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The Catholic Leader, November 10, 2019
www.catholicleader.com.auNews
By Mark Bowling
INNER-city bustle – what would St
Francis have made of it?
Hundreds of inner-city parishioners and local
residents have voiced their opposition to a Bris-
bane City Council plan that threatens access to
their beloved church and community hall.
“I think this just shows the extent of com-
munity concern, ” St Francis of Assisi Church
parishioner Peter Betros said.
Mr Betros, a former Queensland Rugby League
chairman, was speaking on behalf of church-
goers – many elderly and disabled – who will be
inconvenienced by a Brisbane City Council plan
to remove 115 street car parks and two bus-stops
directly in front of and across from the St Francis
of Assisi Church on Dornoch Terrace, West End,
as part of a project designed to improve bike
safety.
On the face of it, the controversial plan is
aimed at stopping a terrible inner-city bustle
– a run of horror accidents, often at dangerous
speeds, involving cars and cyclists.
But there is a deeper concern about how city
planning is carried out, about consultation, and
about caring for the heart and soul of an inner-
city community.
St Francis Church has been at the beating heart
of West End life since it was built in 1927, while
the St Francis hall is regularly used by a dozen
local groups including the St Vincent de Paul So-
ciety, the Pro-Musica community band and choir,
Active Ageing, Alcoholics Anonymous, and The
Studio, a dance group for children.
“This is not only a church that is used on Sun-
days, it’s a whole community based around here,
with a community hall used many, many times a
week,” Mr Betros said.
“And the only way people can access it (the
hall) is by car or public transport.
“By taking away car parks, by taking away
bus access, it’s going to reduce the capability of
this facility to cater for the enormous number of
groups it does now.
“The whole viability of the precinct is in
danger.”
West Enders turned vocal at the St Francis hall
after 9am Mass last Sunday, during a meeting
organised by Deputy Premier Jackie Trad.
They included church-goers, nearby residents,
self-described “drop-off” mums, local business
owners and bike riders.
Parish priest Capuchin Father Joshy Parappul-
ly watched on as the tone of the meeting ebbed
and flowed for more than one-and-a-half hours.
“They are really in need of the parking,” he
said, expressing the concerns of the many elderly
and disabled parishioners who attended St Fran-
cis of Assisi Church, either using their own cars,
or relying on lifts from others.
The fear is that if the parking goes, and access
to public transport, these parishioners will stop
coming on Sunday.
Dozens of residents described their shock at
learning of the Brisbane City Council plan – not
because they did not see a safety problem, but
because, they saw, the council failed to consult
or carry out deeper analysis before rolling out
a draft plan, and allowing only four weeks for
public comments.
The downhill run along Dornoch Terrace is
both exhilarating and scary but, according to
residents “it should not be used as a velodrome”
by cyclists.
On a bike it is impossible not to build up
speed unless breaking heavily.
Sports cyclists can be seen passing cars, even
on the hairpins.
They run the risk of cars pulling out of drive-
ways, or even drivers of parked cars unexpect-
edly opening a door.
Across from St Francis church, resident Max
Badeley said he had to deal with the ugly fallout.
“It’s not unusual for me to hear the commo-
tion outside because cyclists are speeding, they
come unstuck and they are laying in the gutter,
and we’ve got to administer first-aid until the
paramedics arrive and sort them out,” he said.
“It’s purely based on speed and competitive-
ness amongst their mates.
“They do need to realise there are families and
kids and everyone has to share the space and be
safe.”
Mr Betros said: “We see whole pelotons
coming roaring down here, and I’ve been passed
more than once in my car doing 50km/h by
cyclists exceeding that speed.
“We’ve got to slow the traffic down.
“It is part of a city bicycle loop but I don’t
think it should be a free-for-all, go as fast as you
like because it’s a downhill run.
“We’ve got to bring everybody together on
this and we can’t just say we’re going to close
the road down and take the cars away so the
bicycles can have a free run.
“That’s discriminating against one tier of
society and favouring another. Surely it’s for
everybody to share.”
After hearing residents’ concerns at last
Sunday’s meeting, Ms Trad promised she would
“make personal representations” to Brisbane’s
Lord Mayor and City Council.
“From the outset, I believe the quality of
consultation and the level of information have
been woefully inadequate for the community to
fully consider the impacts of this project,” Ms
Trad said.
“We want to take community along on this
journey – not just come out with a plan to
remove car parks and bus-stops and give the
community four weeks to get across it.
“I don’t think that’s fair.”
Ms Trad said an inner-city transport and
mobility study to be released at the end of this
month could deliver some answers.
“Projects such as this at Dornoch Terrace
should have been done in light of all the data and
analysis and community engagement rather than
what has been done to date,” she said.
Local councillor Jonathan Sri agreed council
consultation had been “woeful”.
He told residents he supported some of the
elements in the draft safety plan, including slow-
ing speeds to 30km/h.
And he expressed concerns for families and
children on Dornoch Terrace.
The chair of council’s Public and Active Trans-
port Krista Adams earlier released a statement that
the draft concept plan to improve cyclist safety
was specifically requested by Cr Sri.
Cars, bikes and St Francis
On the spot:
Resident Max Badeley has to deal with the “ugly fallout” of bike accidents.
Needing access:
Parishioner Peter
Betros believes ac-
cess to the church
shouldn’t be com-
promised by sports
cyclists.
Speaking
out:
Parish-
ioner Mary
Noonan
adds her
voice to
concerns
about
access to
St Francis
of As-
sisi Church,
West End,
in the
light of a
Brisbane
City Council
draft plan
for changes
on Dornoch
Terrace.
Photos: Mark
Bowling
Parishioners voice opposition to plan that threatens access to their church