Minutes (Open Portion)

Economic Development & Communications Committee Meeting

Page 2

21/3/2019

Minutes (Open Portion)

Economic Development & Communications Committee Meeting

Page 3

21/03/2019

AYES

NOES

Zucco

Ewin

Deputy Lord Mayor Burnet

AYES

NOES

Zucco

Ewin

Deputy Lord Mayor Burnet

EWIN

The minutes of the Open Portion of the Economic Development & Communications Committee meeting held on Thursday, 21 February 2019, be confirmed as an accurate record.

MOTION CARRIED

VOTING RECORD

6.1      International Relations - Potential Visits to Sister / Friendship Cities in the Current Term of Elected Members

LORD MAYOR

That the recommendation contained in the report of the Economic Development Project Officer and the Director Community Life of 15 March 2019, be adopted, as amended by the following:

Part 2 of the recommendation be deferred and be substituted with a new part 2 as follows:

“2    A further report be prepared that includes a strategic review and status updates of current sister and friendship city relationships.”

MOTION CARRIED

VOTING RECORD

COMMITTEE RESOLUTION:

That:   1.    The Council notes the potential pipeline of visits to Hobart’s sister / friendship cities over the term of the current elected members as detailed in the report listed at item 6.1 of the Open Economic Development and Communications Committee agenda of 21 March 2019.

            2.    A further report be prepared that includes a strategic review and status updates of current sister and friendship city relationships.

6.2      The Citys Role in Recognising Hobart as an Antarctic Gateway

EWIN

That the recommendation contained in the report of the Economic Development Project Officer and the Director Community Life of 14 March 2019, be adopted, as amended by deletion of the words “consider providing” after the words “The Council” in part 3 and substitute with the word “provide ”.

MOTION CARRIED

VOTING RECORD

COMMITTEE RESOLUTION:

That:   1.    The Council supports the City’s expanded role in recognising, celebrating, supporting and promoting Hobart’s relationship with Antarctica and the Southern Ocean.

            2.    The Council approve for consideration in the 2019-20 Economic Development budget function an additional $18,240 for the following activities:

·    Antarctic Gateway City branding development including street banners and city lighting: $9,740.

·    Enabling the four Mayors of the Antarctic Gateway Cities of Punta Arenas, Ushuaia, Cape Town and Christchurch to travel to Hobart in August 2020 to progress thinking and discussions about how the five gateway cities to Antarctic might create value for their communities through collaboration: $6,000.

·    Annual Antarctic Reception: $2,500 (in addition to the annual budget of $7,500).

            3.    The Council provide $3,000 in sponsorship of an element of the 12^th Polar Law Symposium as requested by the University of Tasmania and the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies.

6.3      Connected Hobart - Smart City Framework and Action Plan

HARVEY

That the recommendation contained in the report of the Director City Innovation of 14 March 2019, be adopted.

MOTION CARRIED

VOTING RECORD

COMMITTEE RESOLUTION:

That:   1.    The work products marked as Attachments A and B to item 6.3 of the Economic Development and Communications Committee agenda of 21 March 2019, namely The Framework and The Action Plan for the Connected Hobart program, be adopted (in-principle) to enable a period of public consultation to occur commencing on 2 April 2019.

            2.    The General Manager be delegated the authority to complete The Framework and The Action Plan work post the public consultation period, with a final report to be provided to the Council in July 2019 for formal adoption of the program documents.

7.1      Exploration of New International Relationships

SHERLOCK

That in accordance with Council’s policy, the following Notice of Motion which was adopted by the Economic Development & Communications Committee , be considered by the Council.

Motion

“That a report be provided to investigate potential relationships between the City of Hobart and cities in India, Nepal and Fiji.”

MOTION CARRIED

VOTING RECORD

COMMITTEE RESOLUTION:

Motion

“That a report be provided to investigate potential relationships between the City of Hobart and cities in India, Nepal and Fiji.”

Rationale:

“As the migrant and refugee community changes and grows in Hobart, the demographics of the city has evolved. Recognising the importance of the city’s international relationships in promoting cultural understanding and signalling respect to community members with links to places overseas, it is time to consider building and extending the City’s friendship city networks.

India

The 2016 census shows 595 people living in the city were born in India and 911 people have Indian ancestry (parents born in India). This is the third largest represented community in Hobart after the UK and China. Indian students are currently UTAS’ second largest international group. The median age in India is 27 and population projections show it is likely to become the most populous country in the world by 2024. This makes it very likely that Indian student numbers in Hobart will continue to grow. Having a relationship with an Indian city would be a positive communication to the current and prospective Indian community that Hobart is a culturally receptive and welcoming place.

Nepal

The community in Hobart is growing and becoming increasingly visible in the city through their activities that include a Nepalese fair and language school. Every day new people are coming to Tasmania and approximately 40% of the Nepali community reside in the Hobart municipality, according to the President of the Nepali Society of Tasmania, Arjun Prasin.

Fiji

People of Fijian and Indo-Fijian heritage in Tasmania have long supported a vision of Tasmania as a culturally and linguistically diverse and harmonious place. It is our understanding that one of the founders of the Ethnic Communities Council (ECC - now known as the Multicultural Council of Tasmania (MCOT)), was the current President of the Fiji/Australia Association, Donald Ramritu, and other members of the ECC were also from Fiji. This connection to Fiji is reinforced by a number of active community members. A city to city relationship connecting Hobart and Fiji would further build upon the foundations laid by these people and would support further growth of this community.

The City of Hobart has a policy guiding the investigation of new relationships (Attachment A). The following criteria in order of priority must be considered when investigating a new relationship:

i.    clear identification of the specific outcomes sought from the relationship;

ii.    relevance of the relationship in terms of achieving Council’s major goals as outlined in the Strategic Plan;

iii.   the value of the relationship in terms of enhancing economic development, business investment, educational and tourism outcomes for Hobart and Tasmania, including specifically support for local businesses and educational institutions;

iv.  the value of the relationship in terms of supporting community and cultural linkages;

v.   willingness and capacity of the business or local community of interest to support the relationship;

vi.  the potential for mutual learning through exchanges and information sharing to facilitate sustainability and continuous improvement in the development of the Council’s economic, social and environmental objectives;

vii.  the capability of the Council to provide skills and resources to assist in humanitarian and capacity building projects;

viii. Council resources (human and financial) required to sustain the relationship to the satisfaction of both parties; and

ix.  evaluation of any political ramifications through consultation with the Department of Foreign Affairs and local communities.

It is proposed that cities in India, Nepal and Fiji are considered against the criteria and a report is brought back to Council highlighting options for potential new relationships”.

The General Manager reports:

“In line with the Council’s policy in relation to Notices of Motion, I advise that the matter is considered to be within the jurisdiction of the Hobart City Council as it relates to the City of Hobart Policy: Guidelines for Future International Relationships.”

AYES

NOES

Zucco

Ewin

Deputy Lord Mayor Burnet

Harvey

8.1      Committee Actions - Status Report

LORD MAYOR

That the information be received and noted.

MOTION CARRIED

VOTING RECORD

9.1      Lord Mayor Reynolds - Smart Cities - Digital Infrastructure

Question:    Can an update be provided on Ten Gigabit Adelaide as an infrastructure investment model for potential use in the rollout of Hobart’s Smart City program?

Answer:    The Director City Innovation took the question on notice.