Canberra’s recent crowning as Australia’s most liveable city has given widespread recognition to the great community and lifestyle which thrives across the city. It is also the result of government planning and investments over many years which target liveability, not just as an end in itself, but also as a key ingredient in economic growth and good public health. As the sector which feels most acutely the daily demands placed on local infrastructure and services, local government is perhaps the preeminent stakeholder in the liveability arena.
The ACT’s city/state jurisdiction has given us both the opportunity and the obligation to implement a vision for Canberra which converts our aspirations of strong economic development into a local experience which preserves the lifestyle valued so highly by Canberra’s people. In cooperation with neighbouring local governments, for whom Canberra is a commercial and service hub, we have also been able to identify many shared goals around transport, health services, land use and tourism.
One of our core priorities is urban renewal – a process being underpinned by the City Plan and City to the Lake project. City to the Lake is one of the largest urban renewal projects in Australia and will create a true city waterfront on the iconic Lake Burley Griffin. As a commercial prospect, the project is attracting interest from international investors and is widely supported in Canberra. Equally, it supports the goals of greater density, pedestrian focus, public transport and human activity in the city centre – key ingredients to further improvement in the overall liveability of the ACT.
Beyond the built environment, we have set out to capture the vast potential of Canberra’s digital economy through investments with an equally vital role in the future liveability of the city. Canberrans tend to be innovative thinkers, eager to embrace new ideas. In Canberra there is an unrivalled access to government and a strong interaction between science, research, education and business. Canberra is also Australia’s learning capital, with an education and research sector worth more than $2 billion annually.
In order to convert these advantages the ACT Government is investing $4.4 million through the Digital Canberra initiative which includes the largest free Wi-Fi network in Australia, together with the creation of a digital space to support and concentrate digital innovation in the city centre. These projects will complement other ACT Government initiatives to improve how our community accesses government services online.
As Chief Minister I have set these challenges for our government because of the great potential still to be realised in the ACT. Keeping Canberra’s new title demands that we keep investing in infrastructure to improve the city and accommodate growth, and that we achieve the necessary coordination between different areas and levels of government to deliver these changes for our community. I know similar challenges and opportunities are concentrating the efforts of local governments Australia-wide and believe our collective progress ultimately delivers a national improvement to the quality of living Australians enjoy.
