ipswich Archives - Page 11 of 13

Visit the Special Christmas Wonderland at Nerima Gardens in Ipswich

Whilst everyone will agree that 2020 hasn’t been the greatest, it won’t stop people from celebrating the joys of Christmas. If you’re looking to do something special this holiday with your family, plot a visit to the Nerima Gardens for a truly unforgettable time.

Nerima Gardens has been turned into a Christmas Wonderland as part of the Christmas in Ipswich 2020 program. It’s a sight to behold, with over 50,000 colourful lights on the lush greens.

“The lighting design is by the super creative Sharon Penny and the intricate placement of millions of lights in the dark was the hard work of so many people bringing this creation to life! Flame Trees, origami boats, waterfalls, tunnels of dripping light bulbs, the tree of life – like walking into a dazzling wonderland from another world,” photographer Leah Desborough said.

Photo Credit: Leah Desborough Photographer/Nerima Gardens/Facebook

Christmas Wonderland is a ticketed, half-hour event to ensure a COVID-19 safe environment. Proceeds for the tickets — priced at $5 (individual), $15 (group) and $20 (group) — will go to charities that have had a hard time raising funds due to the pandemic.

“It’s been a hard year for all, and charity groups are no exception,” Mayor Teresa Harding said. “The funds raised through ticket sales to Christmas Wonderland will go some way to helping these organisations continue the important work they do in our community.”

To score tickets and to get updates on the opening times at Nerima Gardens, visit the Christmas Wonderland event page.

Ipswich City Council Braces for 220 Events for 2021

Ipswich is preparing to say goodbye to 2020 by planning over 220 events in music, sports, food and entertainment for 2021. As the second stage of the Nicholas Street Precinct redevelopment is underway, the Ipswich City Council has unveiled exciting major events that locals and visitors can look forward to in the coming year.

Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding highlighted some of these council-supported events:

WHEN	WHAT	WHERE
February	Earth Frequency Festival	Ivory’s Rock
March	Ipswich 100	Ipswich and surrounds
May	Planes, Trains and Automobiles	The Workshops Rail Museum
May	The Gathering	Ipswich Turf Club
May	White Rock Trail Festival	White Rock
June	Festival of Horsepower	Ipswich Turf Club and Motorsport Precinct
July	SPARK Ipswich (the reimagined Ipswich Festival)	citywide
August	Story Arts Festival	citywide
August/September	Galvanized – A Festival of Heritage	citywide
September	99 Bikes Cycle and Trail Run Epic	Hiddenvale Adventure Park
October	Goodna Jacaranda Festival	Goodna
December	Christmas in Ipswich	citywide

Check the Ipswich Festivals official site for more information and updates on next year’s festivities.

It comes as the anticipated annual CMC Rocks won’t return until 2022. Ms Harding said that the Council’s liaising team was working with the promoters for several weeks to examine how CMC Rocks could proceed.

However, the event promoters decided to skip staging a 2021 event despite its economic, social and cultural benefits to the region.

“We have had to endure some tough times this year and everyone has had to make some tough decisions. But I think our community understands and will look forward to the next CMC Rocks with even greater enthusiasm,” the mayor said.

Ipswich Adopts 2 Types of Six-Month Free Parking Trials

Motorists using the on-street and off-street parking spaces around the Ipswich city centre will enjoy new parking options under two types of free parking trials adopted by the Ipswich City Council.

The trials were introduced on Monday, 26 Oct 2020, and will run until the end of April 2021.

The scheme will cover around 3,500 unrestricted or time-managed parking spaces, whilst approximately 710 spaces will be subjected to priced parking.

Parking trial 1 includes the free use of CBD parking spaces for 15 minutes. Parking trial 2 includes the lifting of the time and pay restrictions of on-street parking during Saturdays, from 8:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

Motorists are encouraged to look at the new City of Ipswich Parking Pricing Strategy and share their comments or feedback about the free parking trials in the comment box.

Prior to the trial, Ipswich City Council’s parking pricing around the CBD were as follows:

TIME	PRICE
0.5 hr	$0.70
1 hr	$1.40
2 hrs	$2.80
3 hrs	$4.20
4 hrs	$5.60
9 hrs	$7.00

“It is great news for the business community and for people coming to the CBD. Some of the most common complaints have been from motorists having to pay for a brief stop in the city centre,” Deputy Mayor Marnie Doyle said. “[Feedback] is particularly important at this time, with the Ipswich Central redevelopment nearing completion, that we learn what works best for motorists and businesses in the CBD.”

