Hobart City council voters can have say on UTAS move

Hobart City Council voters will be able to have their say on the University of Tasmania move in massive news for the proposed relocation. HOW TO HAVE YOUR SAY>>>

Hobart City Council electors will be able to have their say on the University of Tasmania move in an elector poll which will likely be held when votes are cast in the upcoming local government elections.

The elector poll will be held after a petition calling for it to be held attracted more than 1000 signatures.

The petition suggested voters be asked: “Do you support the University of Tasmania’s proposal to relocate the Sandy Bay campus into Hobart’s central business district?”

“I got a letter on Thursday saying it will definitely go ahead because we got the 1000 signatures, I think that’s excellent,” Save UTAS Campus chair Pam Sharpe said.

“It sharpens everyone’s focus on the issue of the UTAS relocation.”

Professor Sharpe said the poll would get the most accurate reading of public opinion.

“We really don’t know what the population of Hobart think about the move,” Professor Sharpe said.

“Save UTAS campus have a lot of support but there has been no real attempt to find out who does and doesn’t support the move, this poll will do that.”

Professor Sharpe said she hoped the University would be open to reconsidering the move if the majority of voters said they did not support the relocation.

“Then hopefully they’ll have an indefinite pause rather than a temporary pause,” she said.

Professor Sharpe said if it went the other way, she’d be willing to bite her tongue.

“If there is a substantial number of people who support it, we can say we’ve been misguided in our protest,” Professor Sharpe said.

“I don’t get that impression at all because I’ve hardly met anyone who supports it but we get a clear view of what people think.

“We’d have to back off or we focus our attention on how the university can exist in the city and have a modified campus.”

The University of Tasmania and Save UTAS Campus group will be asked to draft a “yes case” and a “no case” to make a last ditch bid to voters.

Material relating to the elector poll will be included with ballot papers.

The outcome of the poll would be discussed by the council but it would not be obliged to take any sort of action based on the result.

The Shake Up

Business owners, workers, university staff and students, Hobart residents and year 10, 11 and 12 students and their parents will all be represented in the University of Tasmania’s community panel to provide feedback on the planned campus move from Sandy Bay to Hobart’s CBD.

Expressions of interest for the community panel, called The Shake Up, will open on Monday.

Regardless of feedback provided by the panel, the University still plans to go ahead with its move.

UTAS vice chancellor Rufus Black said the feedback would help solve concerns like traffic and parking.

“We want to make this a good move for Hobart. To do that we need the community’s help

because we all love our city, and we know lots of people have questions and ideas and fears

about how it will evolve in the future,” Prof. Black said.

“We need input from everyone it will affect; we need big questions and creative, innovative answers.”

The panel will consist of 80 people who will be selected by Enterprise Marketing and Research Services (EMRS).

Expressions of interest will close on August 7 and the first session for the panel will be held on September 3.

UTAS hits pause on Sandy Bay transformation

The University of Tasmania’s grand plans for its Sandy Bay campus will be put on hold, while the university creates an 80 person community panel to undertake further consultation.

The university unveiled its Sandy Bay masterplan in November last year, a long term proposal to split up the campus into five precincts, including a residential neighbourhood and 2700 homes.

The university must first receive approval to change the zoning of the entire Sandy Bay site from education to mixed use.

It was hoped the planning scheme amendment would be approved in 2022, but the university will hit pause on the process while the consultation is undertaken.

The latest round of consultation comes after a slew of negative feedback from community members over the campus move, and calls from the Save UTAS Campus group to put a stop to the plans.

It also follows a public meeting in May where professors, students, graduates, business owners and business leaders slammed the move from Sandy Bay to the CBD.

The university is looking for members of the community to join the new panel to have their say on the future of the campus.

“Education and research are the university’s top priorities, which is why we must make sure

we support our staff and students with the best possible facilities in the best possible

locations,” University of Tasmania vice chancellor Rufus Black said.

Professor Rufus Black, Vice-Chancellor, University of Tasmania. Picture: RICHARD JUPE

“Wherever we invest in new facilities for our students and our staff, our commitment is

always to make sure that we are also having a positive impact on the spaces and the

communities around us.

“To do that, we need to work together not just to solve concerns like traffic and parking but

also to ensure we are adding amenity to the city that people truly value.”

The university says the panel will meet regularly and sessions will be independently facilitated and publicly reported.

The phase of consultation will run until the end of the year.

Prof Black said a further consultation with staff and students would also be undertaken.

“We want to ensure that everybody has more opportunities to provide input into what

happens at Sandy Bay, and we won’t proceed with the planning process until that has

happened,” he said.

Expressions of interest to join the community panel will be open for two weeks from July 25.

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