Australian Institute of Urban Studies...Speaker: Peter McMullin



Welcome address to the AIUS National Conference. The Hon, Mr Robin Cooper, Mr Charles Landry, Mr Malcolm Jack, Special Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen. On behalf of the City of Melbourne, I have great pleasure in welcoming you all here tonight to the opening of the 1997 AIUS national Conference. The City of Melbourne is delighted to sponsor this year's national conference and to continue our support and interest in the professional and innovative work of the Australian Institute of Urban Studies. This year the national conference gathers us together to discuss, investigate and understand the challenging issues of liveability. For Peter McMullen, at the city of Melbourne, liveability is about three things: It is about quality of life and how we measure it. For the moment here at the city of Melbourne, research shows our quality of life is alive and well and getting better. Liveability is also about the fundamental integration of economics with people and the environment. As we in Melbourne have discovered, a city which provides an attractive location and an enjoyable, stimulating lifestyle for it's residents is more likely to generate creative and innovate business ideas than one which does not have these advantages. Thirdly, I believe liveability is about good government, planning, and the extent to which we in city government are committed to our plans to make our cities viable and vital places to live in. As chairman of the city's finance committee and responsible for economic development, I believe that a particular form of planning is required; one which recognises that economic policies must be framed in a social,cultural,and environmental context. For these reasons I think it entirely appropriate that we gather to discuss issues of livability in the town hall at the city of Melbourne, which as an organisation long ago recognised the importance of livability, and has enshrined the concept as a goal in our council policies. Our starting point is the need to first measure and produce indices of a city's vitality and viability. However the complex and multi-faceted nature of a capital city ensures the collection and analysis of this important information presents a major challenge. On the issue of competitiveness, council is currently engaged in benchmarking Melbourne. That is, we are developing key indicators of viability and vitality which we compare with those of other cities in our region. This exercise will assist Melbourne to review its level of liveability and competitiveness; to learn from the experience of other cities; and to determine areas where our performance can be improved. I believe the quality of the environment is a key element in liveability. It is one of Melbourne's prime attributes; one we are building on to attract residents, visitors, shoppers, new business and investment. Most importantly, the people of Melbourne support this view and council's continuing agenda to improve our environment. A survey conducted just two months ago shows that more than 88% of Melbournians believe that Melbourne is an attractive city. A more important barometer of our success is that this survey also shows that nearly 90% of Melbournians visit the city centre at least once every six months and more than 62% visit the city centre at least once a month. For a Council committed to improving the attractiveness in this city these are encouraging outcomes. They are the starting point for taking the next steps in making Melbourne a more liveable city and achieving better results. This council's interest in liveability and quality of life issues is not new. Since as far back as 1974 it has been a continuing theme in the city's strategic planning. Back then we said that the City of Melbourne of the future should be one that emphasises quality of life. We said the aim should be for people to be able to experience variety and contrast; that a full spectrum of social activities should be available to the widest group of people. Twenty years later an international study, conducted by the Washington based Population Crisis Committee, found that we had effectively achieved those aims. Their study found Melbourne, together with Montreal and Seattle, to be the most livable city in the world. This finding has proven to be a most powerful marketing tool within Australia and overseas. Indeed, winning that title has spurred council on to investigate more fully how we can continue to make Melbourne a more liveable city. In continuing the pursuit of this goal, I believe we will give the impetus required to capitalise on our strengths and international standing and stimulate business attraction, investment and capital city growth. In leading this drive for excellence, I believe we gradually and substantially increase the international economic competitiveness of our city. We also help to make it a great place to live. We make it a truly liveable city. The City of Melbourne's holistic approach to strategic planning is demonstrated by the formulation of City Plan 97. Right now we are preparing a strategy for the city which will define our major policy directions towards the year 2000. This plan is being developed in collaboration with the community and the business sector. It will bring all of the council's externally directed policies together into a single policy. City Plan 97 will express the Council's vision for the city; which is that the capital city of Melbourne will be internationally recognised for the opportunities it offers for all people to live, learn, work and prosper in a quality environment. It must make us a first choice for investors. We want Melbourne to be a city viewed with pride by all Victorians. It is a vision which encapsulates our commitment to strengthening Melbourne's status in terms of liveability and competitiveness. Key aspects of City Plan 97 will be policies for achieving the prosperous city, the people's city, the sustainable city, the attractive city, the innovative city, and the culturally vital city. All of these aspects I believe, are crucial to a truly liveable city. I hope that your deliberations at this conference will help us improve our performance. I await with keen interest your ideas on how we better integrate our business with our environment for our people. I hope that you enjoy working in the town hall and that you enjoy our hospitality. I hope you get the chance to experience the world's most liveable city. Thank you.

