by jb2 - March 1st, 2012
The Committee of Management of the Princes Hill Community Garden (PHCG) regrets to advise that it has decided to not proceed with plans to establish a community garden at any of the three previously announced possible sites in Princes Hill.
The PHCG Committee has always approached its task as a community building initiative. Despite a strong Council policy in support of new community gardens in the City of Yarra and the adoption of unique Council guidelines to foster community co-operation in the planning process, two Princes Hill residents have waged a divisive campaign to sabotage the process by promulgating misinformation to local residents and the media on the aims of our group and the process we have followed.
The Committee chose to strictly follow the process set out in the City of Yarra Guidelines for Community Gardens in order to engage the broader community in identifying and assessing potential sites and be totally transparent in communicating the outcomes in progress reports to Princes Hill residents.
While it is clear that there is substantial community support for the garden, the destabilisation campaign being conducted now threatens to escalate and further divide the community. The PHCG Committee considered responding to the unethical tactics employed by those orchestrating the campaign against the garden but decided that this would not be in the longer term interest of the Princes Hill community.
The Committee regrets that the social and environmental benefits that would result from a community garden in Princes Hill and the associated community building partnerships with Princes Hill schools and other community organisations will not be realised.
The Committee acknowledges that a small number of local residents have strong objections to the proposed garden and thanks those who provided constructive feedback on their concerns. We also thank those residents who participated constructively as members of the Community Garden Planning Group and others who have expressed support for the garden and the work we have done over the last year.
We also acknowledge the valuable advice provided to the Committee and Planning Group by Peter Huff, the City of Yarra’s Community Gardens Facilitator.
The Committee will now meet with PHCG members to discuss further options for gardening initiatives in Princes Hill.
Committee of Management
Princes Hill Community Garden
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by jb2 - December 22nd, 2011
Recent updates have explained the process being followed by the Princes Hill Community Garden (PHCG) Committee and Planning Group to engage with the community to assess four possible sites for a community garden in Princes Hill and the likely timelines for further consultation and decisions.
The Planning Group has now completed the task of assessing the four sites using criteria and methodology recommended by the City of Yarra. The report provided by the Planning Group explains in detail the site assessment process used, a summary of the initial and weighted scores of the four sites and a report for each site showing a map of the location, the scores for each criterion and the reasoning for each score.
Click here to download site assessments documents
As indicated in each document in the report, the site assessment process used is not definitive in determining the “best” site. It is simply a starting point for determining the physical, civic, and community attributes associated with a site that influence its suitability for development into a community garden. While it helps identify what sites may be less desirable than others based on clear assessment criteria, it will always be a limited, quantitative tool that will complement other assessments and discussions with local residents.
The Planning Group has considered the assessment scores for the four sites and decided that the Wilson Street Road Closure site should not proceed to the concept plans phase and that draft concept plans showing a suggested layout of the garden and key design features such as fencing and other garden infrastructure will be developed for the other three sites.
It is expected that a final report of the Planning Group, including the garden concept designs and recommendations on any other matters the Planning Group recommends the Committee should take into account in a formal application to Yarra Council, will be submitted to the Committee in February. This report will be emailed to you and posted on the website in the usual way in order to gather community feedback. The PHCG Committee will then incorporate the feedback into an application to Council on a preferred site in about March next year. The application will then be formally considered at a Council meeting where community members will be able to have a say before Council makes a decision.
A critical factor that will influence the final decision of the PHCG Committee on a preferred site is the degree of support from residents closest to the site. The PHCG welcomes feedback on any concerns you might have about the site assessments or the process being followed. We will do our best to address all community concerns. You can email us at info@princeshillgarden.com to provide comment, seek additional information or arrange an informal on-site meeting with PHCG representatives. If you would like to discuss any issues about community gardens with Yarra Council, you can contact Pete Huff, Community Gardens Facilitator, on 9205 5782 or Peter.Huff@yarracity.vic.gov.au
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by jb2 - December 8th, 2011
BACKGROUND:
The Princes Hill Community Garden Inc. (PHCG) was formed in 2009 to establish a community garden in Princes Hill. In response to community requests, Yarra City Council adopted a set of guidelines in June 2011 on how residents and Council can work together to establish and manage community gardens on public land within the City of Yarra. These Guidelines can be downloaded from the Council website at www.yarracity.vic.gov.au/Environment/Community-gardens/
The PHCG is now following the 5-step process set out in the guidelines and has been in regular contact with Peter Huff, the Council’s recently appointed Community Gardens Facilitator.
