In the lead up to the preparation of the City of Yarra’s budget for 2024/25, Cremorne Community Inc have defined a core set of needs that need to be addressed by thw council in the immediate term:
- Fix Balmain street
The narrow stretch of Balmain St between the railway underpass and Cremorne St is the prime east west thoroughfare through Cremorne. It is a dangerous and ambiguous passage where much of the precinct converges. The zone between Stephenson and Gwynne Streets is particularly concerning, where people are likely to cross and congregate. We propose a dedicated, unambiguous crossing with traffic calming measures that highlight the presence of pedestrians in this zone. - More public green space
It is already acknowledged that Cremorne is an area of the City of Yarra that is significantly deficient in significant public green space. This needs to be rectified in the short term. This may potentially be achieved through transfer or sharing of publicly owned land with Vic Track/Vic Roads/Kangan. Also utilising the fees from developers, who have been paying to occupy significant lengths of our streets, to acquire available land. - Make the streets safe
There is a great deal of competition on Cremorne’s tight, narrow streets that will only keep increasing as large developments come online. Pedestrians and cyclists are currently required to dodge traffic while negotiating constant footpath clutter such as power poles, parking signs, ‘Smart Poles’, construction detour signs and pot holes. Prams and wheelchairs are obliged to travel precariously on the road. Waiting for the eternal constructions to finish or the UDF to materialise to make the streets safe and accessible cannot be an option. We expect that you properly pave roads and footpaths, extending paths where necessary, and add road markings and traffic calming measures to prioritise pedestrians and cyclists. Promote 30km/h (or less) speed limit - Discourage commuter traffic
Cremorne locals find themselves inundated by traffic commuting to the area during the working week. At the very least, residents need to be confident that they can come and go with their own vehicles and park
reasonably close to home
without driving laps of the neighbourhood. The increasing influx of weekday traffic also contributes to the street hazards and pressures. Many commuters have the option of leaving their car at home. This should be actively encouraged and prioritise locals’ access by increasing permit parking and potentially introducing paid street parking. - Stop bin clutter.
Bin collection in Cremorne is Monday morning. Because much of the suburb is commercial, this means that its footpaths are completely occupied by bins all weekend. This seems like it should be an obvious and easy fix but it continues to be a dangerous and frustrating practice . Either the collection day needs to change or there needs to enforcement on businesses to put their bins out early Monday or Sunday night as residents do. - Support the establishment of a Neighbourhood House
The area of Lennox Ward, which includes Cremorne is one of the few parts of the City of Yarra that is not serviced by a Neighbourhood House. We would seek some active support in establishing such a local asset that would promote a healthy, connected and happy community.