Caryl Jane Bosman

Homes for everyone

The Golden Grove Development, situated approximately twenty kilometres north east of the Adelaide CBD, is South Australia’s, and perhaps Australia’s, first largescale fully planned residential development. Initiated in the early 1970s as a state government project, it eventually became a joint venture between the state government and the Delfin Property Group. The development of the Golden Grove site was subject to an indenture ratified by parliament in late 1984. The indenture stipulated ten paramount objectives, which were to ensure that planning, marketing and development produced a ‘diverse’ ‘community’ environment. The ratification of the indenture allowed the joint venturers the opportunity to exercise specific regimes of authority that would produce a particular kind of ‘community’. Many planning rationalities and practices adopted in the production of particular ideals of community frequently deny the existence of power relations, assume mutual cohesion between subjects and result in built landscapes that often reflect specific lifestyles and alienate, limit or deny others. The ensuing genealogies highlight some of the taken-for-granted, normalised planning practices that assisted in the creation the Golden Grove Development. The aim of these analyses is to open up ways to think about the practice of suburban government and to offer new insights into the politics of ideals of a ‘total community’. By drawing attention to the historical contingencies of particular ways of thinking about ‘community’ and diversity, opportunities to consider their strategic effects become apparent; that is, to act in a more self conscious manner and thereby conduct practices of suburban planning differently. To this end, the article examines how two specific paramount objectives have influenced, produced and promoted ideals of a ‘total community’ in the Golden Grove Development. The ten paramount objectives included in the indenture called for a wide selection of houses from a wide range of builders to cater for a wide cross-section of the population. It was assumed that this variety would ensure that the development would not suffer from the mostly negative characteristics commonly associated with many new (1970s–’80s) suburban residential projects: lack of ‘community’, lack of choice, sameness and boredom. Paramount objectives two and three, in particular, were to ensure residential diversity and, by association, ideals of a ‘total community’. These two objectives obliged the joint venturers:

Gerotopia: Risky Housing for an Ageing Population

Abstract This article explores the influence that baby boomer lifestyle preferences are having on housing landscapes as they enter retirement. The analysis focuses on the emerging phenomenon, in Australia and New Zealand, of Active Adult Lifestyle Communities (AALCs). Using theories of the good life and risk to frame the analysis, I investigate the impacts of AALCs in the USA and provide critical insights into the planning and provision of housing for an ageing population. Research finds that AALCs are marketable commodities and that they also have a positive contribution to make to the health and well-being of residents. However I raise questions in regard to equity concerns and the sustainability of these types of developments.

Building a Golden Grove ‘community’: a study of suburban production processes in South Australia, 1970s–1980s

Ideals of community have been associated with the practice of planning for over a century. Proponents of the Golden Grove Development considered particular ideals of community to be fundamental to the financial and social success of the new suburban development. This paper will analyse the early planning processes that underpinned the production of community ideals and argue that these planning processes took place at the transition between welfarism and neo‐liberalism. This study will offer provocative glimpses into late twentieth century suburban planning practices; practices that establish the Golden Grove Development as a model of late twentieth century suburban production processes.

The shifting ground of Australian Higher Education through the lens of reflexive modernisation: compromising the quality of planning education?

Abstract The aim of this paper is to explore the changes taking place in the Australian higher education sector and to discuss the implications of these changes in planning education. In addressing this aim, this paper draws from theories of reflexive modernisation to discuss how processes of individualisation, risk and reflexivity are shaping the behaviours and decisions of university managers, students and academics. These shifts and challenges are important for employers, just as they are for academics, to understand. The paper calls for more strategic and informed engagement in higher education policy and with the student communities to complement the growing dialogue between academics, the planning profession and employers.

