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What’s in store for Tuggeranong foreshore

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

Upgrades will make the area safer for cyclists and pedestrians.

If you’ve recently visited the Tuggeranong foreshore, you will have seen closures and temporary fencing. There is construction happening to improve the Lake Tuggeranong foreshore area.

These upgrades will create a more liveable, people-focussed and active space for the Tuggeranong community to enjoy.

The ACT Government expects the upgrades to finish by mid-2024.

Here’s what Tuggeranong residents will see over the coming months:

Tuggeranong Town Park Playground

The existing playground has been demolished to create the new playground. The new space will create more opportunity for accessible play. The equipment that is planned to be installed includes:

  • an accessible carousel
  • a climbing tower
  • a swing
  • a double flying fox
  • a climber rope
  • a balance challenge
  • a sand digger
  • a sand digger with equal access
  • sandstone logs
  • boulders
  • a bike repair station
  • bike racks.

The area will also feature rubber softfall on the ground. There will be furniture for people to sit and picnic around the playground. Landscaping and grass will make a better green space surrounding the play space.

Boardwalk, walkways, paths and crossings

The area is being changed to make it easier to navigate and more enjoyable for the community to use.

Reclaimed timber decking is being installed along the boardwalk. A new pergola structure will be constructed, providing shade and shelter.

Paths will be widened and repaved. New line markings will help separate pedestrian and cyclists travelling in opposite directions. New signage will make it easier to know where you’re going.

New trees are being planted, and new furniture, including more seating, will be installed. This will allow people to sit and enjoy the green space and lake at a safe distance from the paths.

The crossing at Bartlett Place will be upgraded to make it safer for pedestrians and cyclists. This will include a new asphalt speedbump, new streetlights and updated line marking.

The existing pedestrian connections on Reed Street will be improved through concreting and asphalt paving.

Toilet blocks

Over the coming months, the toilets will close while upgrades are completed. The dilapidated public toilet will be removed and replaced with two new accessible facilities.

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Canberrans invited to shape future of City Hill park

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

The community is invited to have their say on historic City Hill park by drawing or describing their ideas.

The ACT Government is seeking to gather community ideas on how to make City Hill park a more welcoming, comfortable and engaging public space.

The community is invited to have their say on the historic site by drawing or describing their ideas.

The six-week consultation is open until 25 March.

Community members, schools and other groups are encouraged to share their ideas.

Canberrans can help shape the future of this green space as the City Centre expands over the coming decade to serve thousands more residents, workers and visitors.

The initiative will culminate in a physical City Hill ideas exhibition, an opportunity to discover what has been submitted and add more ideas and visions to the exhibition.

A ‘Discover City Hill Day’ will also take place on 11 March. This will include a First Nations Walk on Country alongside tours with experts in landscape architecture, active travel and local heritage.

The physical exhibition showcasing the ideas from the community will be open at Civic Library from 9 to 25 March.

It is envisaged the park will act as a centrepiece between the evolving Acton Waterfront, the Canberra Theatre Centre redevelopment and connecting light rail.

To share your drawing or ideas on the future of City Hill park or to have your say on the Canberra Civic and Cultural District concept, go to: yoursayconversations.act.gov.au/cityhill

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New Active Travel Plan to get more Canberrans outdoors

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

The new plan outlines Canberra’s future cycling network.

Encouraging more Canberrans to walk and ride across Canberra’s extensive path network will be aided by further ACT Government investment in active travel initiatives.

The government’s Active Travel Plan 2024–2030 aims to drive a connected, safe and convenient active travel network in the ACT.

The new plan outlines ways to help Canberrans choose active travel options over other modes of travel.

Active travel options include:

  • walking
  • cycling
  • micromobility vehicles – such as e-scooters.

The aim is to make these options safer, more accessible, convenient and enjoyable – whether for transport, recreation or social activities.

Community feedback gathered over the past two years helped shape both the Plan and Design Guide. These documents support the design and prioritisation of the ACT’s walking and riding infrastructure and programs.

The Plan’s priority is safe infrastructure for walking and riding. It highlights key walking areas and outlines Canberra’s future cycling network.

Other actions include providing more secure bike parking and targeted programs to remove barriers and encourage people to use active travel and public transport.

New funding for active travel infrastructure

The ACT Government will provide a further $4 million in funding to support active travel improvements.

This is part of a 50:50 funding agreement with the Australian Government under the Commonwealth’s Road Safety Program.

The additional funding comes in addition to the $29.5 million in funding provided in the 2023–24 ACT Budget to support active travel, and brings total spending across the budget and forward estimates on active travel to over $94 million.

The Kingston Cycleway: a key active travel project

The Kingston Cycleway is a key active travel project proposed to receive funding under the Road Safety Program. The new high-quality cycleway connecting Kingston and the Inner South through to the City on the C2 cycle route will be delivered in two stages.

