Guide to the Papers of Ed Wensing

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MS 8028

National Library of Australia View Catalogue Record

Collection Summary

Creator
Wensing, Ed
Title
Papers of Ed Wensing
Date Range
1974-1993
Collection Number
MS 8028
Extent
1.35 metres (9 ms boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Repository
Special Collections (Manuscripts)

Introduction

Scope and Contents

The papers reflect aspects of Ed Wensing's involvement in the Canberra community, and his work and interests relating to Canberra planning and development issues. The bulk of the papers concern the campaign by residents of Torrens Street, Braddon to stop commercial encroachments. There is also material on the A.C.T. Council of Social Service and on urban development in Canberra, especially Kingston.

Correspondence, reports, articles, submissions, land title searches, maps, minutes, photographs and other types of documents are included in this collection.

Much of the information on the following pages is based on a list compiled by Ed Wensing. His original list, together with some additional background to the Torrens St campaign, has been placed with the papers (Piece 49).

Conditions Governing Access

Please refer to the collection's catalogue record (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn358895) for the access conditions.

Conditions Governing Use

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred Citation

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Ed Wensing, National Library of Australia, MS 8028, [box number and series and/or file number]'.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The Wensing Papers were donated to the National Library in June 1990 and December 1991.

Biographical Note

Ed Wensing is a resident of Canberra with a long-standing interest in planning and leasehold issues relating to the city. He worked for the National Capital Development Commission from 1973-1985, including in its Planning Division from 1979-1985. He is presently employed in the Commonwealth Public Service.

Item Descriptions

Series 1. Torrens St Files

"The Saga of Torrens Street", a summary by Ed Wensing.

Torrens Street was once a quiet inner city street in the suburb of Braddon. The street is famous for the Canadian pin oaks (Quercus Palustris) that line its streets, and feature in many early postcards and photographs of Canberra in autumn.

However, its quiet residential amenity was shattered in the early 1970's when some of the adjoining lessees in the commercial area of Lonsdale Street commenced using some of the residential properties in Torrens Street for unauthorised commercial uses.

From that time on, residents of the area voiced their concerns about the intrusion of the unauthorised non-residential uses, the loss of residential amenity, their right to quiet enjoyment of their leases, and the longer term impact such unauthorised activities inevitably have on an area.

The residents claimed from the outset that the unauthorised activities would be used to justify changes in land use policy for the area from residential to commercial activities. This is exactly what happened as the debate progressed.

The thirteen files and many other related documents, chronicle the efforts of residents to have lease purpose clauses in the area properly enforced prior to any consideration of changes in land use policy or to lease purpose clauses. One of the fundamental tenets of the ACT's unique system of leasehold tenure is that lessees must, at all times, put their leases to the use(s) for which they are leased. The ultimate penalty for failure to comply with lease covenants is determination of the lease.

The files consist of diary notes, file searches, lease title searches, company file searches, gazettal notices, correspondence, official reports, FOI searches, Ombudsman reports, press clippings, electronic media news report transcripts, ACT Supreme Court transcripts, court judgements, hansards of ACT Legislative and House of Assembly proceedings, hansards of Federal Parliamentary inquiries, photographs, and last but not least, humorous poetry. The documents cover the period from 1974 to 1990.

I [Ed Wensing] am personally responsible for generating much of the material and for meticulously compiling the files and records. I have no doubt that these documents are therefore, the best and most comprehensive personal collection of material on any single planning or land administration issue in Canberra's stormy history.

Report to the residents of Torrens Street (File 1) - Box 1

"Torrens Street Today! What Street Tomorrow" by Ed Wensing 1975.

Correspondence etc. relating to the formation and affairs of the Torrens Street Community Group from April 1975 to December 1975. (It should be noted that the group was formed to mount a campaign to have lease purpose clauses in the area enforced. The group was disbanded in the lead up to the Federal Election in December 1975 bearing in mind the mood of the Australian community following the dismissal of the Whitlam Government.) (File 1) - Box 1

Documents relating to the ACT Legislative Assembly's deliberations on the future of Torrens Street in 1977 (File 1) - Box 1

Documents relating to defamation proceedings instituted by Ms Julia Hayes, Executive Director of ACTCOSS and myself against a member of the House of Assembly, 1977/1978 (File 1) - Box 1

Copies of title searches and company title searches, and details of breaches of lease purpose in Torrens Street, Braddon, 1975, 1977 and 1981 (File 2) - Box 1

Costs: some details of cost incurred in conducting campaign, 1977-1985 (File 3) - Box 1

