Sale of Taroona land to uni opens way

Covenant is not enough to protect the publicly owned foreshore land, writes Peter Alexis

DECADES of duplicity by the Tasmanian chapter of the Wink and Nod Club came to a head again on Saturday at the Taroona picnic reserve as State Government and University of Tasmania representatives reassured the large assembled crowd that there was nothing to see here — again!

The 120 or more people were gathered to hear about the proposed purchase by UTAS of three hectares of publicly owned land which includes about two hectares of foreshore recreation reserve.

Helen Kempton’s article on the following day (“Residents win over parkland protection”, Sunday Tasmanian, October 14) was based in good faith that Environment Minister Elise Archer’s assurance that a covenant would be placed on habitat and large trees at the site of the Taroona Animal Quarantine Station in Nubeena Crescent was all that was needed to protect the public’s interest in the proposed sale and development of a publicly owned foreshore.

Make no mistake, this is not a win for the public. It is a cynical move by State Government and the university to dupe angry protesters into a false sense of security about the future use of this prize three hectare piece of waterfront recreational area.

The university says it only wants to create a small marine research and production facility in partnership with a private company and they want to do this on the developed one hectare section of land at the top of the Taroona Reserve adjacent to Nubeena Crescent.

This is an area with an already motley collection of buildings and there is probably nothing much to stop the State Government and university coming to some arrangement to do this.

But just doing this is apparently not good enough. The trick here is to spot the Trojan horse.

The State Government has said the proceeds of sale of the whole three hectares will be used to fund the new orangebellied parrot captive breeding facility at Five Mile Beach.

They have turned the transaction into a zero sum game where the community can have one or the other but not both.

It appears the State Government without consultation has already budgeted to sell off this public land to the university, which appears to be becoming more of a property speculator than a centre of learning.

It would be impossible for a private developer to obtain public land like this. There would be massive public outrage but with a disgraceful demonstration of government duplicity we get to turn public property into private ownership via the university. Is it any wonder the public is angry at being treated like idiots?

The university representative tells us that although they have no intention of doing anything with the bush area, they need to purchase it as a package to make it a “financially viable asset”. That statement in itself is a clear indicator as to why this sale should be stopped right now. By obtaining

ownership of the entire block and for however long the university holds the property, it will have the potential and the right, at some time in the future to use, develop or sell the land.

One day, five, 10 or whatever years from now you may find yourself walking along one of the few remaining publicly accessible stretches of coastal bush reserve close to town at Taroona and you will likely encounter a small statutory notice informing you that the university intends to develop the site as student accommodation overlooking the water. Or you may find the land has been sold to a developer for a resort or a retirement village.

That is exactly the type of “financially viable asset” the university is talking about and the very reason they insist on buying the whole block and not just the section. As privately owned university land it would have none of the protections it supposedly enjoys under public ownership.

Everybody at the public meeting on Saturday was concerned about protecting the two hectare section of waterfront land and requested it should be completely excised from the proposal and transferred to a permanently protected status.

Environment Minister Elise Archer’s offer of placing a covenant on habitat and trees between existing and proposed buildings and the shore is an insult.

Covenants are invariably worthless because they are easily changed.

If this is genuinely to be kept as public bushland then it has no inherent value to either the government or the university, and if, as the university says, it has no relevance to its development proposal, why are they insisting on acquiring the whole three hectares?

In their own words, they are acquiring a “financially viable asset”.

The foreshore section of the bush is public land and should remain so in perpetuity.

It should be immediately and completely excised from any proposed sale or development and the Tasmanian Government must act now and demonstrate it is seen to be acting openly and honestly in this matter.

Peter Alexis lives in Taroona.