People should not be neglected in planning developments
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power to the people
Yes, we need more housing. Most of them need to be affordable. All of these need to be livable. As long as developers take effective responsibility for town planning, we will have more flats built on small blocks, reaching for the skies in search of ever-greater profits, failing in both affordability and liveability goals.
Contrary to the views of some, residents in Hawthorn, Kew, Arden and elsewhere are not opposed to more housing in our backyards. We welcome this. Not to the extent of the shading and loss of privacy due to overly tall buildings and the loss of valuable open space currently under threat in Box Hill.
To achieve this, it is important for urban planning to return to both the legal and effective control of local and state governments; thus, the interests of society’s welfare are brought back to planning and the profit motive that hinders good planning decisions is eliminated. Developers have no place in planning decisions.
Margaret Callinan, Hawthorn
Rethink housing needs
In the article, ″Meet the homeowners who are so happy to see their property values fall″, 24/7), this is increasingly the take-home message in our quest to house Australians affordably and with tenure security. The challenging goal of both national and state governments should be to urgently develop and realize a non-market housing sector in which all types of households with diverse incomes have alternative options to live securely in forms of collective ownership as cooperative and social housing based on income-paying capacity. Housing is clearly tenure-neutral, as a valued social commodity and not as an investment pursuit that provides financial benefits to property owners and tenants.
Henk van Leeuwen, Elsternwick
preservation of heritage
Rob Adams’ excellent analysis ″A building threatens unique CBD″ (22/7) also highlights what is important about our inner-city heritage activity centres. The fine grain and narrow facades of the old buildings have allowed a variety of activities and independent shops to survive.
These valuable assets, including startups or interesting businesses, cannot withstand higher land values and redevelopment patterns. Therefore, planning changes and any new developments in these areas need to be evaluated very carefully.
Sally Vivian, Carlton North
This is actually a farewell
I remembered that great conversation with a bit of a quote from the movie Love Actually: Australia is a great country and has a long relationship with America, but “I’m afraid it could turn into a bad relationship” and “a bully friend is no longer a friend”.
Our long-standing friendship with America is Vale.
Robyn Westwood, Heidelberg Hills
Another certainty
Death and taxes used to be the only certainties in life. Now it looks like we can add Donald Trump’s tariffs to that.
Mark Kennedy, Sevastopol
How to reset nothing?
Your correspondent (Letters, 7/25) calls for a “reset of the relationship” with Donald Trump, but this assumes there is a relationship to reset. How do you deal with someone so unpredictable when policies and tariffs can change overnight? The Trump administration has little interest in long-term partnerships or diplomacy. No country is exempt from this reality.
David Milner, Port of Melbourne
Credit to Husic
Ed Husic deserves praise for speaking out on issues important to the Labor Party base and the wider Australian public (″Husic has taken on the role of ALP’s conscience″, 24/7).
Particularly commendable was the staunch support of 60 per cent of Australians for a 25 per cent tax on gas exports, a policy supported by the Australian Council of Trade Unions, the Australian Council of Social Service, the Commonwealth Bank and various politicians. With such a strong majority, Labor has the opportunity to ensure Australians are appropriately compensated for the climate damage caused by our resources and multinational gas companies. Husic should not be the only conscience in the Labor Party supporting this fair reform.
Now, the Albanian government is caught in a quandary as our climate bill continues to escalate (“Labor leaders do not underestimate green agenda push,” 24/7).
Sarah Brennan, Hawthorn
Fix wages, Labor
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare and the Labor government should be left in disgrace over the continuing gross overcharge of university fees for humanities students. Isn’t four years enough time to fix this terrible situation?
Laurie Bebbington, South Yarra
power imbalances
It’s not unusual for Pauline Hanson to be confused about something. Losing one’s cool is not the same as being a perpetrator or victim of domestic violence. Most relationships have occasional (or frequent) disagreements. Getting into an argument in which both parties express anger or frustration is not the same as being the victim of calculated or persistent domestic violence. A “two-way” argument usually does not require one partner to remain in a state of fear waiting for the next outburst. Domestic abuse, indeed all abuse, is based on an imbalance of power, whereby one of the participants is disadvantaged physically, financially or psychologically, and is aware that the abuser can use that power if he or she chooses.
Cheryl Day, Beaumaris
A woman’s share
Columnist Gary Nunn (Commentary, 7/23), a middle-aged white male, writes about how he feels when he gets older and is judged. He needs to dye his graying temples. He doesn’t know how difficult it is to be a girl-woman in life. We start menstruating around the age of 12, which is a huge pain (pardon the pun), and it lasts for about 40 years.
In between, there is the miscarriage (or failure) to get pregnant. There is the changing body shape, there are mood swings and not to mention labor pains. Then you come home with a new baby and wonder what you’re doing? Your breasts hurt, sleepless nights, but you love this baby so much.
So you get a handle on raising a child and you start feeling pretty happy and content and together, and that’s when menopause comes into play. More mood swings and sleepless nights, more body changes, hot flashes, the need to color your hair to be the sexy girl you once were but will never be.
You deal with all of this the way women always do. Maybe you are experiencing the joy of having grandchildren and nothing can prepare you for the absolute joy it brings. But then comes being senior, not much older, not much smarter, but enjoying life because you’re free to swear, look stupid, or just do whatever you want.
At 95, with all the money in the world, I wouldn’t change being a woman. A life full of joys and some sorrows, ups and downs and just living because life is complicated.
As the song says, To Life!
Myra Fisher, Brighton East
bring Toto
Illustrator Megan Herbert (25/7) hits the nail again with her cartoon. I say Toto for the Prime Minister.
Robin Jensen, Castlemaine
Food and savings
“Gen Z eats out more than other generations” (Good Food, 24/7): How does this fit into saving for a house deposit?
Bernd Rieve, Brighton