Construction of the first stage – a pop-up bi-directional protected cycle lane on Bowen Drive between the Kings Avenue underpass and Bowen Park – will begin in the coming weeks.

The government is trialling this infrastructure in Canberra, with funding also committed to investigate other corridors suited to pop-up cycle lanes.

Detailed design of the second stage, connecting Bowen Park with Cunningham Street via Eastlake Parade, will start in the coming months.

Additional projects proposed include:

  • a new pedestrian crossing on New South Wales Crescent, improving safe access to Telopea Park
  • improvements to the City to Woden C4 cycle route via the Lake Burley Griffin cycling circuit on Alexandrina Drive in Yarralumla, including raised crossings, lighting and signage
  • improvements to the City to Belconnen C3 cycle route through a new raised crossing on Bauhinia Street, O’Connor
  • upgrades to the cycling crossing point on the Adelaide Avenue on-ramp at the Hopetoun Circuit intersection, including a pedestrian crossing and cycle lane improvements
  • a new raised pedestrian crossing on Bowman Street in Jamison
  • pedestrian safety improvements on Beasley Street at the bus stops in front of the Torrens shops, including two new kerb ramps to facilitate crossing.

These investments build on the significant pipeline of active travel projects already underway.

Existing projects include the Garden City Cycle Route, new shared paths along Sulwood Drive and William Hovell Drive, and improvements to paths around Lake Ginninderra and the Tuggeranong foreshore.

With Canberra consistently ranking as one of Australia’s best cities for walking and cycling, it’s hoped the new plan will help even more Canberrans embrace active travel options.

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Expanded health care services and support

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

The ACT Government is also investing in bolstering the health workforce.

The ACT Government is continuing to invest in the health infrastructure, services and workforce needed to meet the growing needs of the Canberra community.

The Critical Services Building at Canberra Hospital will open later this year. It will deliver a bigger emergency department, more operating theatres and more treatment spaces.

The ACT Government has announced an additional $17 million to expand emergency services in the Critical Services Building and critical care across the campus.

The additional investment includes:

  • two dedicated triage points within the new Emergency Department with more triage nurses and administrative staff that will reduce waiting times to triage, leading to better outcomes for patients and staff
  • a dedicated Behavioural Assessment Unit within the new Emergency Department. This six-bed unit will be staffed by a dedicated team of doctors and nurses who will provide specialist assessment and care for patients with complex needs
  • an expanded Medical Emergency Team to deliver vital services across the larger acute care footprint on the Canberra Hospital campus that will grow the service with more Advanced Practice Nurses and a new Nurse Practitioner position to support critically unwell patients.

Medical imaging services will continue to grow across the Canberra Hospital campus with a new MRI machine in the Critical Services Building. The new MRI machine will enable more scans per week, helping to manage demand and reduce wait times.

This funding builds on the government’s significant investment of more than $122 million to operationalise the Critical Services Building in the 2023–24 ACT Budget.

The ACT Government is also investing in bolstering the health workforce.

An additional $27 million in funding will improve benefits for nursing, midwifery, and allied health professionals to aid in the retention and attraction of these vital health workforces.

This investment will fund initiatives currently under negotiation with industrial partners including professional development opportunities and recognition of advanced skills and specialist expertise.

There will also be a team dedicated to hiring specialist doctors and other health professionals.

The ACT Government’s investments in the well-being, development and remuneration of the health workforce aim to ensure Canberra health workers remain among the best paid in the country.

Construction on the Critical Services Building is progressing well with the new hospital building on track to open in the third quarter of this year.

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Progress continues on Gungahlin Tennis Facility

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

The new facility will seek to include 10 full-sized courts, among other features.

Canberrans can now give their feedback on the proposed Gungahlin Tennis Facility, to be located in Amaroo.

A Development Application (DA) has been submitted as the project nears the construction phase.

The new facility will seek to include 10 full-sized courts, two hot shots courts, a hitting wall, LED lighting, female friendly changerooms, parking and a pavilion.

Design development and construction is being undertaken in consultation with Tennis Australia and Tennis ACT, as well as the ACT community.

The DA process will provide a further opportunity for community feedback during the public notification period.

Pending approval of the DA, the ACT Government will release a tender to engage a construction contractor to deliver the works.

Canberrans love their tennis – there are currently 6400 members and many more Canberrans actively engaged in tennis programs and participation opportunities.

As well as providing more options for tennis-lovers, the project will support jobs during its construction phase.

The community can provide feedback through the DA process until 14 March.

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Refreshed Florey Oval officially open

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

The refresh was officially opened during an event at Florey Primary School, with Ngunnawal Elder Aunty Violet Sheridan in attendance.