Win Free Ice Cream for 3 Months at Ungermann Brothers

Craving for a scoopful of happiness? Here’s how you can snag free ice cream for three months!! Ungermann Brothers at Limestone Street in Ipswich has created a gourmet Mystery Go Pink ice cream for Breast Cancer Awareness month this October, and you can win free ice cream if you can guess this secret flavour.

To taste the ice cream (hint: it’s pink and has nuts!), take home a tub or buy a scoop at Ungermann Brothers from their Ipswich store, their Gold Coast outlet, or online. Each purchase is equivalent to an entry stub, which gives you a chance to guess the mystery flavour.

Part of the proceeds of this contest will go towards the West Moreton Breast Cancer Research Project to boost projects like establishing a virtual breast cancer care clinic or improving support facilities for after-surgery procedures.

“What we want to do is expand on the existing after-surgery consultations, which focus on physical assessment and symptom management, to provide a comprehensive assessment of patient’s psychosocial health and quality of life,” West Moreton Health’s McGrath Breast Care Nurse Karen Miles said.

For more information about the research project, visit West Moreton Health online.

Ungermann Brothers Ipswich will continue to accept online orders for delivery until Friday, 23 Oct 2020 but you may keep guessing the mystery flavour in-store until the end of the month.

The winner will be notified on or before 9 Nov 2020. Follow their Facebook page for updates.

Ungermann Brothers is owned and managed by Danny Ungermann, who left the corporate world more than seven years ago to concentrate on this local business. All ingredients at the ice cream sources are locally sourced and prepared in-house.

Springfield Greenbank Arterial Project: Major Road Duplication to Prioritise Stage 3

Key roads in the Springfield region will undergo major upgrades in 2021 under the Springfield Greenbank Arterial (SGA) Duplication project. Work will start with Stage 3, which covers Eden Station Drive to Sinnathamby Boulevard.

According to MP Charis Mullen, the Ipswich City Council decided to change the SGA sequencing to start with Stage 3 “given the other major projects in the area.”

“This was in a letter sent to residents recently,” Ms Mullen said.

Stage 3’s key features include the following:

Road widening to four lanes
Springfield Greenbank Arterial/Main Street/Centenary Highway roundabout upgraded with signalised intersection
New entrance/exit at the Springfield Central Railway Station carpark
Construction of road cycle lanes for cyclists and pedestrians

The Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) plans to erect a multi-storey carpark at the Main Street intersection before the roadwork begins.

This Springfield Greenbank Arterial project is necessary to meet the travel demands that will come with city’s rapid growth.

“The overall project includes 3.9 km of road duplication and shared path upgrades. The project is set to be the largest single road project in the Council’s history,” the fact sheet stated. “With such a large capital cost to the Council, if delivered in a single year, the project would consume over half of the typical capital works budget. By spreading the costs across a number of stages, the project can be delivered over multiple years, and allows for Council to continue to deliver its usual portfolio of new roads, road rehabilitation, open space, drainage and facilities project.”

The timing of construction will still be determined but it is approximated to take 12 months to complete.

For questions about the Springfield Greenbank Arterial project, phone 07 3810 6666 or email IED.Projects@ipswich.qld.gov.au.

First Names Picked for New Ipswich CBD Development

The Ipswich City Council announced the names of the new sites taking shape at the Nicholas Street precinct development, following a survey in August.

After deliberations on 24 Sept. 2020, the Council endorsed the top names residents have chosen for the new library, new civic space, and a laneway.

Some 304 residents submitted their name suggestions whilst over 6,500 voted on their choices for the upcoming CBD.

The Ipswich Central Library is set to open soon as the building’s construction is in the process of completing this October.

“Ipswich Central Library is a very practical name for the new general library that aligns with naming conventions of other libraries across the city,” Ipswich Central Redevelopment Committee chairperson Deputy Mayor Marnie Doyle said.

Tulmur Place will be the name of the new civic square, where entertainment and community events will take place.

