wrote:


I followed the previous thread on Water Restrictions one thing
that struck me was no one call for water tanks to be made compulsory
on all new bluidings. People will argue the cost of a tank too high
yet people will spend some $2500 on a big screen TV.

In NSW, it was proposed to make certain features compulsory in new
homes, but we had all the developes crying crocodile tears and sayin
that will make it too expensive for first home buyer, oh woe is them (US).

So they removed the requirments. I believe water tanks were one.


I think council should pass a bylaw that all new bluiding must have a
minium of 500gal tank even connected to town water. Up our way
(Central Victoria) any changes to the property the first thing council
ask is any trees to be removed but nothing about water saving.

Tree removal is covering their arse as people have an absolute paranoia
about falling tree limbs. I guess that I am 1,00,000 more times likely
to die on the roads than by a tree falling on me.

In article
,
Terryc wrote:

In NSW, it was proposed to make certain features compulsory in new
homes, but we had all the developes crying crocodile tears and sayin
that will make it too expensive for first home buyer, oh woe is them (US).

So they removed the requirments. I believe water tanks were one.

Well, they brought in BASIX, but with a very long lead time, and made it easy
to pass just by installing efficient appliances instead of requiring better
building design.

BASIX for renovations/extensions came in on 1 October 2006. We got our DA in
a few days prior -- and our DA includes giving our house better passive solar
design and rainwater tanks. The architect said that BASIX for us would just
mean another set of consultancy fees!

I think council should pass a bylaw that all new bluiding must have a
minium of 500gal tank even connected to town water. Up our way
(Central Victoria) any changes to the property the first thing council
ask is any trees to be removed but nothing about water saving.

Thought I heard something this morning about how in VIC it is compulsory for
new houses to have either rainwater tanks or solar hot water?

Tree removal is covering their arse as people have an absolute paranoia
about falling tree limbs. I guess that I am 1,00,000 more times likely
to die on the roads than by a tree falling on me.

There's also trees falling onto cars/houses, and cleaning up after storms.
Personally, that's a risk I want to live with. There are parts of Baulkham
Hills Shire that give you the willies -- bricks and rooftops to the horizon,
and NO ROOM for trees. Betcha those areas will have higher suicide rates.

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Parenthood is like the modern stone washing process for denim jeans. You may
start out crisp, neat and tough, but you end up pale, limp and wrinkled."
Kerry Cue

Chookie wrote:

Tree removal is covering their arse as people have an absolute paranoia
about falling tree limbs. I guess that I am 1,00,000 more times likely
to die on the roads than by a tree falling on me.


There's also trees falling onto cars/houses, and cleaning up after storms.
Personally, that's a risk I want to live with.

Our thoughts exactly. the feature of our back yard is a massive gum
tree. Pitty it is on the eastern side, but it provides a cool location
in summer and attracts many and varied birds. Excellent.

There are parts of Baulkham
Hills Shire that give you the willies -- bricks and rooftops to the horizon,
and NO ROOM for trees. Betcha those areas will have higher suicide rates.


Did town planning asubject at Tafe in Ultimo, where there is a room with
a picture of a dutch town. It it horrifying to me. Almost a square mile
of red, red, red,. no green trees or bushes.

"Chookie" wrote in message
...
In article
,
Terryc wrote:

In NSW, it was proposed to make certain features compulsory in new
homes, but we had all the developes crying crocodile tears and sayin
that will make it too expensive for first home buyer, oh woe is them
(US).

So they removed the requirments. I believe water tanks were one.

Well, they brought in BASIX, but with a very long lead time, and made it
easy
to pass just by installing efficient appliances instead of requiring
better
building design.

BASIX for renovations/extensions came in on 1 October 2006. We got our DA
in
a few days prior -- and our DA includes giving our house better passive
solar
design and rainwater tanks. The architect said that BASIX for us would
just
mean another set of consultancy fees!

I think council should pass a bylaw that all new bluiding must have a
minium of 500gal tank even connected to town water. Up our way
(Central Victoria) any changes to the property the first thing council
ask is any trees to be removed but nothing about water saving.

Thought I heard something this morning about how in VIC it is compulsory
for
new houses to have either rainwater tanks or solar hot water?

Tree removal is covering their arse as people have an absolute paranoia
about falling tree limbs. I guess that I am 1,00,000 more times likely
to die on the roads than by a tree falling on me.

There's also trees falling onto cars/houses, and cleaning up after storms.
Personally, that's a risk I want to live with. There are parts of
Baulkham
Hills Shire that give you the willies -- bricks and rooftops to the
horizon,
and NO ROOM for trees. Betcha those areas will have higher suicide rates.