The Florey Oval Refresh project at Florey Primary School has opened, with a portion of the Florey dry land oval transformed into a natural play space for students and wider community use.

The oval was officially opened during an event held at the school, with Ngunnawal Elder Aunty Violet Sheridan in attendance.

The project’s final design was shaped by feedback from Florey Primary School students and the local community during the public consultation process in 2023.

It was further developed with the school and representatives of the Ngunnawal community. The yarning circle – named after Aunty Violet – offers students a calm space to gather and chat with a focus on strengthening connection to community and country.

The result is a natural open space that promotes outdoor activity. It will be an engaging space for Florey Primary students to enjoy as part of their learning.

Outside of school hours, the public space offers great facilities for the wider community to relax, exercise and connect.

The new-look oval now boasts an all-abilities bike pump track and a small, irrigated lawn oval with goal posts. There is also a new outdoor activity and play space within the school boundary.

With plenty of seating, areas for inquisitive play, garden beds, fruit trees and open space there is something for everyone to enjoy.

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Shirley Smith High School opens its doors

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

School principal Rebecca Pearce looks forward to welcoming students.

Shirley Smith High School in East Gungahlin has officially opened its doors to students for the first time.

More than 80 year seven students now attend the new school, located in Kenny.

“No matter what school I’ve worked in, there’s nothing like that first day, when the kids come with their brand-new uniform and their bags and their excitement about the shift from primary school to high school,” Shirley Smith High School Principal Rebecca Pearce said.

“It’s a really important transition and we want to capture that excitement with them.

“That’s what I’m really looking forward to: getting their energy and then continuing that energy right through the year.”

Shirley Smith High School will cater to up to 800 year 7-10 student in the East Gungahlin region. Students will join the school in a phased approach, beginning with year seven students in 2024.

The school’s motto is ‘grow with us’.

“We teach the whole child and we’re really about developing a young person to be a successful learner right through their life,” Rebecca said.

“Rather than trying to focus really narrowly on the curriculum content and concepts, it’s about that broad understanding of who you are as a learner, what are your strengths and weaknesses and building on those within the Australian curriculum framework.”

The new high school responds to the rapid growth in Gungahlin, one of the fastest-growing regions in Australia.

“‘Grow with us’ is also about being a high school in a community that hasn’t even been built yet,” Rebecca said.

“And actually, being a community school that understands who their students and families are and caters to the needs of every single student.”

For the last nine months, Rebecca has recruited a team that includes specialist teachers across all curriculum areas. She’s also created systems and processes to support the staff and students, while leaving space for decision making in response to the school community.

“We’ll be able to really listen to what their needs are and make changes in a way that supports positive growth because we’ve got that staggered, staged approach.”

Shirley Smith High School has been designed with visible and flexible learning in mind.

“Teachers can move walls and make changes very quickly. I think that’s the key to meeting the young person’s needs: that level of flexibility within the structure of the school,” Rebecca said.

“We have every resource at our fingertips for us to run a comprehensive program.”

Spaces for community hire and use are also available at Shirley Smith High School. These include a double gymnasium with basketball, netball, futsal and volleyball markings. There is also a covered hard court suitable for basketball and netball and an oval for soccer, rugby union and rugby league games. The multipurpose hall is also available for community use.

Read more about Shirley Smith High School.

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Next stage in city-wide FOGO collection

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

Canberra’s FOGO facility will recycle food waste at scale into valuable compost, reducing waste going into landfill.

Canberra’s Food Organics and Garden Organics (FOGO) facility has reached a milestone with the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) now open for community feedback.

Delivering a large-scale FOGO facility remains an ACT Government priority.

The industrial-level facility will be capable of processing 50,000 tonnes of FOGO material per year.

It will recycle food waste at scale into valuable compost, reducing waste going into landfill.

Since November 2021, the FOGO collection pilot has serviced households in Belconnen, Bruce, Cook and Macquarie. In that time, it has collected more than 2,844 tonnes of food waste.

These insights will assist the ACT Government to roll out the service city wide.

The composting facility is proposed to be an in-vessel facility, with indoor composting tunnels and other mitigation measures minimising odour impacts.

Local residents and the wider Canberra community are encouraged to take a look at the EIS and provide any feedback.

The public notification period for the EIS commenced on Monday 29 January 2024, and closes on Tuesday 12 March 2024.

Community feedback has already been taken onboard in the preparation of the EIS.

Additional feedback from the community and key stakeholder groups is an important part of the government’s decision making as it progresses to the next steps of planning and design.

FOGO is a key part of the government’s plans for a circular economy in Canberra.

Organic waste decomposition in landfill currently accounts for more than seven per cent of Canberra’s greenhouse emissions.

Canberrans can share their thoughts on the draft environmental impact statement on the ACT Planning website.