Step 3 of the process (Consultation) requires the group proposing a community garden to provide evidence to Council of having conducted a high level of local consultation about any proposals resulting in broad level local support. PHCG is currently engaged in this public consultation process to identify and assess possible community garden sites in Princes Hill.
Following meetings with community groups and a letter-box drop in August 2011, residents at a Neighbourhood meeting on 16 August identified four possible sites near the Railway Station Neighbourhood House and Primary School that could host a community garden. This feedback resulted in the establishment of a Community Planning Group to critically assess the individual sites for their physical, civic, and community suitability to be developed into gardens. Concept designs will be developed for the most suitable sites, and we will then seek feedback from local community members about those concept designs. Details of the Planning Group process, the four potential sites and how they are being assessed are available on the PHCG website at www.princeshillgarden.com
WHERE TO FROM HERE?
There are some misunderstandings about the Council-endorsed process being followed and the timelines for decisions by the PHCG and Council.
The facts are that:
- when physical assessments of the sites are completed by the PHCG and Council’s Community Gardens Facilitator, Council will then undertake its own assessment of the sites in December 2011;
- the results of the completed assessments will be made available on the PHCG website;
- no decisions on a preferred site have been made by the PHCG;
- the assessment and eventual selection process gives high priority to transparency and participation within the community immediately surrounding the site to ensure it is an enhancement of public space ;
- it is anticipated that concept designs of gardens at 2-3 top-rated sites will be released by the PHCG in February 2012 in order to gather feedback from public opinion;
- the PHCG Committee will then incorporate the feedback into an application to Council on a preferred site in about March next year; and
- the application will then be formally considered at a Council meeting where community members will be able to have a say before Council makes a decision.
WE NEED YOUR FEEDBACK
- To avoid confusion and anxiety, the PHCG welcomes your feedback on any concerns you might have about the above process. We are committed to pursuing a highly transparent consultation process and will do our best to address all community concerns.
- You can email us at info@princeshillgarden.com to provide comment, seek additional information, arrange an informal on-site meeting with PHCG representatives or request to be added to the email list to receive regular updates.
- Alternatively you can contact the PHCG Secretary, John Blackstock, on 9387 2771.
- If you would like to discuss any issues about community gardens with Council, you can contact Pete Huff, Community Gardens Facilitator, on 9205 5782 or Peter.Huff@yarracity.vic.gov.au
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by jb2 - November 15th, 2011
This update provides details on the formation of a Planning Group to liaise with Yarra Council and thoroughly investigate potential sites and garden designs for a community garden in Princes Hill and to outline the progress it has made so far. Both the Princes Hill Community Garden Committee and the Planing Group will welcome and consider any comments and feedback from the public.
Planning Group Membership
As agreed at the Neighbourhood Meeting on 16 August 2011, the twelve persons who expressed interest in participating in the Planning Group were invited to the first meeting on 20 October 2011 at which the membership was finalised. The Planning Group membership comprises five members of the PHCG Committee of Management (Karen Blaszak , Craig King, Hannah Walker, Eileen Sheridan and John Blackstock) and five other residents (Fiona Bell, Michael D’Arcy, Tom Dadour, Jenny Gardner and Monica Haverkamp) who reside within 500 metres of the car park at the Northern end of Wilson Street, Princes Hill. The Planning Group is chaired by Karen Blaszak, a member of the PHCG Committee.
