Members will recall that a proposal to open the Mall to traffic was overwhelmingly rejected by the community in 2016/17.

Apart from the general point of the merits or otherwise of opening traffic of any sort in the Mall, the following points need to be addressed:

- There was virtually no notice given of this proposal,with the Agenda only published late on Friday afternoon, being mostly tucked away in a committee report.(And the Traffic Committee meeting which approved this had only one ARC Councillor on it.)

- A total lack of community consultation. And dealing with this item during this time of crisis, when communication and public participation is extremely limited, may not be the most appropriate. It will conveniently preclude any public protest on this matter.

-Also, there has been no input from any other relevant council committees such as the Business Committee (exact title?). And have all relevant stakeholders, i.e. shop keepers etc, been consulted?

-There is a complete lack of any detail in the proposal, no maps or diagrams showing exactly how far the two lane road will go, and where the turning circle will be. Presumably the turning circle will be in the vicinity of the Aboriginal Fountain and Tatts Hotel, and will take up most of the width of the Mall?

-The stage is to be removed. There is no mention of any replacement (and who might pay for it) planned for this essential item, which is used for musical presentations, but also political rallies etc.?

- The changes are to be "at no cost to council". Well, who is paying then? Is it a government grant, or will it be paid for by businesses in the Mall?

- And if the trial is unsuccessful, who will pay for restoring the status quo, including the stage? Council?

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Apart from the above, there are safety concerns about such a so-called "shared zone", which will be dangerous especially during daylight saving for children and teenagers frequenting the Mall. And presumably the middle of the Mall will become a turning circle. While most drivers are responsible, the sight and sound of rev-heads charging up the Mall, doing a wheelie U-turn and then racing out again, will be both unpleasant and dangerous.

Cui bono? The question must be asked who will benefit from this intrusion? Certainly not the residents and ratepayers, who are set to lose yet more of their public space if this ill-considered project goes ahead.By all means, let Council continue to try to revitalize the Mall and entire CBD, but not by wrecking its very essence.