- Fivex Commercial Property Media
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A group set up to help revitalise the North Sydney CBD has voted to dissolve itself after claims it was ignored by elected officials.
The CBD Working Group was in action for two years but members believe their voice was not being heard by councillors.
“They clearly have no interest whatsoever in anything the business community represented in this group has to say; therefore we have just voted to dissolve the working group,” group member and former councillor Richard Pearson said.
The group, set up by North Sydney Council, generated several ideas – one document had 60 suggestions. These included becoming part of the Vivid light festival, providing free parking after hours, giving more priority to cyclists, creating a seven-day destination and creating public open space.
It also proposed to relax limits on the conversion of office buildings to residential. Members included professionals from retail, urban planning, real estate, property development, architecture and hospitality. The North Sydney Chamber of Commerce and NSW Business Chamber was also represented.
Councillor Stephen Barbour, who attended the final meeting, said it was a shame the working group was being disbanded. He described the end of the group as “almost death by thousand cuts”.
Lesli Berger, general manager of Fivex Commercial Property, said he made lots of suggestions. “Rather than explaining why our recommendations should not be supported … they have been ignored,” he said.
The director of the council’s city strategy division, Joseph Hill, said the council wanted input from the North Sydney business community and that a new working party format would be set up.
Andrea McCullagh
Mosman Daily 4 December 2014