Welcome address to the AIUS National Conference.

The Hon, Mr Robin Cooper,
Mr Charles Landry,
Mr Malcolm Jack,
Special Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen.

On behalf of the City of Melbourne, I have great pleasure in welcoming you all here tonight to the opening of the 1997 AIUS national Conference. The City of Melbourne is delighted to sponsor this year's national conference and to continue our support and interest in the professional and innovative work of the Australian Institute of Urban Studies.

This year the national conference gathers us together to discuss, investigate and understand the challenging issues of liveability. For Peter McMullen, at the city of Melbourne, liveability is about three things:

It is about quality of life and how we measure it. For the moment here at the city of Melbourne, research shows our quality of life is alive and well and getting better.
Liveability is also about the fundamental integration of economics with people and the environment. As we in Melbourne have discovered, a city which provides an attractive location and an enjoyable, stimulating lifestyle for it's residents is more likely to generate creative and innovate business ideas than one which does not have these advantages.
Thirdly, I believe liveability is about good government, planning, and the extent to which we in city government are committed to our plans to make our cities viable and vital places to live in.

As chairman of the city's finance committee and responsible for economic development, I believe that a particular form of planning is required; one which recognises that economic policies must be framed in a social,cultural,and environmental context.

For these reasons I think it entirely appropriate that we gather to discuss issues of livability in the town hall at the city of Melbourne, which as an organisation long ago recognised the importance of livability, and has enshrined the concept as a goal in our council policies.

Our starting point is the need to first measure and produce indices of a city's vitality and viability. However the complex and multi-faceted nature of a capital city ensures the collection and analysis of this important information presents a major challenge.

On the issue of competitiveness, council is currently engaged in benchmarking Melbourne. That is, we are developing key indicators of viability and vitality which we compare with those of other cities in our region. This exercise will assist Melbourne to review its level of liveability and competitiveness; to learn from the experience of other cities; and to determine areas where our performance can be improved.

I believe the quality of the environment is a key element in liveability. It is one of Melbourne's prime attributes; one we are building on to attract residents, visitors, shoppers, new business and investment. Most importantly, the people of Melbourne support this view and council's continuing agenda to improve our environment.

A survey conducted just two months ago shows that more than 88% of Melbournians believe that Melbourne is an attractive city. A more important barometer of our success is that this survey also shows that nearly 90% of Melbournians visit the city centre at least once every six months and more than 62% visit the city centre at least once a month. For a Council committed to improving the attractiveness in this city these are encouraging outcomes. They are the starting point for taking the next steps in making Melbourne a more liveable city and achieving better results.

This council's interest in liveability and quality of life issues is not new. Since as far back as 1974 it has been a continuing theme in the city's strategic planning.

Back then we said that the City of Melbourne of the future should be one that emphasises quality of life. We said the aim should be for people to be able to experience variety and contrast; that a full spectrum of social activities should be available to the widest group of people.

Twenty years later an international study, conducted by the Washington based Population Crisis Committee, found that we had effectively achieved those aims. Their study found Melbourne, together with Montreal and Seattle, to be the most livable city in the world.

This finding has proven to be a most powerful marketing tool within Australia and overseas. Indeed, winning that title has spurred council on to investigate more fully how we can continue to make Melbourne a more liveable city.

In continuing the pursuit of this goal, I believe we will give the impetus required to capitalise on our strengths and international standing and stimulate business attraction, investment and capital city growth. In leading this drive for excellence, I believe we gradually and substantially increase the international economic competitiveness of our city. We also help to make it a great place to live. We make it a truly liveable city.

The City of Melbourne's holistic approach to strategic planning is demonstrated by the formulation of City Plan 97. Right now we are preparing a strategy for the city which will define our major policy directions towards the year 2000. This plan is being developed in collaboration with the community and the business sector. It will bring all of the council's externally directed policies together into a single policy.

City Plan 97 will express the Council's vision for the city; which is that the capital city of Melbourne will be internationally recognised for the opportunities it offers for all people to live, learn, work and prosper in a quality environment. It must make us a first choice for investors.

We want Melbourne to be a city viewed with pride by all Victorians. It is a vision which encapsulates our commitment to strengthening Melbourne's status in terms of liveability and competitiveness.

Key aspects of City Plan 97 will be policies for achieving the prosperous city, the people's city, the sustainable city, the attractive city, the innovative city, and the culturally vital city. All of these aspects I believe, are crucial to a truly liveable city.

I hope that your deliberations at this conference will help us improve our performance. I await with keen interest your ideas on how we better integrate our business with our environment for our people. I hope that you enjoy working in the town hall and that you enjoy our hospitality. I hope you get the chance to experience the world's most liveable city.

Thank you.