User Choice Options Agreed For Parking At Weinam Creek

Parking options for Weinam Creek ranging from car share, to free and casual daily fee parking and an annual fee for secure and allocated space, were among the options agreed to last night by Redland City Council.

The agreement, after almost three years of community consultation and debate, provides for up to 1517 parking spaces, including 360 remote parking spaces connected by shuttle bus, parking space supervision and security arrangements and new car share and car hire options.

The parking options include an initial annual parking permit fee of $200 pa for parking at the Weinam Creek car park; a premium annual fee for remote secure allocated parking of $950 pa and a casual metered parking charge of $3.00 per day, or part thereof.

Introducing the 31 page report to Council, Chief Executive officer Gary Stevenson said no single option would address demand or all community parking concerns.

The proposals provided to Council will allow users to make their own choice about their preferred parking arrangements and help determine future actions.

The 18 point resolution aims to progress the decisions of Council while acknowledging the many views and representations received on the issue, Mr Stevenson said.

Mayor Hobson said that Council had faced up to the very difficult challenges at Weinam Creek and brought the issue into the open for thorough public consultation and debate.

This is probably one of the most difficult decisions this Council has had to make, but it is also about doing what is right and fair and making progress on this issue.

These arrangements are about making an important transition on this long standing issue and providing equity and fairness for all users of Weinam Creek.

The proposals agreed to by Council, included continued lobbying of the state government for improvements to public transport, integration and subsidisation of ticketing for bus/ferry services and the establishment of Go Card facilities and private sector interests to develop opportunities for alternative barge service arrangements.

Mayor Hobson highlighted that the agreed proposals would provide sufficient space to meet current demand, even if SMBI population figures are higher than those estimated from the past census.

Now that this decision has been made, Council can begin planning for the new arrangements.

No changes will be made to the existing arrangements until that planning has been completed and timetable agreed for the introduction of the new parking options.

We will ensure that the community is fully informed, once these details are known.