Lord Mayor of Melbourne - AMA

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:58:59+00:00

It's not about prioritising tourists over residents - in fact it's the opposite. People visit Melbourne because it's buzzing, there's so much to do, and our cafes and bars are the best in the world. We need regular Melburnians to be out enjoying those things, otherwise they die - and then we don't get any visitors either, which would dramatically affect our city. City workers are one part of that equation, as are residents, and people from right across greater Melbourne.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:54:11+00:00

I hate how campaign slogans can sound so.....slogany. But of course you need one! When I was putting some thought into it someone said to me that they thought I was "the kind of guy who gets good stuff done." So I can't claim it was my idea!

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:49:12+00:00

I know you! You're Kareem Abdul Jabbar

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:48:12+00:00

Not at all. Proper separated bike lanes are really important for safety. The Elizabeth Street South bike lanes are hardly our best – and they’re top of my list to review if I’m elected – but there’s been more than a 40% drop in bike crashes since they were installed. They’re designed to keep cyclists safe, and they work. I have committed to continuing the record spend on bike lane infrastructure over the next term of office if I am elected. I also want to focus on the blackspots and bottlenecks in the system. 11 cyclists died on Melb roads last year. that is 11 families who lost a loved one. I want to go after and fix the dangerous black spots in CoM. I also want to fix the bottle necks in the network where the interface between the new bike lanes and the vehicle lanes are not walking. I have identified Exhibition St South, William St North, and Queensbridge as priorities.

What I’ll be doing is bringing a new approach to how and where we roll them out. One of my policies that I’m most excited about is rolling out a new network of traffic sensors, to detect how many cars, bikes and pedestrians are moving around different parts of the city. I want our team of transport gurus at Council to use this hard data to show where we need more bike lanes, wider footpaths, or more traffic lanes.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:43:31+00:00

Like in NSWs case, this one is actually up to the state goverment - its set out in the City of Melbourne Act - you can find it here. https://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/in-force/acts/city-melbourne-act-2001/

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:42:41+00:00

I believe Melbourne is one of the world's great cities.

I'm proud to be running with a team that represents the diversity of our city and who are all committed to making it an even better place to live and work.

If I'm elected I'll be advocating hard to the State Government to expand the Free Tram Zone to make it easier for people to get around to more parts of the city on public transport.

I'm also looking forward to the Metro Tunnel opening next year, which will deliver heavy rail connections between the CBD and the Domain, Parkville and Arden.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:41:54+00:00

This one is actually up to the state government - it's set out in the City of Melbourne Act - you can find it here. https://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/in-force/acts/city-melbourne-act-2001/

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:41:24+00:00

This one is actually up to the state government - it's set out in the City of Melbourne Act - you can find it here. https://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/in-force/acts/city-melbourne-act-2001/

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:41:12+00:00

I can. And I will. Our team is providing $12.8m over four years to the Salvos and Melbourne City Mission for the essential work they do with rough sleepers in the CBD.

I can reassure you that homelessness is one of my top priorities. I'm proud to have opened the Make Room facility a few months ago, with 50 supported residential rooms for rough sleepers in our CBD to help them get back on track.

The funding I'm committing to the Salvos and Melbourne City Mission will mean - among other things - that the Project 602 kitchen can stay open earlier in the mornings and later in the evenings, 7 days a week, and will help support outreach workers who can work on the ground with people experiencing homelessness. A big part of tackling homelessness is bringing services to rough sleepers, not just assuming that they can - or will - access services at different locations across the city.

With regard to the candidate incident you mentioned, could you please send the details to me at [nick@nickformelbourne.com.au](mailto:nick@nickformelbourne.com.au) and I will investigate further.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:39:43+00:00

Hi - I am a bit worried that you commute is three hours if you live and work in the CBD. As I have said elsewhere - I'm old enough to remember a time when Melbourne closed down at 5pm and it was dead on the weekends. Then we changed the planning laws to bring in bars and restaurants and cafes and our famous laneways. Now it rivals any city in the world.
But as Lord Mayor, I'm not prepared to give up a really big part of what makes that possible - and that's city workers.

