Parramatta Lord Mayor, Tony Issa (left), Danni Wright, president of the NSW Association of the Deaf, and the Minister for Western Sydney and the Minister for Housing, David Borger, representing Premier Nathan Rees, at the launch of the Deaf Arts Festival 2008

The Minister for Western Sydney, David Borger, said at the launch of the Deaf Arts Festival 2008 that the NSW Government had the goal of increasing participation in arts and cultural activity, and had made a committed to include the deaf community and other people with a disability in its plans.

Mr Borger, representing Premier Nathan Rees, said the government understood the challenges faced by people with a disability, which could include difficulties in participating in artistic and cultural activities.

“The government is setting priorities and delivering services to people with disabilities to overcome these challenges. The Deaf Festival is a fantastic opportunity for deaf people to participate in the arts,” he said at the Parramatta Artists Studios.

Lord Mayor, Tony Issa, said the art works on exhibition were far more about the artists’ unique experience as people, rather than about the issues, or so-called problems, of being deaf.

“In this way a lot of stereotypes are being undermined tonight, including any idea that deaf people are in some way hopeless or flawed,” he said.

The 2008 festival is the second such activity run by the NSW Association of the Deaf and will be held at the Parramatta Artists Studios, between October 17-31.

The Parramatta Artists Studios, in helping to develop the festival, has offered a scholarship for deaf artists that includes access to a studio for three months.

When’s a city not a city?

The local government area (LGA) of Parramatta – the 60 square kilometres of it – is the City of Parramatta, which comprises the suburb of Parramatta (which includes the CBD) and 28 other suburbs within its boundary. However, Parramatta City Council does not seem to see it this way.

Council has established a Residents’ Panel through which council seeks, among other things, feedback on issues and responses to surveys, such as its management plan.

A questionnaire on the management plan sought a response on whether respondents were inspired when they CAME TO THE CITY (the capitalisation is mine). Given the residents, by definition, live within the city, what were they “coming to”?

Thinking “city” should have read “the Parramatta CBD”, your correspondent was advised: “the City is the Parramatta CBD”, when seeking clarification from council.

Council often refers to the CBD as “the city centre”; maybe that’s what council meant in the questionnaire.

Confusion exists until the issue is clarified. Residents living in the suburb of Parramatta, excluding the CBD, and the other 28 suburbs may wonder which city they live in.

Spray it the legal way

For those in the community who can’t resist demonstrating their prowess with a spray can, Parramatta City Council, which provides legal graffiti sites, has this message: “If you want to spray, do it the legal way.”

Council has six free sites in various suburbs. Also, there are four sites where prior permission must be obtained.

Council says to keep these sites, the community needs to be kept on side.

“Don’t stuff it up for other people … there are heavy penalties for illegal graffiti.”

Reports on illegal graffiti can be made to council on 9806 5995.

An example of a more acceptable graffiti artist’s work on an outside wall of the Parramatta Community Youth Club, which gave permission for the work to be done. An aim of the club is to enable young people to develop their skills.

Setting the bench mark

Parramatta City Council has picked up an excellence award that provides a model for the risk management industry.

“This award shows that Parramatta is committed to getting the best value for money for the ratepayer and honours the hard work of council’s risk management team who spent twelve months tailoring a procurement process that is ideal for the city,” said Parramatta Lord Mayor Tony Issa.

“Parramatta is now setting the benchmark for tender processes between local government and the private sector.”

Cr Issa was referring to the 2008 Westpool Risk Management Excellence Award, which reviews procurement practices and benchmarking them against other organisations.

Westpool, a co-operative local government self insurance scheme, was established in 1988 to help stabilise insurance premium costs and achieve significant cost savings and long term benefits for member councils through effective risk management.

The award should help towards raising the percentage of residents who are satisfied with council’s performance; a survey of residents shows the figure currently is 59 per cent.

Opportunity lost

It was noted in last week’s column that 46 per cent of respondents to a council survey said the CBD did not inspire them. Council has said respondents who were/were not inspired were not asked to offer their reasons, although that may happen at some later stage. An opportunity lost to find out important information, given the problem of marketing the city successfully.

Levy should focus on one theme

The bad news is that Parramatta, to some, has a sleepy-town image (see last week’s column). The good news is that the 86,000 plus people who work in the city daily are toiling away in manufacturing plants, offices, academia and research institutions, and the like, proving the lie to that unfortunate perception.

Marketing the city is one of three themes in council’s economic development plan, which is funded to the tune of some $500,000 raised annually through a special levy on the business community.

In 2007/08 these funds were initially to be spread over initially16 projects, which nearly doubled by the end of the year.

In 2007, a series of roundtables was conducted with a number of professional and other groups in the city highlighting the need for a strong marketing campaign to be conducted to a) overcome the challenges facing the city and b) the opportunities Parramatta offered.

Considering the job required to promote Parramatta in a very competitive environment in which the city exists, the funds allocated to marketing could be regarded as no more than a token amount – petty cash.

This point was recognised in a report tabled at council this week.

“Whilst the incredible effort and dedication of the PCCED (Parramatta City Council Economic Development) Team is acknowledged, it might be worth them giving some consideration to fewer projects with bigger budgets, next year, in order to obtain some additional help to deliver them and not to have to rely so heavily on the in-kind contributions from individuals working in their own time,” said Dr Deborah Kuchler, chair of the four-person panel set up to audit the 2007/08 projects.

In other words, council’s five-member economic development team was under-resourced in personnel and funds in conducted the overall plan, let alone the marketing the city component.

Given council’s tight financial situation and the 10-year special levy on the business community has another four years to run – raising in the order to $500,000 annually – tough decisions will need to be made to reduce the number of projects in the year 2008/09 so as to use these funds effectively.
Of the three themes, marketing the city, would be the most important. The other two, growing employment and fostering innovation, are consequences of an effective marketing campaign.

Half a million dollars will not go far considering the job to be done but that’s where the levy funds should be spent. The challenge will be to make every cent a winner.

Expenditure on council’s, Parramatta CBD – Take Another Look, campaign has paid dividends. The campaign was placed in the top three marketing strategies in Australia – see Business Beat