The BCC would like to thank each and every one of you who took the time to participate in our recent survey on the Hawker Village. Your insights, experiences, and opinions have been invaluable to us, providing us with a clearer understanding of what matters most to our community.
Your feedback played an instrumental role in shaping the below submission to the Hawker Woolworths consultation, ensuring that it represents the our diverse community.
Our survey indicates that while there is considerable consensus on several fronts (supporting existing businesses, improved public spaces, and retention of essential services), there are also differences in the community’s vision for the future of Hawker Village, mainly regarding the scale and nature of redevelopment. There is universal consensus among respondents that any redevelopment must be community-focused.
Woolworths and the ACT Government must consider the longer-term future for the entire Hawker Shops precinct to ensure any redevelopment maximises the community benefit.
This submission attempts to capture the varied perspectives of the community members in response to potential redevelopment in Hawker Village, with a pronounced call for thoughtful and community-oriented development. The BCC’s survey, its responses and submission have provided high-level commentary with more specific feedback only possible when more information is available; it is essential for further community consultation to encourage this feedback from the community.
The BCC is optimistic for the future of the Hawker Shops but acknowledges that redevelopment needs to be done right, and put the community first. We look forward to further engaging with relevant stakeholders of this project to promote the best outcome for the community.
As always we rely on you to provide us with information and issues from across the district. We are always looking for help to stay on top of the workload, so if you would like to get involved we’d love to hear from you. You can email us at chair@belcouncil.org.au or hello@belcouncil.org.au for more information.
Lachlan Butler
Chair