By World War One the north-western coastal town of Devonport had begun to develop into the third most important town in Tasmania. It possessed a small but growing industrial economy and port and an increasing population, causing the town to expand. These developments, while welcomed, underlined how badly Devonport had originally been laid out. The...

The purpose of this paper is to provide new insights into how Melbourne was transformed from the 1960s through to the 1980s and consider if there are lessons learnt from this work to apply to the future planning and design of cities. Archival research and interviews with politicians, academics and activists involved in Melbourne’s transformation...

In the 1960s and 1970s the deficiencies in the 1945 Hobart city plan (Cook 1945) were clearly evident in Battery Point and North Hobart. Overly-ambitious transport plans, and over-zoning for industrial/commercial uses threatened houses and depleted the residential neighbourhood (Vincent 1984).

The ways urban communities can foster native plants and animals as part of the biodiversity of their neighbourhoods, and the social implications, are being reconceived. Traditionally, nature conservation efforts have focused on protecting threatened species and habitat on public land and educating residents about the need for conservation, with minimal recognition of how households can...

Melbourne has evolved and changed over time in response to the many challenges that this city has faced over the last century and a half. Some of this change was due to forces that lay beyond the control of those who governed it whereas other changes had been guided by local government acts and a...