IN the latest iteration of the NSW government's "big picture" planning processes, the Greater Cities Commission has begun to envisage the "megatropolis" from Wollongong through Sydney to Newcastle as a "six cities" project that can be optimised to provide the best standard of living for everyone within its limits.
Realistically or not, the commission sees "a connected region of six cities where we can move people and goods across the region in 90 minutes".
"That's from north to south, from Newcastle to the Illawarra and from the east to the great Western Parkland City," the commission says.
"In each city, great jobs are 30 minutes by public transport from great homes.
"We enjoy a greater range of lifestyle choices connected to economic opportunity and most people live in vibrant local centres and neighbourhoods where all our daily needs are met within a 15-minute walk."
While 90 minutes (on land) for Newcastle to Wollongong might seem an impossible dream, the framing language of the Six Cities concept sits over a dense network of policies and procedures that will guide how planning is carried out in our region.
As Michael Parris reports today, a Committee for the Hunter submission to the government's Six Cities discussion paper describes the Hunter as a relatively self-contained region that benefits from its proximity to Sydney without being dependent on it.
That is indeed an accurate description of how we see ourselves, but the important factor here is how Sydney sees us.
Capital cities will always pull the strings, but unless the Hunter can use its economic and political clout to stand up for itself, we risk having things done to us, rather than for us.
There is no doubt that the region's population will grow, and probably by a faster rate than has been the case in recent years.
Newcastle and the inner suburbs get the lion's share of attention - and the high-rise towers - but the fastest growth is further west, in Maitland and beyond.
It will take rigorous council planning and determined representation to ensure these areas receive the services their burgeoning populations need.
If the Hunter does not stand up for itself in this regard, we risk finding ourselves used as an outlet valve for Sydney, at the expense of a self-sufficiency that has served us well, and is worth fighting to preserve.
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