There will also be three information sessions:

  • Session 1: Saturday 17 February 2024, 10:30 am to 12:30 pm, Chisholm Village Shopping Centre
  • Session 2: Wednesday 21 February 2024, 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm, Gowrie Shops
  • Session 3: Thursday 29 February 2024, 3:30 pm to 5:30 pm, Mawson Southlands Shopping Centre.

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Career change renews teacher’s passion

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

Blair Merton is excited to get back into teaching and has several goals for the year ahead.

After a 15-year break from teaching, Blair Merton is keen to return to the classroom.

The avid reader and history buff will teach history and geography at Kaleen High.

He will also run a Strategy Games Club, where students play miniature wargames.

He’s the ideal person to coordinate this, having served in the Australian Army during his teaching pause.

“I’d taught at a few different high schools around Canberra throughout the 2000s – Canberra High, Lanyon and Belconnen – before taking an extended hiatus from teaching in 2009,” Blair said.

He moved to the Education section of the Australian War Memorial before enlisting in the Army and being posted to Darwin.

“Life in the military meant that I was part of a wider family of a diverse range of people and experiences, and as an older soldier, I often found myself helping others through their personal trials and tribulations. I often found myself helping some younger soldiers with their written aspects of their courses and administrative work. I was probably the worst shot in the Army, but I did have a knack for communicating,” he said.

The thought of returning to teaching was never completely out of his mind.

“My wife began working as a midwife, and we both decided that due to the stresses and strains of our professions we would return to Canberra where we could be closer to our extended families,” he said.

Although Blair isn’t new to teaching in the Territory, he joins the almost 170 new educators working in ACT public schools this year.

He is excited to get back into it and has several goals in mind for the year ahead.

“I’m aiming to improve my student outcomes, their skills. I want to inspire curiosity and build people of good character. I always try to remind my students that a good life means building a balanced life, and I try to remind them of the principles of justice, courage and wisdom. The Ancients started this kind of education back in the day, and there’s still a lot of merit in those principles.

“The best thing about my subject area is that you make links between all the various disciplines of science, literature and maths in order for students to see the world around them and develop an appreciation of that world, because one day they’ll take custodianship of it,” Blair said.

Blair understands how a good schooling experience can shape a person.

“My favourite subjects in school were History and English. My favourite school was Higgins Primary – I have so many good memories from those days. Playing rugby and cricket, watching BTN on the TV trolley, the fetes, discos and Saturday afternoon matinees in the school hall,” he said.

He is pleased to be back in Canberra and views the lifestyle here as conducive to an active family life.

“Canberra has lots of opportunities for my children to play sport, attend events and take up hobbies. My family loves living near the bushland, and we regularly run and walk our greyhound on the back tracks. I love playing music in my band, The Lonely Fates, and the Canberra music scene is so much bigger and more professional nowadays,” he said.

Who knows? For someone so comfortable with change, perhaps a move into Kaleen High’s music department could also be on the cards in future.

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Support for Canberra Olympians and Paralympians

Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services

Extra funding will support local athletes like Jack Cleary, Angela Ballard and Chad Perris.

The ACT Government is backing Canberran Olympic and Paralympic athletes with extra funding.

The Paris Olympic Games are in July, and the Paralympic Games are in August this year.

The extra funding will help local athletes prepare to qualify to represent Australia in the lead up to the games. “The funding to me and the whole rowing team allows us to be the best we can be,” Olympic athlete Jack Cleary said.

“At the games, it is an absolute whirlwind, and we need to keep ourselves central and not worry about the things you can’t control. They are being managed by the staff who come along to help us – which this funding helps to support,” he said.

The ACT has a history of supporting Olympic and Paralympic athletes. It was the first jurisdiction in Australia to fund the Olympic and Paralympic Teams equally.

Paralympic athlete Chad Perris says the timing of the funding is key.

“We have a lot of extra costs, whether travel, equipment, there are a lot of things that go into getting us over the line to get us to Paris,” he said.

“I’m really excited about this funding and to have it as equal funding with our Olympic counterparts is really exciting.”

“The Paralympic team funding from the ACT Government is huge,” Paralympic athlete Angela Ballard said.

“I know from behind the scenes how much it takes just to get our athletes over there and make sure we have the resources we need to perform.

“On a personal level, the ACT Government funding grants for individual ACT athletes will make a big difference. We still have a lot of work to do to keep up our training and to qualify between now and the Games, and this support will be of great help,” she said.

Canberra is home to elite athletes training at both the Australian Institute of Sport and ACT Academy of Sport. Despite being the smallest jurisdiction in Australia, ACT athletes have a strong presence at each Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.

The ACT Government will provide funding support through the Mid-Year Budget Review. This includes both direct financial assistance and in-kind training assistance through the ACT Academy of Sport.

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