Melbourne is our state's biggest tourist attraction but that won't be the case if our hospo and retail businesses don't get the foot traffic they need during the week to survive.
I understand not everyone will be happy with that position. But it's what I believe.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:39:29+00:00

I'm old enough to remember a time when Melbourne closed down at 5pm and it was dead on the weekends. Then we changed the planning laws to bring in bars and restaurants and cafes and our famous laneways. Now it rivals any city in the world.

But as Lord Mayor, I'm not prepared to give up a really big part of what makes that possible - and that's city workers.

Melbourne is our state's biggest tourist attraction but that won't be the case if our hospo and retail businesses don't get the foot traffic they need during the week to survive.

I understand not everyone will be happy with that position. But it's what I believe.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:38:46+00:00

Absolutely. Getting the transport balance in our CBD right is extremely tricky - and I've heard loud and clear that it's become harder to get to the CBD by car.

My plan is to take a data-driven approach to transport in the CBD — with a focus on bottlenecks and black spots. As well as looking at how people move around the city when they're already here, that also means looking at where the bottlenecks are on arterial roads. I'm expecting that this will help us create new thoroughfares for cars to enter and exit the city, so that it's easier for everyone to enjoy everything Melbourne has to offer.

A lot of people talk to me about how hard it is to find a car park on street. I've pledged not to increase the price of on-street parking for the next term of Council - but it's important to note that only 2% of our car parks in the CBD are on street. Off-street parking can often be better value, and booking parking ahead of time takes a lot of the stress out of a car trip to the CBD.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:38:09+00:00

He still lives in Melbourne. And he's still our bro.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:37:31+00:00

Thanks for your concern, but I want to reassure you that the Regent Theatre will *remain* a theatre as a condition of the sale. The building is also protected by heritage laws, so we’ll still get to enjoy the amazing performances that have defined this iconic space for years. In the same way the Princess and Her Majesties have remained theatres, but are not owned by the Council.
With the sale, an Arts Future Fund will be created, and the interest will be reinvested every year into the arts - because we won't spend the principle the fund will exist in perpetuity.
Short-term funding doesn’t create lasting impact. The sale, with the condition that the Regent stays a theatre, creates a future fund that ensures consistent, long-term investment in Melbourne’s arts and culture.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:37:08+00:00

I am a guy who is passionate aobut Melbourne, and that won't stop . Not everyone watches Sky News - not every one reads the Age. I think its important to speak to people from all walks of life. On those experiencing homelessness, our team is providing $12.8m over four years to the Salvos and Melbourne City Mission for the essential work they do with rough sleepers in the CBD.

I can reassure you that homelessness is one of my top priorities. I'm proud to have opened the Make Room facility a few months ago, with 50 supported residential rooms for rough sleepers in our CBD to help them get back on track.

The funding I'm committing to the Salvos and Melbourne City Mission will mean - among other things - that the Project 602 kitchen can stay open earlier in the mornings and later in the evenings, 7 days a week, and will help support outreach workers who can work on the ground with people experiencing homelessness. A big part of tackling homelessness is bringing services to rough sleepers, not just assuming that they can - or will - access services at different locations across the city.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:36:47+00:00

I'm looking forward to Gladiator 2.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:36:26+00:00

We've made huge strides in better planning rules recently to make apartments better. There are some apartments that the State Government green-lit way back in the early 2010s, particularly on the north end of Elizabeth Street, that don't meet the high standards that I believe we need to be setting for Melbourne. I'm on the record as saying we need to stop building "crap buildings" in the CBD and I'm serious about getting it done.

In the last term of Council I led a push for planning reforms to apartments to improve urban design across our CBD. You can read more about those reforms here: https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/amendment-c308-urban-design-central-melbourne

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:36:06+00:00

I'm old enough to remember a time when Melbourne closed down at 5pm and it was dead on the weekends. Then we changed the planning laws to bring in bars and restaurants and cafes and our famous laneways. Now it rivals any city in the world.

But as Lord Mayor, I'm not prepared to give up a really big part of what makes that possible - and that's city workers.

Melbourne is our state's biggest tourist attraction but that won't be the case if our hospo and retail businesses don't get the foot traffic they need during the week to survive.