The seven other community members who expressed interest in joining the Planning Group were offered the choice of either being an observer at future meetings or being added to the email contact list and hence be provided with regular written updates on the work and outcomes of the Planning Group and hence opportunities to provide comment back to the PHCG Committee and/or Planning Group. Two chose to be observers at future meetings and the others have been added to the email contact list.
Role of City of Yarra Community Gardens Facilitator
Peter Huff, who commenced duties as the City of Yarra Urban Agriculture (Community Gardens) Facilitator in late September, has agreed to attend as many Planning Group Meetings as possible. The Planning Group welcomes his input and considers that his experience in California and Melbourne in the design, development and management of community gardens and community consultation processes will be invaluable.
In outlining the role and importance of the City of Yarra Guidelines for Community Gardens, Peter reported on the high priority the Council places on fostering the development of additional community gardens and other forms of urban agriculture in the City and his role in supporting community groups and acting as a resource person for the Planning Group. He noted that he is expected to be an intermediary between the Planning Group and the significant number of Council officers who will need to have input on technical, legal or other grounds.
Terms of Reference and Method of Operation of the Planning Group.
The Planning Group adopted the Terms of Reference and Method of Operation determined by the PHCG Committee as follows.
Having regard to the City of Yarra Guidelines for Community Gardens and feedback received from residents during public consultation on a proposed community garden in Princes Hill:
- identify potential community garden sites on public land in the City of Yarra of sufficient size to accommodate a minimum of 40 plots averaging 10 m2 each plus a minimum of 200 m2 of communal beds;
- investigate and report on current usage of the potential sites by City of Yarra residents and other residents;
- carry out assessments of the potential sites using criteria and methodology recommended by the City of Yarra Community Gardens Facilitator;
- develop garden designs for up to three of the top-rated sites as determined in the site assessments;
- submit monthly progress reports to the Committee of Management of the Princes Hill Community Garden Inc (PHCG); and
- submit a final report to the Committee of Management of the Princes Hill Community Garden Inc (PHCG) by 16 December 2011 on site analyses, garden designs and any other matters the PHCGPG recommends the PHCG should take into account in a formal application to Yarra Council.
The Planning Group reports to but operates independently of the Committee in carrying out its work. While the Planning Group will make recommendations to the Committee on matters which should be taken into account in the Committee’s final application to Yarra Council, the Committee is ultimately responsible for accepting or rejecting the Planning Group recommendations and making a final decisions on the preferred site in the submission to Council.
Potential Garden Sites to be Assessed.
The Planning Group noted that at the Neighbourhood Meeting on 16 August 2011, five sites thought to be on public land in the City of Yarra were proposed for consideration:
- The vicinity of the Bocce Court and Car Park at the Northern end of Wilson Street, Princes Hill.
- The grassed area on McIlwraith St to the East of the Princes Hill Primary School.
- A partial road closure at the Northern end of Wilson Street to the East of the Princes Hill Primary School.
- A partial road closure at the Eastern end of Park Street adjacent to Hardy Gallagher Reserve.
- A section of Linear Park adjoining the Southern boundary of the Brunswick South Primary School.
The Planning Group decided that, while the last site in Linear Park is outside the City of Yarra boundary and cannot be considered, the other four sites should be assessed in order to avoid excluding any of the proposed sites.
Criteria and Process for Assessing Sites
The Terms of Reference require the Planning Group to carry out assessments of the potential sites using criteria and methodology recommended by the City of Yarra Community Gardens Facilitator. Peter Huff consulted with Council officers to amend the assessment process previously designed by external consultants and reviewed by the City of Yarra Community Gardens Advisory Committee earlier this year and presented the details of the process at the second meeting of the Planning Group.
The site assessment process is designed to create a transparent, replicable, and comparable mechanism for assessing sites on Council owned land for potential community gardens. It is a starting point for determining the physical, civic, and community aspects of the site that impact on its suitability for a community garden. It will help identify those sites that may be less desirable than others based on clear criteria. This tool will not determine what site is the “best” site as this determination can vary based on the values and attitudes of the assessors. Instead, it will be a limited, quantitative tool that will complement qualitative assessments and discussions.
