The last Saturday of the month is Sandfly Community Market. This weekend, Cr Richard Atkinson and I went down to host a Greens stall on a beautiful, blue-sky morning.
This market, and the others like it that are peppered throughout our wonderful municipality, are a great way to foster a fun and vibrant community.
Residents need a place to gather, a commons, to meet, to play, to chat and to trade. These places help the community thrive. We need to make sure that everyone knows about them and that everyone has access to them. I want to help ensure that Kingborough residents are not isolated by the tyranny of distance; particularly elderly, vulnerable or people who for whatever reason have limited mobility. Better access to affordable (or free) public transport is an important step to making sure there is universal access to community events. No matter what mode of transport, whether it is bus, train, light rail, or community bicycle-sharing (like Bicing in Barcelona), for public transport to be used it needs to be a regular, predictable service. People need to know that they will not be stranded and that they can hop on and hop off when it is convenient for them.
Community markets are a place to trade fresh produce, to meet friends and to tell stories. It was lovely to speak with local residents and tourists alike. I was pleased to see some people travelling into Kingborough from the Huon, from Hobart and even tourists from the mainland who were stopping by.
It's particularly nice that the Sandfly Community Hall has some play equipment on the property to make the monthly market an even more family-friendly affair.
I am a big supporter of community markets, community gardens and community farms. In fact, I think we should be more supportive of these and other collectivist enterprises which put the benefit of the people before profit. Especially when it comes to co-operative developments and community enterprises, I think we can do more to incentivise and support people working together in our local areas to improve the social fabric of the area. This is something that I think Kingborough does particularly well and something I am seeking to lend my support to as we move forward together.