City Deal to get official tick of approval from Malcolm Turnbull in Hobart
Updated
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will be in Hobart this morning to sign a formal agreement with the Tasmanian Government to kickstart the City Deal, which is designed to "secure prosperity and liveability".
City Deal facts
- Announced by Turnbull Government in 2016
- Aims to bring together all levels of government, community and private sector
- Focus on aligning planning, investment and governance to accelerate growth and job creation
- Push for urban renewal and drive economic reforms to secure prosperity and liveability
- Contingent on willing and capable partners
- First deals with Townsville, Launceston and Western Sydney
Talks between the Federal and State governments had centred around a $400 million University of Tasmania (UTAS) push to move its science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) faculties to the Hobart CBD.
Today, the Hobart City Deal will be formalised to further discussions on the STEM relocation, but also include an Antarctic and science precinct at Macquarie Point and a greater Hobart transport strategy.
Federal Minister for Urban Infrastructure and Cities, Paul Fletcher, said UTAS was a key component of the strategy to stimulate and grow the wider Hobart economy.
"Increasingly in cities around the world, universities are seen as a very important enabler of economic activity and of course liveability and of generating activities," Mr Fletcher said.
The transport strategy is set to assess options including busways, light-rail and ferries around the city, which has struggled to cope with its increasing traffic load.
"Obviously it's about the effective functioning of a city," Mr Fletcher said.
"As cities grow, it's very important that their transport systems keep up with, and indeed, facilitate that growth."
Hobart City Council general manager Nick Heath welcomed today's signing as a positive step forward.
"It's an opportunity to shape it, to negotiate it and put it together a series of projects that will help continue the transformation of Hobart," he said.
Topics: government-and-politics, education, science-and-technology, science, hobart-7000
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