Later this year an eight story tower block of fifty-six units will be completed in lower Market street, Wollongong. This $ 17.9 million construction is slated for " seniors living " - and provides just twenty car parking spaces.
Many will wonder at the thinking behind this plan. What is the supposed benefit of placing senior citizens in the heart of the city, in an area which is fast becoming commercial office space and which already has a chronic parking problem ?
Originally, only eleven car spaces was planned. The assumption was that seniors nolonger used cars, but that raised another interesting question. If they didn't have cars, where would they shop to get their groceries and other supplies ? There are no supermarkets or other food stores within miles of lower Market street.
Another problem the experts seem to have missed is the need of seniors for service calls - both from medical people, the service industry generally - and specially from families. All these people will be obliged to try and compete for parking space in a busy commercial area, served by parking meters and preyed upon by rangers.
Then there is the problem of clothes drying space - and there simply isn't any ! Seniors will need electric clothes dryers in their laundries - and we have been told that the cost of electricity is about to soar.
Forcing seniors into the city centre may prove to be a failed idea. They do not go to night clubs and similar entertainment venues - and they are not big spenders. It makes sense to provide accommodation for single people in the heart of cities because they contribute to the city culture - but that is not part of this plan.
Lower Market street seems to be a disaster waiting to happen.
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