I am passionate about public space and public life, and have worked in government and private enterprise on great urban design for communities since 2005. I am the outgoing President of WalkSydney and a member of Hunters Hill Councils Movement and Transport Advisory Committee (MTAC), as well as a parent at Hunters Hill Public School, on the P&C.
BA LLB BA(Arch) M(Arch) M(UrbDev&Des)
My background is in City Planning, Urban Design and Policy. I've spent nearly 20 years experience in frameworks, policy, design, consulting and delivery of public space design incliding leading Barking Riverside Overground and Old Street Station revitalisation in London, and drafting public space policy for “A City for All Londoners” for Sadiq Khan, while working at Transport for London. My experience of government advice in private practice is diverse and ranges from parking policy for Transport for NSW to the detail design of Palm Jebel Ali urban core in Dubai.
I understand the importance of quality design and how it can enhance the local character of Hunters Hill where we all have chosen to live, having worked at the NSW Government Architect (when they published the Design Guide for Heritage) as well as a local who has just renovated on Alexandra St. I also led the Design and Place SEPP work for NSW Government, a policy that would have put quality at the forefront of the planning system.
I am qualified in architecture and worked for Graham Jahn, and the Government Architect, as well as a number of private firms including Arup, Urbis and my current employer, global engineering firm WSP. Qualified in law, I previously practised competition law and professional indemnity litigation before 2005.
Marc's Story
One of the many things I love about Hunters Hill is that it is part of the ‘Blue Highway’ of over 800,000 Sydneysiders that live near a ferry wharf. Ferries are one of the few transport modes that are not only sustainable but also an absolute pleasure to catch - when they run. Yet no sooner had we bought a place in Hunters Hill in 2020, and Transport for NSW announced that they planned to replace the Alexandra St Ferry with (school) buses.
Not only would this have increased traffic on the peninsula and worsened transport access for many, but it would have further eroded one of the unique features of our community. I was appalled not only at the fact that the ferry was so undervalued, but that it took hasty and community-led action to save the service. Council had no transport policy, and in fact took no strategic action to my knowledge, to save the ferry.
With my experience in government, I know that a Failure to Plan is a Plan to Fail. One reason, in my view, the ferry was even in danger was that we did not articulate its value clearly enough. That is why an Integrated Transport Strategy (ITS) was essential, and why I supported Jim in setting up a Movement and Transport Advisory Committee, and (through that committee) drafting a proposed ITS which stated the importance of the ferries, and why. The document also goes further, advocating for more frequent ferries, for ferries and buses to be co-ordinated, and for services to run later and on weekends.
I have been disappointed that council officers chose to re-prosecute the ITS with a consultant from scratch - not only because this delays having a document we can rely on when we talk to state government, but also because many things, including the importance of ferries, has been lost. I am nevertheless proud that a draft ITS, which I have been heavily involved in, is on exhibition, and I look forward to working with council to ensure that when it is finalised it is the best possible document we have. I want to see the job done, and done properly. Then we can use the document, as councillor, I plan to use it to advocate for better outcomes from Transport for NSW for the whole community.
Of course this is not the only area where this kind of strategy is needed. We need to do the same around the housing growth we are being required to meet, so that we don’t end up with development being foisted on council in the wrong places. The many fights residents have already put up over Pulpits Point and the Goat Paddock, among other places, speaks to the urgent need for this. When I was in the NSW Government Architect, I lead the Design and Place State Environmental Planning Policy, including a new Urban Design Guide, and I know the difference we could make if we had better policies in place to encourage people not only to build in the right place, but to build beautifully, and sustainably, as well. The current council has proposed a ‘light touch’ review of the LEP and DCP - this is a missed opportunity to get these things right ourselves, and not be dictated to.
We also need a better understanding of council owned land, and a spatial strategy for its use, before we sell off more critical links. The current council is looking to sell a piece of land that is critical for the Parramatta River and Sydney Foreshore Walk (in our Local Strategic Planning Statement). It is this kind of short term non-strategic thinking I will work hard to prevent.
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