Planning for an ageing population: links between social health, neighbourhood environment and the elderly

Australias population is ageing, and a key question is how can people remain socially active as they grow older? To answer this question, this paper offers a critical review of the literature looking at the mechanisms through which an urban neighbourhood environment can influence social life, an important component of social health. The aim of this review is to develop a general framework that can be applied to the studies on the social health of the elderly. The framework illustrates the main elements that potentially promote social life, namely: a safe, accessible, walkable and relatively dense neighbourhood in addition to green spaces, third places, soft edges and streets. This framework is then applied to a small case study, looking particularly at the social life of the elderly and how it can be supported by the physical urban neighbourhood environment. Data are collected by conducting in-depth interviews with 19 elderly residents (aged 65 years and over) in a neighbourhood located in the city of Gold Coast, Queensland. The results from this study demonstrate the importance of neighbourhood design in the social life of the elderly, interviewed. The study also identifies some of the key barriers to the elderlys social interaction.

Gold Coast is not only all that glitters: understanding visitor and resident perceptions of the Gold Coast

Utilising the case study of the Gold Coast, Australia, this paper aims to discuss city identity and the role of branding in the formation of the city image and explore whether residents and tourists perceive identity of a city differently. The paper views place identity from the perspective of modern practices of place marketing and branding, rather than experiential self-identity. City identity forms the context from which planning policies, plans and decisions are made, making it a significant area of theory in the planning discipline. However, if the perception of this identity by outsiders is inaccurate, attracting investment and residents will be challenging. The inherent multifaceted nature of city or place identity further emphasises the need for those planning the multiplicity of communities, suburbs, cities, regions and states to understand the context of those who live within such places.

Building Community Places — Machizukuri — Neoliberalism, Suburbanization and ‘Americanization’

This research maps some of the debates on community building in the planning of suburban developments. Particular reference is made to Kokoku New Town in Yokohama, Japan, and the Golden Grove Development in Adelaide, Australia. These two developments emerged in the early 1980s and the histories related suggest significant similarities, although they grew out of different regimes of power. Drawing upon Foucault and other governmentality thinkers, this study focuses on the relationships between neoliberalism and suburbanization. The primary concern is the exercise of government (the conduct of conduct) and how this exercise is carried out and maintained.

Ontological security, social connectedness and the well-being of Australia’s ageing baby boomers

Abstract This study investigates the extent to which social connectedness may mediate the link between ontological security and subjectively measured well-being of Australia’s baby boomers. The results indicate that, on average, for Australia’s baby boomers, a relative lack of ontological security is associated with lower levels of well-being and social connectedness. Further, social connectedness is linked to higher levels of well-being. These findings hold, whether or not other things are held constant. In addition, there is some evidence to suggest that social connectedness partially mediates the link between ontological security and well-being. Further investigation reveals that the nature of the link between ontological security and well-being may depend on a resident’s age. Most strikingly, social connectedness is found to consistently attenuate and completely mediate this age-specific negative link between a relative absence of ontological security and well-being.

The spatial dimensions of neighbourhood: how older people define it

Abstract This paper seeks to develop our understanding of neighbourhood boundaries, as defined by older people. Using interview and mapping methods, research revealed the significance of three factors ‒ built-form pattern, spatial distribution of the social networks and personal attributes ‒ as contributing to how older people define their neighbourhood boundaries. Research findings highlighted discrepancies between residents’ perceived neighbourhood boundaries and the statistical unit used as the neighbourhood proxy in most neighbourhood-related research. The findings suggested that the statistical information about the neighbourhood effects on older people does not necessarily reflect the lived experience of older people in their perceived neighbourhood.

Master planned communities for the ageing population: how sociable are they?

Abstract The world’s population is ageing faster than ever before, and cities worldwide struggle to cope with the changing needs of the older age cohort. Master planned community development is one response to the housing needs of the ageing population. This housing type focuses on community development as a promotional feature, which in turn drives health outcomes for its residents. This qualitative research provides a clearer insight into the role of master planned residential developments in the enhancement of social health – as a main component of the overall health and wellbeing of older people. Research methods included observation and semi-structured interviews with 40 people aged over 64 years of age who were living in developments of any type. The findings revealed that the increased safety, walkability, accessibility, and the provision of soft edges within the developments play a significant role in the social health of the older age residents. The findings provide for an evidence-based approach to policy-making and city planning aimed at improving the overall health and wellbeing of older people, and thereby help them to achieve healthy ageing.