I live in Crace with my wife, our two kids, and our dog. I founded the Crace Community Association six months after moving in. This community has been very important to me ever since.
I founded the Crace Community Association in 2014, along with a dozen dedicated residents. We worked together to grow the local community. I started connecting people with each other, connecting problems with solutions, and connecting aspirations with reality.
It grew from there.
I began organising local events such as the Crace Christmas Carnival, Easter Egg hunts, Halloween events, and more. Pretty soon I started advocating for local people and the issues they saw in our suburb. This grew into volunteering for several other community groups, including the Gungahlin Community Council. Here, I saw more under the hood of the government, and decided I could take things even further.
Below is what I am hearing about so far. If I’ve missed anything, let me know in the comments, online, or at Crace shops.
Dog friendly infrastructure
Crace seems to have a high percentage of dog owners. Maybe that has to do with being a cat containment suburb.
Something that has been requested for years now is more bins around the walking paths. People want to be responsible and clean up after thier dogs, but nobody likes carrying poo around. The government response about local bins has always been about the expense of emptying them. Solar powered bins were trialed in 2016 that alert City Services when they are full. This allows an efficient collection plan to be put in place. Unfortunately, we never heard an outcome of the trial.
Crace residents have also been calling out for a nearby dog park. Two locations have been suggested by locals:
- the area between Crace and Palmerston
- an area between Crace and Barton highway
Pedestrian zone at the Crace shops
We all saw this one coming. We even told the government when the signs went up. There was no community consultation about the best way to make the roads safe and suitable. The end of Abena Avenue was made a “shared zone”, where cars are meant to give way to pedestrians.
Residents have told me that drivers seem to not understand this, and I don’t really blame them. Sinage is minimal. Pedestrians don’t feel confident to walk out in front of a car, so drivers zip past them anyway. It’s a disaster waiting to happen. Some basic community consultation with a very active community could have saved money (your rates), time, and could have delivered a better solution.
Crace playgrounds
Crace isn’t that old, but residents are already saying that our playgrounds need attention. A resident has decided to run a petition in support of this attention. They cite general wear and tear, and the lack of inclusive equipment as concerns.
My concern here is that residents feel the need to create a petition to lobby for what should be strategically planned maintenance.
Actions
- Continue to be part of the Crace community, listening to what you love and what could be improved.
- Investigate the state of Crace playgrounds, andy maintenance or upgrade plans, and share this with the community.
- Commit to strong community engagement and consultation with the very active Crace community.
- Engage with the community further about a potential Crace/Palmerston dog park.