A series of community consultations will be held this week to gain feedback from Lismore residents on ways to make the city more attractive to visitors and residents.
The feedback will be used to create three plans – focusing on the central business district, the new art gallery and Quadrangle, and the riverbank.
Consultancy firm, Village Well, have been appointed by the Lismore City Council to conduct the three ‘listening posts’.
The first will be held on Thursday from 3.30pm to 6.30pm at the Lismore Produce Market in Magellan Street.
The second will be at the old Lismore Railway Station in Union Street, South Lismore from 9am to 12pm on Friday.
The third will be next to the Lismore Transit Centre at the corner of Molesworth and Magellan streets.
Village Well was instrumental in the activation of Melbourne’s Flinders Lane and Degraves Street in the early 90s and the team are experts at transforming spaces to create interesting experiences for locals and visitors. They want to hear people’s creative ideas and also gather people’s stories and memories of Lismore.
Lismore City Council’s executive director of sustainable development Brent McAlister said the idea was to tap into what people in the community wanted.
‘Often the best ideas come from people on the street, not bureaucrats in offices,’ Mr McAlister said.
‘This consultation and the subsequent plans will give us three clear strategic plans for these areas so there is no duplication of effort and we are all working toward the same vision.
‘We need a roadmap for Lismore’s major spaces and how they will look in the future. Activating the riverbank in the CBD and South Lismore is key to Lismore attracting more visitors to the city.
‘We also need to have an interesting and exciting events program for the new Quadrangle to create a vibrant and busy town square.’
The Listening Posts are informal and will include some lighthearted fun with Roundabout Theatre’s Lollipop Ladies coming along to partake in hilarious crowd control and spontaneous traffic antics.
If you can’t attend a Listening Post but have a good idea you’d like to share, phone Council Partnering and Community Engagement Officer Flora Zigterman on 1300 87 83 87.
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