Guide LIVE WIRE Sydney
6 If you don’t like conducting interviews 6 If you don’t like constructive feedback to improve your writing 6 If you only want to go to film premieres
PYRMONT’S MOST WARMING WINTER DESSERT
Details:
▶ minimum commitment: one article a week (150-300 words) ▶ all work is from home, role does require some 10min, over-the-phone interviews. ▶ perks include: free tickets and material All applications must include a short cover letter detailing current or previous schooling/experience and two examples of short-form pieces. sent to: arts@altmedia.net.au
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THE NAKED CITY
SCREW THE VIEW!
With Coffin Ed Sydney is a city obsessed with views – harbour views, beach views, skyline views and district views. Anybody would think we spend most of our time starring out the window admiring the landscape or waterscape beyond. Rent some shoebox apartment and if there’s the slightest glimpse of the harbour or some far distant beach out of the kitchen window you can add multiple dollars onto the weekly rent. Take the much discussed Sirius Building in the Rocks which has recently hit the market for $120 million. If the same building existed in Waterloo or Mount Druitt, chances are the public housing tenants who once occupied it would still be there.Yet the building has now been described as “Australia’s most valuable freehold land”, suggesting that its most likely fate is demolition – only to be replaced by another ‘toaster’ style
building overlooking Circular Quay. No doubt when the multi-million dollar apartments are flogged off the plan one of the selling points will be the wonderful opportunity to view the NYE fireworks from your very own balcony. Add at least $100,000 onto the purchase price for that once a year privilege. Remember the madness that existed back in NYE, 1999 with the change of millennium. The cashing in on harbour views of the much vaunted fireworks display reached new heights of opportunistic greed. Private harbourside apartments were being rented for thousands of dollars - for just a single night. Likewise hotels were charging outrageous prices for any room within cooee of the midnight crackers. If the State Government ever wanted to raise some extra capital it might well consider an ‘iconic view’ tax, a levy placed on any house or apartment with those postcard views of the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge and Sydney
Harbour. After all if you want to film commercially around the Opera House or similar Government owned sites there is often a fee – why not charge home owners if they enjoy that vista all the year round? Residents in prime harbour real estate such as Point Piper and Rose Bay would be slugged the most, contributing millions annually to the public coffers. Similarly those unlucky homeowners or renters who look out on a brick wall, a railway line or a bleak industrial panorama could apply for ‘lack of outlook’ compensation, funded partly by the tax on the rich bastards above. In extreme cases, like basement apartments with absolutely no view, additional compensation could be granted to install a faux plasma screen window with simulated views of Bondi Beach, Middle Harbour and the Barangaroo skyline. There is a certain irony today with the premium placed on real estate views. After all we now spend far more time starring at computer screens, tablets, mobile phones and flatscreen TVs than we do gazing out of the window at some glorious scenery. Maybe E.M. Foster had it right when he wrote in A Room With A View: “My father says that there is only one perfect view — the view of the sky straight over our heads, and that all these views on earth are but bungled copies of it.” Then again E.M. died in 1970, long before modern day computers and those glorious screen savers with views of the Rocky Mountains, the English countryside and the Serengeti plains. If only he knew what he was missing!
Gringo
Featuring a star-studded line up of Charlize Theron, David Oyelowo, Joel Edgerton, Amanda Seyfried, Sharlto Copley and Thandie Newton, comes American crime comedy, Gringo. The film is directed by Nash Edgerton (Joel’s brother) and is written by Anthony Tambakis and Matthew Stone. Gringo follows mild mannered businessman, Harold, as he is sent across the border to Mexico by his ruthless business colleagues to deliver a revolutionary marijuana pill. Harold
In Real Life (I.R.L) Festival In our current world we’re living more and more in a digital realm. Throughout June though Central Park Mall asks visitors to celebrate and reconnect with the physical and tactile world. Every Friday and Saturday for the month of June, visitors of Central Park Mall will be able to join a variety of workshops and hands-on activities that engage all the senses. As Central Park Mall’s Felicity Armstrong explained, “We want people to get out of the cold to explore their interests and encourage personal creativity in a supporting and collaborative community.” Some of the activities available to take part in range from gardening to skateboard customisation. Based in Melbourne, The Plant Society will hold workshops which will encourage gardening enthusiasts to continue their passion through winter by offering expert advice on how to care for indoor plants. The four workshops will take place over two weekends and will come with a take-home Air Plant. Central Park Mall’s retailer U.P.S. will work alongside skateboarder and multi-media artist, Brett Chan to offer visitors skateboard customisation. With no social media presence, Brett focuses
his time on creating street art and wall murals around NSW and will be able to share his creative flair with visitors to help them create something personal for themselves. As part of the activity, all visitors will be supplied with a U.P.S deck and art supplies from Ironlak free of charge. (JA) Every Fri-Sat throughout June. Central Park Mall, 28 Broadway, Chippendale. FREE. Info: www.centralparksydney.com
The Bookshop
becomes a wanted man in the process by local drug lords and meets a black-op’s missionary with a spinning moral compass as he fights to survive the dangerous situation before him. A hilarious dark comedy with the right amount of action sprinkled on top. The craziness of the storyline was off putting and far from airtight, but was made up for by the cast. An entertaining watch, but if you have high expectations you may be disappointed. (RH) WWW1/2
There seems to be a trend for period dramas in British film making of late, and here’s another. The Bookshop is set in recent history (1959) in a country village with the usual hotchpotch of charac-ters. It’s an adaptation of the novel by Penelope Fitzgerald and tells the story of Florence Green (Emily Mortimer), a young widow who purchases an abandoned old house and converts it into a bookshop, much to the chagrin of wealthy, unlikeable Violet Gamart (Patricia Clarkson). Mrs Gamart, a social climber and political influencer had been planning for the old house to become an arts centre, and she wasn’t about to let an audacious outsider get in her way. Florence finds allies in the precocious young red head, Christine (Honor Kneafsey) who helps out in the shop; and the reclusive book lover, Edmund Brundish (Bill Nighy) who is already a sworn enemy of Mrs Gamart. This is a sweet film, perhaps a little light on plot peaks and troughs, but full of lovely scenery, good dialogue and un-gushy sentiment. (RB) WWW
city hub 31 MAY 2017
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WE BLEED BLUE
ORIGIN AT THE STAR LIVE, LARGE & LOUD AT 24/7 SPORTS BAR
GAME I : 6 JUNE, 7:30PM GAME II : 24 JUNE, 7:30PM GAME III : 11 JULY, 7:30PM S E E T H E S TA RSY D N E Y.C O M . AU
The Star practises the responsible service of alcohol. Guests must be aged 18 years or over. Think! About your choices. Call Gambling Help 1800 858 858 www.gamblinghelp.nsw.gov.au
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city hub 31 MAY 2018