#1289
Post
by Clr Yarwood » Fri Mar 12, 2010 3:51 pm
I am one of the 3 speaker’s this eve at Renew Adelaide – The real deal (as compared to a Motion on Notice) is as follows:
The word on the street, and even more so on-line, is a group of enterprising young artists are pushing for night time activation of our inner city. Renew Adelaide is a non-profit, artist run initiative working to transform empty spaces and disused buildings via low cost artist and community run ventures; these city users want liabilities to become opportunities.
The real champions are Brigid Noone and Ianto Ware, backed by a band of volunteers who seem unlikely to give up. This ambitious team believe in a vibrant Adelaide and have set about connecting the arts with council and property owners to create wins for all. Their inspiration was the successful Renew Newcastle project that facilitated short term agreements between property owners and creatives that activated the public realm and bought renewed community energy.
Elements of this movement are often underway in Adelaide, with council sponsoring numerous festivals and cultural events to stimulate public spaces. The real challenge is activating a privately owned built form that lies idle due to rules and regulations that only confuse and intimidate uninitiated; further hindered by Council’s historical risk adverse approach, the easiest way to deal with complex interrelated legislation.
Having seen and experienced the laneways of Melbourne first hand, Adelaide City Councillors and Executive have recently demonstrated a genuine preparedness to rethink and navigate these issues for opportunity creation. Once this code of regulatory conditions is cracked, a suite of quick wins are to be had; artists get edgy venues to exhibit, building owners get cleaned up property and real estate exposure (possibly even increased values over time), the community gets safer streets and more places to play and local businesses can begin to exploit an emerging night-time economy.
I am hopeful success will breed success and that Adelaide as a whole will get just that bit mojo and spread its creativeness into the cracks that provide a healthy breeding ground for ideas and imagination. If sustained, these conditions have a history (indeed a tradition) of resulting in artist led urban renewal. What areas like the west end and our numerous laneways need is sustained reactivation through more permanent exhibition spaces, offices, retail, theatres and coffee shops. Low risk grass roots activities like Renew Adelaide can bring people back into these decaying opportunities for the kind experiences Adelaidians and visitors seek and treasure. There is not much to loose and a great deal of potential!
There is no question Adelaide is well and truly on the cultural map; however innovation and enthusiasm like this add valuable substance to the user experience and enhances Adelaide’s claim as the real deal for artists young and old. The Renew Adelaide Team, with Fringe Director Christy Anthony and myself will, be discussing these themes and more at a Fringe Festival Forum at the Allan Scott Auditorium (UniSA City West) on March 12th, please join us and, if inspired, get involved.
a good initiative indeed...
