What Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner should fund in his first budget

Brisbane’s new Lord Mayor has promised his city its own version of New York’s Central Park and subsidised buses for seniors. But is it what we actually want and need? We spoke to some of the city’s most influential groups, and this is what they told us.

What does Brisbane need in the next financial year to make it a better place to live and work?

BRISBANE’S first budget under its newly appointed Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner will be handed down this Wednesday and the city’s leaders have spelt out their wishlists.

Quest Community News asked leaders and lobbyists from transport, business, environment, cycling and development to nominate their top priorities for the year ahead.

Here’s what they said.

RACQ

The RACQ says the council needs to continue suburban projects to reduce congestion. Picture: AAP/Steve Pohlner

The motoring peak body wants no increase to parking meter fees, also known as regulated parking fees. “Last year they went up by 11.3 per cent, which was a big hike in one hit and a big additional financial burden on some motorists,” a spokeswoman said. She said transport was already the third largest household spend after housing and food. Its other major funding priorities are:

• Funding to progress the proposed five green bridges
• Funding to complete the Wynnum Road Corridor Upgrade and progress Brisbane Metro
• Commitment to railway level crossing upgrades funded in conjunction with the Queensland Government at Boundary Road (Coopers Plains), South Pine Road (Alderley), Cavendish Road (Coorparoo), Warrigal Road (Runcorn) and Kianawah Road/Lindum Road (Wynnum West)
• Continuing the $100 million program to build bikeway infrastructure
• Continue improvements to suburban roads

BICYCLE QUEENSLAND

Bicycle Queensland has called for a cycling grid for the Brisbane CBD. Picture: Peter Wallis

Chief executive officer Anne Savage welcomed the council’s announcement of $27 million this financial year to boost Brisbane’s bikeways in the next financial year. That money will be spent on Indooroopilly Bikeway, the Botanic Gardens Riverwalk and the next stage of the North Brisbane Bikeway. “There can be no doubt that cycling is one of the keys to reducing gridlock, saving costs, and improving overall community health and wellbeing,” she said. She said from 2020 onwards she hoped to see funding for:

• A cycling grid for the Brisbane CBD
• Separated cycleway on Sylvan Road, linking to Mt-Cootha - one of Queensland’s most popular cycling destinations

COMMITTEE FOR BRISBANE

The Committee for Brisbane says all of Brisbane’s inner city neighbourhood plans should be “stitched together” to better integrate major projects and infrastructure.

Executive director Annie Macnaughton said the Committee for Brisbane wants substantial increases in neighbourhood planning and urban renewal budgets to help plan for population growth. She also wanted to see:

• Significant funding for detailed studies into the council’s proposed five new green bridges to fast-track its delivery
• Funding for inner city planning, design and an economic study to develop a plan to stitch together all the inner city neighbourhood plans and major projects and infrastructure
• Funding to prepare a successful 2032 Olympic Games bid
• Traffic planning funding focused on future transport and sustainable travel

BRISBANE CATCHMENTS NETWORK

The Brisbane Catchments Network says wildlife corridors, restoring natural waterways and buying bushland should be priorities. Picture: Brad Lambert

President Margie Milgate said Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner’s big picture to improve the environment was good but “we need to make it a reality”. “As catchment groups we’d really like to work with council on making that green vision come through,” she said. She said BCN, which is umbrella organisation for 11 catchment committees in Brisbane would welcome:

• Support to improve wildlife corridors, or “fauna movement solutions”, to ensure koalas and other animals are not confined to isolated pockets
• Funding for a program to convert Brisbane’s concrete drains back into creeks
• Buy back more land to increase the city’s bushland. She said the council should buy the State Government’s land at the edge of Toohey Forest
• An extension of the Creek Catchment Program
• Better funding of education programs for the wider public to support the work is does

PROPERTY COUNCIL QUEENSLAND

The Property Council Queensland wants rates on businesses to become more consistent to give people confidence to invest in Brisbane.

Executive director Chris Mountford said the PCQ wanted to see “consistency and uniformity” in government rates for businesses to encourage people to continue to invest in Brisbane. “We see some wild swings in the rates council charges the non-residential sector,” he said. He also nominated other priorities for the property and development peak body:

• Investment in precincts around the city to “bring them up to scratch and ... to life”
• Funding for the five proposed green bridges
• City planning funding for suburban centres like Eight Mile Plains

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY QUEENSLAND

CCIQ wants the council to make sure the Brisbane CBD is an attractive place to do business and has called for parking rates to be reduced. Picture: David Clark Photography

Head of media Dan Petrie said fees and rates on businesses needed to be reduced. “Last year Brisbane did lift fees on businesses significantly, particularly rates in the CBD,” he said. our key thing is we don’t want to see a big increase on rates on businesses we’ve seen in previous and focus on the infrastructure outcomes the broader city desperately needs. He said the CCIQ recognised the council needed to have balanced budgets and had a significant infrastructure pipeline, but businesses needed relief. He said council should:

• Reduce parking rates during the day and ensure the city is an attractive place to do business to incentivise people to come to the CBD
• Address the worsening congestion in the suburbs, and ensure hubs like Indooroopilly and Toombul have transport have transport links like bikeways and Brisbane Metro