I don't get it. Are the council stopping people from removing trees,
because people are paranoid about them, and removing them willy nilly? Or
are the councils forcing people to remove them because the council's
paranoid?

Here in Victoria, it's very, very hard to get permission to remove trees.
I've known of a few people who really wanted to remove just a couple, out of
places that were in their way, or would shade the house too much. But they
weren't allowed. I think that's gone too far.

Jen

"Jen" wrote in message
...
and NO ROOM for trees. Betcha those areas will have higher suicide
rates.

I don't get it. Are the council stopping people from removing trees,
because people are paranoid about them, and removing them willy nilly? Or
are the councils forcing people to remove them because the council's
paranoid?

no no - that's the belt with all the mcmansions. there's no room on the
blocks for anything once the mcmansion goes up. we went to kellyville to
have a gawp one day years ago - i'm still not over it, i don't think i ever
will be ;-)
kylie

"0tterbot" wrote in message
...
"Jen" wrote in message
...
and NO ROOM for trees. Betcha those areas will have higher suicide
rates.

I don't get it. Are the council stopping people from removing trees,
because people are paranoid about them, and removing them willy nilly?
Or are the councils forcing people to remove them because the council's
paranoid?

no no - that's the belt with all the mcmansions. there's no room on the
blocks for anything once the mcmansion goes up. we went to kellyville to
have a gawp one day years ago - i'm still not over it, i don't think i
ever will be ;-)
kylie


Aww and I remember kellyville being a sleepy little almost rural area of
sydney where my great uncle had goats, extremely aggro geese, and Cousin Len
would camp down the back when he was down on his luck.....how times have
changed!!

In article ,
"0tterbot" wrote:

no no - that's the belt with all the mcmansions. there's no room on the
blocks for anything once the mcmansion goes up. we went to kellyville to
have a gawp one day years ago - i'm still not over it, i don't think i ever
will be ;-)

Nor me, especially when I (like Meeeee) remember what it used to look like :-(

My Grandma used to say of something disproportionate that it was "like a
pimple on a pumpkin". A McMansion on a tiny block looks like a pumpkin on a
pimple!

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Parenthood is like the modern stone washing process for denim jeans. You may
start out crisp, neat and tough, but you end up pale, limp and wrinkled."
Kerry Cue

"Chookie" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"0tterbot" wrote:

no no - that's the belt with all the mcmansions. there's no room on the
blocks for anything once the mcmansion goes up. we went to kellyville to
have a gawp one day years ago - i'm still not over it, i don't think i
ever
will be ;-)

Nor me, especially when I (like Meeeee) remember what it used to look like
:-(

My Grandma used to say of something disproportionate that it was "like a
pimple on a pumpkin". A McMansion on a tiny block looks like a pumpkin on
a
pimple!
lol absolutely true. It's happening here in cairns too...we have this lovely
big mountain behind us, beautifully rainforest and every weekend there seems
to be a new white and orange Tuscan style horrible Mc Mansion on it. DH's
boss has one up there, but I love him for it because he seems to be the only
guy who has a timber and brown colourbond house with trees actually left
around it....can't see the house at all. As for the other atrocities...I'm
hoping for mudslides. Not deadly ones of course...just enough to thoroughly
disenchant them with hillside show off living. Ridiculous. And afaik my
great uncle still has his patch of paradise in kellyville...probably much to
the disgust of his Gucci clad neighbours.

"meeee" wrote in message
...

lol absolutely true. It's happening here in cairns too...we have this
lovely big mountain behind us, beautifully rainforest and every weekend
there seems to be a new white and orange Tuscan style horrible Mc Mansion
on it. DH's boss has one up there, but I love him for it because he seems
to be the only guy who has a timber and brown colourbond house with trees
actually left around it....can't see the house at all.

recently, for reasons which are actually irrelevent now, we were looking at
what sorts of kit homes etc one could buy. it was often the case that the
more pleasant, smaller, subtle houses did not represent "value for money"
(cough) as the whoppers. i mean, a house half the size or less was not half
the price. (nor really relatively cheaper i think i mean, since some costs
are fixed). most of the companies had these horrific monstrosities out the
wazoo & only a few small, nice ones. not enough companies had passive solar
design or inclusions like solar, or solar hot water, or such as that. it was
disappointing to say the least. i can't fathom why developers in australia
are allowed to run riot. well, i know why, but it's not acceptable. ffs it
doesn't need to be _encouraged_!

As for the other atrocities...I'm
hoping for mudslides. Not deadly ones of course...just enough to
thoroughly disenchant them with hillside show off living.

what a grand plan! ;-)

Ridiculous. And afaik my
great uncle still has his patch of paradise in kellyville...probably much
to the disgust of his Gucci clad neighbours.

cough i don't think they're wearing gucci, i think they're wearing target
cough
kylie