Maps (File 3) - Box 1

Negatives (File 3) - Box 1

Photos, 1975-1984 plus aerial photograph, 8 June 1940 (File 3) - Box 1

Correspondence and hansards relating to appearance before the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the ACT, 1978 (File 4) - Box 2

Submission to the JPC on the ACT August 1977, for their inquiry into participation in planning processes and procedures (File 4) - Box 2

Notes and working papers used to prepare the above submission, 1976/1977 (File 4) - Box 2

ACTCOSS submission to the JPC Inquiry into planning processes and procedures, June 1977 (File 4) - Box 2

Submission to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Environment and Conservation, 1977 (File 4) - Box 2

Correspondence, press clippings, submissions, etc, January 1976-1992 (File 5_8) - Box 2-3

Details of correspondence on breach of lease purpose on Block 3 Section 38, Braddon (Donaldson Street), 1977-1982 (File 9) - Box 3

Correspondence, press reports, etc. on breaches of lease purpose by the medical professions and others in Braddon, Reid, Turner, Kingston and elsewhere, 1976-1989 (File 9) - Box 3

Correspondence and FOI action on internal report on Lands Division of the Department of Territories by Peat, Marwick Mitchell and copy of report, 1985-1986 (File 10) - Box 4

Paper for the Law Reform Commission of Australia on the need to reform Section 9 of the City Area Leases Ordinance 1936, regarding provisions for the enforcement of lease purpose clauses, 1984 (File 10) - Box 4

Various papers relating to the Urban Change debate in Inner Canberra 1975 to 1981, including: (File 11) - Box 4

A paper written for and published by the ACT Council of Social Service on Redevelopment Planning in Canberra, October 1976 (File 11) - Box 4

A submission to NCDC from ACTCOSS on Urban Change, February 1977 (File 11) - Box 4

A submission to NCDC on Proposed Policies for Undeveloped Land in Inner Canberra, February 1977 (File 11) - Box 4

Torrens Street Report for NCDC, September 1985, Working File, Including: (File 12) - Box 4

Masters of tables etc. for photocopying notes on title searches, building file searches, company file notes etc.

Notes on searches of notices of alienation, unimproved values and calculations of rates for valuation purposes.

Copies of correspondence and submissions from NCDC files on Torrens Street which were used in preparation of the report in response to the brief. (closed)

Note: Read in conjunction with the two volume report (Pieces 15 and 16).

Wensing vs NCDC - "Confidential". Including: (File 13) - Box 5

Correspondence relating to sanctions imposed by the Commissioner of NCDC in June 1985 on my freedom of speech and subsequent complaint for remedy by the former Human Rights Commission. 1985-1986.

The material in this folder is to remain confidential until my death or until otherwise directed by my immediate family. The reason for imposing this restriction is to prevent any possibility of the material being used with malicious intent.

ACT Legislative Assembly Hansards, 8 February 1977-1 March 1977 (File 24_25) - Box 4

Personal appointment diaries 1977 to 1985 inclusive (File 17_23) - Box 5

Consultants report to NCDC on the Braddon Service Trades Area and Environs, November 1977, Gutteridge, Haskins and Davey (File 17_23) - Box 5

Original copy of the report in response to a brief from the Commissioner of NCDC to Ed Wensing on 12th June 1985 on the "Review of the Draft Policy Plan for Braddon Section 21, Blocks 1 to 12". Volumes 1 and 2, 5th September 1985 (File 15_16) - Box 4

Series 2. ACTCOSS

In late 1974 I was invited to join the ACT Council of Social Service, and in particular to become an active member of the Council's task force on urban and community development and later its housing task force.

This group of files includes documents generated/compiled over the period later 1974 to 1985 during which time I was actively involved in a wide range of the Council's affairs.

Minutes, correspondence, reports etc. from September 1974 to December 1978 (File 26) - Box 6-7

As for No. 1, from January 1979 to April 1980 (File 27) - Box 6-7

As for No.1, from April 1980 to February 1983 (File 28) - Box 6-7

As for No.1, from March 1983 to July 1985 (File 29) - Box 6-7

Documentation re ACT Council of Social Service (File 30_31) - Box 7

In 1981/1982 the ACT Council of Social Service underwent a financial crisis when the Federal Government denied funding to the Council. The end result was that, as Honorary Secretary at the time, I had the most unpleasant task of having to retrench the full time staff to prevent the Council from going into financial difficulty.

These two folders contain most of the documentation surrounding the Council's financial crisis, including correspondence, press reports, submissions, auditors reports, minutes of meetings etc. Several of these documents contain personal annotations that would not be present on the official files held by ACTCOSS.