A weighted scoring system is used to assess 19 different physical, civic, and community criteria for each site. About half of the criteria will be scored by a small core group of Planning Group members working with the Facilitator with the remaining criteria scored by the Facilitator in consultation with relevant Council officers. While individual criterion scores will vary from site to site, the weighting each score receives for a particular criterion in the overall assessment is fixed. As scores are determined and recorded, they are then automatically weighted and compiled into an overall percentage score out of 100%.
The Planning Group agreed to adopt the process recommended by the Council, congratulated Peter Huff on his work in preparing the documentation and believes that the process provides a good starting point for assessing the sites. It will enable the Council to provide a filter over the whole site selection, public consultation and garden design process and provide a means of reducing community emotions and stress. The Planning Group also agreed that the final matrix scores of the top-rated sites should be as transparent as possible and open to community scrutiny.
The Planning Group has appointed a core group of four members (Fiona Bell, Tom Dadour, Craig King and Hannah Walker) to work with the Facilitator to score the sites. The core group will meet this month to assess the four sites and will then be critically reviewed by the full Planning Group.
Your feedback is invited.
The outcomes of the work of the Planning Group will be explained in detail in periodic updates by email and at another neighbourhood meeting early next year. However, the Committee and Planning Group will be happy to answer any questions you might have and will welcome your feedback at any stage during the process. Please email any questions or comments to info@princeshillgarden.com
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by jb2 - September 5th, 2011
About 65 people attended a Neighbourhood Meeting convened by the Princes Hill Community Garden Inc (PHCG) on 16 August to discuss a proposal to assess the feasibility of establishing a community garden in the vicinity of the car park and Bocce court at the Northern end of Wilson Street, Princes Hill and to form a planning group to liaise with Council and thoroughly investigate potential sites and garden designs.
Members of the PHCG Committee made presentations on the role and activities of the PHCG, the new City of Yarra Guidelines for Community Gardens, PHCG’s vision for the new garden and the initial feedback received following the recent door-knocking and letter box drop of residents near the proposed site.
Most of the meeting was allocated to questions and comments from meeting participants. Frank and open discussion allowed people to express a range of views on the proposal and a number of alternative sites were proposed for consideration. The PHCG gave an undertaking that all appropriate sites in the City of Yarra would be assessed by the proposed Princes Hill Community Garden Planning Group (PHCGPG).
Meeting participants were invited to provide their contact details if they were interested in participating in the proposed PHCGPG. The PHCGPG, comprising roughly equal numbers of PHCG Committee members and other interested local residents, will take the lead in considering the views and concerns of local residents, conducting site analyses, liaising with City of Yarra officers on site and design issues and preparing a report to the PHCG on its deliberations. Eleven people in addition to PHCG Committee members expressed interest in joining the PHCGPG and will be invited to the first meeting of the PHCGPG at which the membership, terms of reference and method of operation of the Group will be finalised.
The PHCGPG will collaborate closely with the Council’s Community Gardens Facilitator. Interviews for this new position are expected to be completed by 9 September. The first meeting of the PHCGPG will be convened after the appointee commences duties.
Meeting participants were also invited to provide their names and email addresses if they wished to receive periodic updates on the the work of the PHCGPG and PHCG in relation to the proposed community garden. Existing PHCG members and the 30 people at the Neighbourhood Meeting who provided their contact details will receive future updates. I will be pleased to add to this Contact group any other residents who would like to receive updates.
You are also invited to become a financial member of the PHCG if you would like to express your support, and secure a place on the waiting list for a plot in, the proposed community garden. You can download a membership application form by clicking on “Become a member” in the right hand panel of this page.
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by jb2 - August 13th, 2011
New City Of Yarra guidelines for the development of new community gardens in the City of Yarra have provided a new opportunity for our group. The Committee of the Princes Hill Community Garden Inc. (PHCG) will follow these guidelines to engage the local community in examining the feasibility of establishing a garden in the vicinity of the Bocce Court and car park at the Northern end of Wilson Street in Princes Hill.