“Tulmur means Ipswich in the universal Indigenous language and I very pleased this council has seen fit to recognise our city’s Indigenous heritage in selecting this name for the new civic plaza,” Ms Doyle said.

The laneway will still retain its more commonly known name as Bottle Alley.

“While the laneway has been widely known as Bottle Alley for many years, it has in fact never been officially named. Today’s decision locks in the name.”

The new precinct will be generally known as Nicholas Street Precinct, covering Brisbane, Ellenborough, Bremer and Bell streets.

“Retaining the Nicholas Street Precinct name makes sense because it is a well-known and long established name for the area. It has also been widely used in recent years in marketing and promotion for the precinct.”

Five key spaces, including the children’s library and the new council administration building, will still need names once the new CBD’s development is completed. Many of the residents’ suggested recognised personalities like tennis superstar Ash Barty and bagpiper Joe McGee, as well as the region’s first peoples.

Located 40 minutes outside of Brisbane CBD, Nicholas Street will become the trade centre for 215,000 residents. Apart from the library and the civic plaza, the site will also become a commercial, retail, lifestyle and dining precinct with the first shops opening by mid-2021.

Springfield Lakes and Ipswich Popular Picks for FHLDS Scheme With First Home Buyers

Springfield Lake and Ipswich’s housing markets have been getting a boost from first home buyers despite COVID-19 restrictions.

A recent report from the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation (NHFIC) showed that these are two of the hottest sites where buyers secured a First Home Loan Deposit Scheme (FHLDS).

Whilst 62.2 percent of buyers preferred the major cities, more than half of first home buyers had homes 15 to 30 minutes away from the CBD. Nearly 70 percent of the buyers picked detached houses, 25 percent chose apartments whilst fiver percent bought a townhouse unit.

Of the 1850 FHLDS issued in the last six months, 70 percent were homes from the 4350 postcode comprising Toowoomba, Newton and Centenary Heights, among others. About 56 percent of buyers took deposits in Ipswich and the rest of postcode 4305. Postcode 4300, comprising Springfield, Brookwater, Goodna and Camira, was also in the top ten of preferred areas.

According to Realestate.com.au chief economist Nerida Conisbee, Springfield Lakes is attractive to buyers because there are heaps of new homes and potential building activities.

Queensland introduced the FHLDS on 1 Jan 2020, allowing 10,000 new homeowners to acquire a property by depositing just five percent of the value. Under the scheme, the government serves as the guarantor for the rest of the 15 percent, reducing the cost of mortgage insurance that normally comes with a 20 percent deposit for house purchases.

Hooning Crackdown in Ipswich Accelerated with New Law, High-Tech Cameras

The days of reckless driving, doing burnouts and racing — otherwise known as “hooning” — are numbered in Ipswich as the Police Minister announced a crackdown on these activities with a new law and the installation of new high-tech cameras.

Minister for Police and Minister for Corrective Services Mark Ryan said that the Government plans to shift the “onus of proof” to the owner of the vehicle. Under this law, the burden of proof will be on the car owners’ shoulders if they claim that they weren’t driving when the offence was committed.

To complement this proposed new law, upgraded high-tech cameras with night vision will be installed across traffic networks in the state. Traffic police will also be equipped with a new fleet of drones to go after the hoons.

“These changes will provide police with enhanced flexibility when dealing with gatherings of hoons,” Mr Ryan said in a statement. “For example, if dozens of cars were hooning in a particular location, police would be able to use these new hi-tech cameras to capture images of all the vehicles.

“The high-resolution images would allow police to identify each vehicle, and then proceed to take action against the registered owner, unless the owner could demonstrate they weren’t driving at the time.

“The expanded laws would apply to a greater range of traffic offences caught on camera. An offender would no longer be able to avoid prosecution by simply masking their identities and denying they had been behind the wheel.”

Charges of hooning or theft shall be filed against the drivers. Charis Mullen MP, the State Member for Jordan, welcomed the move given that Ipswich is a known hooning hotspot in Queensland.

“Hooning is a serious issue in our #Jordan community and our residents are rightly fed up!” Ms Mullen said in a post on Facebook. “Thank you to all those who have contacted me about this – I have used your experiences to help push for more action.”