Following the retrenchment of the full time staff, as Honorary Secretary, I was responsible for the running of the Council's affairs for a period of six weeks up to the 1982 Annual General Meeting of the council.

Other relevant documents include ACT Legislative Assembly Hansards for 2 and 3 April 1979, ACT House of Assembly Hansards for 9 and 10 February 1981; and 8028 34,35.

Series 3. Northside Community Service

Documentation re Northside Community Service (File 37) - Box 8

Between July 1976 and June 1979 I was involved in the establishment of the Northside Community Service, as a sister organisation to the established community service organisations in Belconnen and Woden.

The initiative for the establishment of a community service for North Canberra came from the many churches in the area. I was involved as a volunteer from its inaugural meeting, joined the Executive Committee in January 1977, served as Treasurer from June 1977 to June 1978, and as President from June 1978 to June 1979.

This folder contains many documents relating to the early establishment of the Northside Community Service.

The service provides a wide range of home help services, outreach support services for the elderly, and child care and community support services for the residents of North Canberra. In May 1990 the service moved from temporary accommodation at Corrobborree Park to a permanent home at the North Canberra Community Centre in Dickson.

Includes folder 'Practical guide to bereavement...'

Series 4. Urban Development

Papers relating to urban development (File 38_41) - Box 8-9

In 1983 as part of my studies at the ANU I undertook a detailed study of the impact of redevelopment on the suburb of Kingston in the ACT. I had for many years been collecting documents and making observations on the impact of redevelopment in Kingston and I was anxious to produce something that would be of use to other researchers, professionals and the community generally in understanding the impact of redevelopment.

Files 1 and 2 contain the essay I wrote and submitted to the ANU as part of an undergraduate unit in sociology, documentation obtained by the Canberra Times under FOI, details of planning for Section 20, Kingston, details of breaches of lease purpose, and many working papers used to produce the essay/report, including a full set of overhead projector slides of all the maps and tables.

The material was reworked in 1986 and submitted to the PJC on the ACT in the context of their inquiry into the Metropolitan Plan, as one of two submissions. The second submission covered lease administration issues including those arising from the redevelopment of Kingston.

Papers relating to Yarralumla Policy Plan (File 42) - Box 9

During my period of employment with the NCDC between November 1973 and November 1985, I worked in the Town Planning Division from later 1979 to November 1985.

During that time I had carriage for much of the work relating to boundary adjustments to the Royal Canberra Golf Club's lease in the Westbourne Woods area arising from the 1979 Yarralumla Policy Plan.

This folder contains copies of much of the correspondence, maps and submissions/photos that I compiled/generated whilst I had responsibility for the project.

Almost all of the material in this folder may be found on NCDC files and is subject to the limitations of the Archives Act. However, personal annotations have been made on several documents.

Subjects covered include: Yarralumla Brickworks Residential Stages 1 and 2; Cycleway from Yarrmundi Reach to Commonwealth Avenue Bridge via Scrivener Dam and Warrina Inlet; Royal Canberra Golf Club; Westbourne Woods.

Series 5. Community Housing Expansion Program

In 1988 I submitted a sub-thesis on the Community Housing Expansion Program in the ACT in the course of obtaining an honours degree in Political Science at the Australian National University. The papers in this series comprise a copy of the thesis, together with related notes, references, and source material.

The Community Housing Expansion Program (CHEP) was one element of the ALP's housing policies for the 1983 Federal Election and was put into effect in the ACT between 1983 and 1985. CHEP was intended to facilitate the expansion of community owned housing for people on low incomes, to promote a more effective use of public funds for housing, and to encourage a more flexible provision of public housing. However, following allegations of inappropriate funding of a grant to the Wyuna Community Co-operative, the Government terminated CHEP on the grounds that it was not efficiently providing housing for needy people.

Wensing, Ed: 'The rise and fall of the Community Housing Expansion Program in the Australian Capital Territory (a Case Study in the Frailty of Public Policy)'. BA (Hons) sub-thesis, ANU, 1988. With six enclosures, including referees reports (File 43) - Box 9

Sub-thesis: folder of notes, references and outline for supervisor (File 44) - Box 9

Sub-thesis: Photocopied source documents 1983-1985 including minutes, correspondence, newsletters and media articles, all concerning CHEP (File 45) - Box 9

Inquiry into the Community Housing Expansion Program in the Australian Capital Territory, August 1985. Conducted by B. J. O'Donovan. 3 vols (File 46-48) - Box 9

The Saga of Torrens Street, Summary, 1990 (File 49) - Box 9


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