The community consultation phase is now under way and initial feedback from local residents has generally been very positive. PHCG Committee members have met with or provided information to seven community organisations in Princes Hill. We have also door-knocked residents overlooking the site and letter-box dropped City of Yarra residents within 500 metres of the site to deliver an invitation to a neighbourhood meeting at St Michael’s Church Hall at 8pm on Tuesday, 16 August.
The meeting on 16 August will introduce the PHCG and its vision for a local community garden, explain how we will follow the new Council guidelines in canvassing community opinions on the most appropriate site and design for the garden and give everyone an opportunity to present the views for and against the proposal. We will also establish a broadly based planning group comprising PHCG members and other interested residents to take the lead in addressing site and design issues to plan the garden. The planning group will work closely with the Council’s Community Gardens Facilitator, who is expected to be appointed in the next month.
The meeting at St Michael’s Church Hall at 8pm on Tuesday, 16 August will conclude by 9pm and will be followed by refreshments.
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by jb2 - July 21st, 2011
Guidelines for the development of community gardens in the City of Yarra were drafted by a community advisory committee established by Council following the public consultation process in 2010 related to three possible sites for community gardens. The guidelines were adopted by Yarra Council in June 2011 and can be downloaded from the Council website at http://www.yarracity.vic.gov.au/Environment/Community-gardens/.
The guidelines send a strong message that the Council recognises the value of community gardens as a means of creating a resilient community and will actively support community groups to establish community gardens. They also send a clear signal that, subject to the achievement of broad support from the local neighbourhood, Council could support the establishment of community gardens in any area of the City, including parkland, under-utilised roadways, road closures and lanes or land owned or managed by public or private entities.
The guidelines place responsibility on community groups such as the Princes Hill Community Garden Inc (PHCG), rather than the Council, to initiate action to plan and establish a garden and take the lead in consulting local residents to get community support for the proposed garden site.
The Council also approved funding for the appointment of a part-time dedicated Community Gardens Facilitator. The Facilitator is expected to be appointed by September 2011 and will be available to assist our group in assessing potential sites, identifying and addressing site issues which may be of concern to Council or local residents and consulting with the local community.
The PHCG welcomes the adoption of the guidelines and the opportunity to use them to initiate a community consultation process on the feasibility of establishing a community garden at a site in Princes Hill. More details on this process and our vision for the proposed garden will be posted in early August.
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by admin - November 28th, 2010
Princes Hill Community Garden Group recently donated 130 potted succulents and other plants for sale at the Primary School fete on 15 November 2010. A huge thank you to all those involved in donating, collecting and delivering plants, it was a very successful day.
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by admin - July 21st, 2010
Children need to be touched by the earth….and be touched by it!
Time to book into the Royal Botanic Gardens and Cultivating Community’s ‘Growing School Community Gardens’ course to be run in September this year.
This course provides a hands-on experience for learning and play, designed for the greater community - teachers, passionate parents and volunteers.
It is a short course to assist school communities to develop sustainable gardens for a new climate.
For further info go to:
www.rbg.vic.gov.au/education/growing-school-community-gardens
For bookings and details:
Phone: (03) 9252 2358
Booking deadline – end of July. Please indicate your interest now!!
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by admin - July 13th, 2010
Our Group’s first gardening venture last year was to establish a herb garden along the southern boundary of the Bocce court next to the Railway Station Neighbourhood House in Solly Avenue, Princes Hill. The garden has established well but needed renovating with new plants and mulch. We placed sleepers along the Southern edge of the bed to minimise the invasion of kikuyu.
We had a good roll-up at the working bee on 26 June and and another on 17 July. We made good progress in renovating the herb bed, as well as a bit of maintenance on surrounding trees – see attached photos.
Hopefully the recent rains will help this little garden to flourish and provide fresh herbs to local residents.
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