Current Hooning Strategy

Roads in Queensland already have these hooning tactics:

Intelligence-driven enforcement with covert patrols
Monitoring of all forms of social media to take swift action
Hoon Hotline 13HOON
High-visibility patrols
Dedicated Road Policing officers
POLAIR aerial surveillance
Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology
Road safety camera trailers
Thousands of traffic cameras across the state
Police drone fleet

Commissioner Katarina Carroll of the Queensland Police Service commended the additional strategy.

“Hooning is not only anti-social in its impacts on the community, but potentially life-endangering for the hoons and innocent road users,” Ms Carroll said. “The community rightly expects hooning behaviour to be addressed and the QPS remains committed to targeting hoons and other unsafe driving behaviours.”

Ipswich Population Rises to Over 228,000; Feedback Needed for ‘Shape Your Ipswich’

About 7,005 new residents moved to Ipswich for the previous financial year, increasing the city’s total population to 3.16 percent or 228,544, latest statistics revealed.

According to the Planning and Regulatory Services Annual report, nearly 2,500 new houses were built in the city from 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2020. Spring Mountain continues to have the highest population growth with 1,247 new residents followed by Redbanks Plain with 900. South Ripley, Bellbird Park and Ripley also gained new residents and new dwellings.

The increase does not surprise Mayor Teresa Harding who said that many people are slowly recognising the benefits of living in this city.

“Ipswich is one of the most liveable regions in Queensland. Our beautiful parks and natural areas, world-class heritage sites and vibrant local restaurant scene attract a diverse range of new residents every day,” Ms Harding said.

However, with an increasing population, Ms Harding said that Council will need to “gear-up” with developments and improvements with the help of the State and Federal governments.

“Our growing communities will require new infrastructure and services and this Council is committed to ensuring both the State and Federal governments understand the current and future investment opportunities.”

Photo Credit: Vc1988/ CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

In line with this, the Council is asking for inputs from residents on a number of issues, especially for flood control and catchment management.

“The new plan goes above and beyond basic flood mitigation and as such will guide council’s action and future investment in everything from land use planning and new infrastructure, through to community awareness and ecosystem health,” Ms Harding said.

The Council will open public comments for the following topics until October 2020:

Community Awareness and Resilience
Physical Mitigation
Property Specific Actions
Current/Future Flood Risk
Land Use Planning and Emergency Management

Residents can provide their feedback and ideas at Shape Your Ipswich.

7 Ipswich Artists Debut At Brisbane Street Art Festival

Seven talented Ipswich artists will be making their debut at the Brisbane Street Art Festival and their murals will be showcased across the city for two days this August 2020.

Fintan Magee, Emily Devers, Ash Taylor, Gus Eagleton, Jordache, Styna and Rachael Sarra are the first group of artists to get involved in this festival’s five-year history. They’ve been painting in different areas around the city from 27 July until 2 Aug 2020.

If you’re keen to check out their work, mark these sites for the public viewing on 8 to 9 Aug. 2020, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The artists will also be on-site to engage the viewers. However, everyone is expected to observe social distancing and other safety protocols against virus transmission.

ARTIST	LOCATION
Fintan Magee @fintan_magee on Instagram	Limestone St Centre, Ipswich (facing South St)
Gus Eagleston @instaguss on Instagram	Nicholas St Precinct
Emily Devers @emily.devers on Instagram	Ipswich Art Gallery, d’Arcy Doyle Place
Ash Taylor @ashtaylr on Instagram	Circa 160 Dancing Bean, 164 Brisbane Street
Jordache @itsjordache on Instagram	Fire Station 101, 101 Limestone St
STYNA @stynabyna on Instagram	Studio 188, 188 Brisbane St
Rachael Sarra @sar.ra__ on Instagram * She will begin painting 10 Aug 2020	Ipswich Health Plaza, 15 Bell St (Visible from East Street)

To check the artists’ profiles, visit the Ipswich Festivals official site. Follow Ipswich Festivals on Facebook for the artists’ interviews and upcoming socially-distanced workshops.

Photo Credit: STYNA/Ipswich Festival/Facebook

Lincoln Savage, the Brisbane Street Art Festival director, said that Ipswich’s urban spaces provide these artists “a unique canvas” to “highlight the local culture and history” as well as develop new stories that will enhance and reinvigorate the CBD.