Historic agreement sought Scheme includes new roads
CONGESTION-busting transport, world-leading digital infrastructure and hubs for future industries will be key elements of a bid to secure a 20-year deal to make southeast Queensland a model metropolis.
The State Government and SEQ Council of Mayors are developing a joint proposition for what they hope will be a historic agreement between them and the Federal Government to identify the priorities for the region’s successful growth and how to fund them.
Deputy Premier Jackie Trad said there had been “amazing co-operation” between the state and councils. She and Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk, who chairs the Council of Mayors, are lobbying new federal Cities Minister Alan Tudge to commit.
“We really want an indication from the Federal Government before the end of the year,” she said.
Mr Tudge said he was prepared to work with other levels of government on a deal, but warned it could take some time.
All parties agreed “infrastructure was the most important element”.
It is understood the main elements of any so-called City Deal proposal will be transport networks, digital connectivity and creating export-oriented knowledge economy jobs.
The push comes as The Chronicle published its Future SEQ action plan – a blueprint of practical measures to help guide the region’s development over the next quarter of a century.
The 20-point plan been compiled from ideas which flowed during the two-week Future SEQ series investigating the challenges and exploring the opportunities ahead as the southeast corner’s population soars from 3.5 million to a forecast 5.5 million by 2043.
Striking a critical agreement between the three levels of government is top of the list – and many other highlighted initiatives are expected to feature in an agreement.
They could include a proposal from the Council of Mayors for a rapid rail network of trains travelling at up to 250km/h carrying passengers to Brisbane from the Gold and Sunshine coasts or Toowoomba in under 45 minutes.
The action plan also includes new and upgraded roads and rail corridors to counter the congestion projected to choke major routes with traffic volumes beyond their capacity.
And it backs a potential bid to host the 2032 Olympic Games – being investigated as a potential catalyst for accelerating expenditure to deliver essential infrastructure a decade earlier than would otherwise be possible.
With almost 800,000 additional homes needed over 25 years, the action plan urges more medium-density development such as townhouses, low-rise apartment blocks and granny flats in the suburbs.
And it promotes the creation of good employment opportunities, education, health and other facilities in new citysized masterplanned communities in greenfield areas to enable residents to live, work and play close to home.
Leading demographer and social commentator Bernard Salt urged more than 600 business leaders at a Future SEQ lunch event last week: “We should not be modest in our ambitions … we should be outrageously ambitious.
“What you’re creating here is a society of aspiration. People want to come to southeast Queensland.”
He said a bigger southeast Queensland can be “a more efficient city offering a better quality of life by 2043 than equivalent cities of Melbourne and Sydney today at five million.”
To do so, it would need multiple centres where people could live work and play. “This is a different model, a better model that delivers a better quality of life.”
An SEQ City Deal would be the biggest yet in the country. But there is concern that any significant delay would not allow enough time for the detailed content of an agreement to be worked through before 2020 when a state election and local council elections are due.
International cities expert Professor Greg Clark said SEQ’s flexibility as a multi-city conurbation gave it an advantage in how it grew. “But this region needs to be connected by rapid rail in order to make the most of its potential,” he said.