From top: Korean restaurant frontage, Trugian Place and Ranwell Lane.
The Clean Up the Valley campaign is working, with the Valley being considered for “most improved suburb” in the Brisbane Spotless Suburbs competition.
And the man behind the clean-up campaign, local councillor David Hinchliffe (Central Ward) believes a “war of words” with the council had been replaced by a “Coalition of Clean”.
Deputy Mayor, LNP Councillor Graham Quirk, wrote to Cr Hinchliffe late last month thanking him for his campaign to make the Valley a clean safer and prouder community. This has followed on from the “Grot Spot” campaign begun by Cr Hinchliffe through the pages of The Independent three months ago.
Cr Quirk in his letter of May 27 said: “I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for your active participation in making a difference in the Valley precinct overall. Council is committed to ensuring that the Valley and Chinatown are clean, safe and well maintained. “I plan to have a strong and active cleansing presence within the Valley area and I look forward to hearing more outcome focussed initiatives.”
Cr Hinchliffe has thanked the Deputy Mayor and has promised to work closely with council on more than 100 separate initiatives identified at a recent meeting of the Valley Malls Advisory Committee.
"I truly thank him for his kind words and I’m pleased to say Malls Chairman Phil Di Bella has a “Coalition of Clean” happening down here,” he said.
At the same time Cr Hinchliffe warned local traders they need to lift their game to help lift the Valley’s image, after two outdoor dining traders in the main Valley mall had their licences temporarily suspended, and several other venues were issued with warnings.
“We need tables cleared quickly so that they don’t become a feeding ground for pigeons,” Cr Hinchliffe said.
“Both I and the Malls Chairman Phil Di Bella want to clean up the presentation of outdoor dining,” he said. “Also, some parts of the mall have started to look like a run-down beergarden instead of one of the most exotic outdoor dining and entertainment locations in Australia.
“The Lord Mayor, Phil Di Bella and I are all united in saying standards must be raised. “A world-class venue is what it should be and that’s what it will be if we are cleaner, greener and prouder of our streets, footpaths and buildings.”
The list of initiatives includes stricter standards for outdoor dining venues and traders using the mall and footpaths and adopting new sign guidelines for shops in the area.
The clean up program included:
• Trial new ‘scrubber’ and pressure cleaning equipment
• Fines for littering -- including dropping cigarette butts and food wrappers
• Daily cleaning audits including ‘electronic tagging’ of certain structures to ensure adequate cleaning during all shifts
• Weekly scrubbing of outdoor dining areas in Chinatown • More checks on restaurant hygiene standards
• More CitySafe cameras, including Licorice Lane in the TCB building
• CitySafe patrols to review cleaning standards
• Warnings to unclean traders followed up by punitive action including withdrawal of dining licences
• Notices to building owners to carry out more than 60 specific repairs to their buildings.