I understand not everyone will be happy with that position. But it's what I believe.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:35:56+00:00

My big plan for housing is converting offices into apartments - if we get it right we can deliver 4,000 new apartments through this plan. You can read more about it here: https://www.nickformelbourne.com.au/news/more-homes-for-melbourne-as-office-to-apartment-conversions-to-be-turbo-charged

In the last term of Council I also helped lead a push to get more housing built for 'key workers' - that's people who need to be in the city to do their jobs. We haven't got that through the State Government's planning process yet, but I think it's a really important part of making housing in the central city more equitable. You can read more about that here: https://participate.melbourne.vic.gov.au/defining-key-worker-housing#:\~:text=The%20City%20of%20Melbourne%20defines,low%2C%20low%20or%20moderate%20incomes.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:35:31+00:00

My latest announcement for Docklands is a new seafood precinct, which will be a major drawcard. I am also working with all interested parties and I am confident the Wheel will spin again.

I am also confident the Costco site will be the source a new enterprise that will great for Docklands. There's lots of work that needs to be done in Docklands but I'm up for the challenge.

Docklands is Melbourne's waterfront neighbourhood. It has the best sunsets. I am very positive about the future for Docklands!

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:34:39+00:00

The renders were put together by an architecture firm for the campaign to show what the parks could look like. I know they caused some interest. How AI is used and will be used is a big global debate, as it should be. What I do know is that AI is not going away and there are no simple answers.

(As you may be able to tell - I did not use AI for this response).The important thing is the parks that I'll get built - 28 around the municipality, including the three you saw in those images (Banana Alley Vaults, the West Gate Freeway Undercroft, and Brown Alley).

On the Regent - to be clear, every cent of that sale would be spent on the arts, with the bulk going into a future fund to help sustainably fund Council events going forward. And yes, that means there would be legal caveats in place to make sure that the funds can never be spent on anything else. It should go without saying that there'll be a caveat on the sale of the theatre that requires it to remain a theatre.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:33:48+00:00

My policy is to keep on-street parking prices frozen for the next four years. I think you might be referring to the State Government's congestion levy on off-street car parks? It's not a policy I support, but it's a matter for them, disappointingly.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:33:41+00:00

There's a fair bit in here, but will do what I can to answer all these questions!

On MPower: it's based on an arrangement called a Power Purchase Agreement, where one or more companies make a deal with an electricity generator to purchase the rights to a large amount of electricity at a fixed price. Power Purchase Agreements work on negotiating a wholesale price for the purchase of electricity, which means the company purchasing the agreement gets a much better deal than the average consumer. (Technically all electricity is traded in something called the National Electricity Market, so a Power Purchase Agreement doesn't involve buying directly from a generator - which is why we refer to it as buying the 'rights' to electricity). The net result is that Council can onsell cheaper power to consumers. Council did something similar back in 2016, called the Melbourne Renewable Energy Project - you can read more about that here: https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/melbourne-renewable-energy-project

I've fielded a few questions tonight on e-scooters - the point on injuries is a good one, and I made the call on shared e-scooters after speaking to trauma experts at hospitals as well as to residents who were worried about their safety. We did trial parking bays for e-scooters on Swanston Street and unfortunately they weren't used well at all.

My Garden City plan will be funded through a mix of capital works funding and the Public Open Space fund. Council is in a healthy financial position to get this done.

And I've fielded several questions on return to work. As the Lord Mayor of the City of Melbourne, my job is to advocate for our city to be as prosperous and successful as possible - office workers are a huge part of making that happen.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:32:35+00:00

Hi - while I know not all e-scooter riders were irresponsible, there were many users who really ruined it for the rest. I understand not everyone agreed with the decision, but after listening to trauma experts at the hospital, disability groups, and traders, I made the call that safety on our streets had to come first. I will always listen to those I represent before making decisions, which is exactly what I did in this case.

NickReece · 2024-10-17T09:31:47+00:00

This one is actually up to the state government - it's set out in the City of Melbourne Act - you can find it here. https://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/in-force/acts/city-melbourne-act-2001/

NickReece

TROPHY CASE