Benefits And Drawbacks Of Living In A Master Planned Community In Springfield Lakes, Australia

The Advantages of Springfield Planned Community

Question:

Discuss about the Springfield Master Planned Community.

Over the past decades, with the overall increasing global population and changes in the lifestyles and standard of life of people across the world, there have been considerable changes in terms of the demands of types of housings among residents in the global scenario. Keeping the aspects of  greater conveniences of the residents and better utilization of scarce land resources and other resources in consideration the concept of planned community has been gradually coming into existence in the contemporary periods and the same has already developed in many countries including the USA, the UK, Australia and others[1].

The term “Planned Community” refers to a kind of residential development where the overall infrastructure, consisting of housings, roads, natural resources, stores, connectivity and other amenities of life, is designed with care such that together they can make living in these communities convenient and easy. In general, planned communities are developed in such a way that apart from well-equipped houses, all the other facilities required for a better quality of life, like shopping centers, health care centers, schools, etc. are present within a small perimeter. In this context, several such communities are being developed in Australia, of which the one in the Springfield Lakes region of the country, specifically the Greater Springfield, is considered to be one of the best master planned community being developed in the recent times. Developed from scratch, in the previously underdeveloped but natural resource and greenery rich Springfield Lake region, these planned community have sufficient greeneries and natural resources as well as robust connectivity with the urban areas, so as to facilitate the different everyday activities of the residents, both personal as well as professional.

The Springfield planned community region provides a host of facilities, which are targeted to increase the convenience of the personal as well as professional lives of those who tend to reside in this region. However, there also remains some aspects on which the planners need to emphasize further so as to make the planned community even more appealing to the potential clients. These are discussed in the following sections.

There are widespread benefits of staying in planned community in the Springfield region of Australia, few of the primary ones being discussed in this essay. The primary benefit of staying in planned community is the presence of almost all the amenities required for a healthy, enjoyable and productive lifestyle within manageable distances. This allows the residents to live a hassle free life, where they do not need to travel long distances and bear the burden of traffic and wastage of time to get the basic requirements of their life[2]. The Springfield planned community, though situated in off route area, can be seen to be usually of all the amenities like communication, grocery stores, internet facilities, health care facilities and entertainment resources, which facilities better lifestyle. The community also has access to schools, health care centers, emergency services and a host of transport and communication facilities with other parts of the country, as can be seem from their route map:

The Provision of Shared Amenities

Another positive implication of planned communities is the presence of higher securities as a whole. Considering the fact that in the contemporary period the family structures have been reducing in size and the overall criminal activities in the society, the protection of people, especially the vulnerable share of population, inclusive of children, elderly people and women becomes an issue of immense concern. The Springfield commuunity, in this aspect, has provisions of providing a more secured environment for the residents, with high end security features and patrolling guards around the residential facilities. It is also found to be equipped with basic health care services, also ensure health securities of the elderly residents to a considerable extent. This makes the planned community in Springfield even more  appealing to the new age nuclear families where the security of the elderly people as well as that of the children is one of the primary requirements which the families seek while looking for an accommodation.

The provision of shared amenities also adds to the advantages of residing in planned communities. In case of living in ad hoc residential facilities, people need to buy all their requirements individually, thereby making it expensive and constricting their choices. This also leads to inefficient usage of scarce resources. Springfield on the other hand has built up different necessary as well as recreational facilities which are available to its residing members, provided that the maintenance fees are paid by all of them. There remain provisions for all the members to enjoy all the amenities which include schools, community centers, walking trails, care units and others[4]. The presence of proper management also helps in proper and hassle free regular maintenance of the properties, which decreases the burden on the members individually.

This also increases the efficiency of utilization of resources in the planned community, thereby contributing positively to the overall economy. The residents of Springfield Lakes also get the chance to socialize and live in a friendly neighborhood, which improves their quality of life. There also remains provision of vehicle parking, cycle routes, parks and community recreation centers for a better quality of life of the residents.

Thus, from the above discussion it can be asserted that there remains several positive implications for the families, especially the modern nuclear ones, with children and adult members, to buy properties in the master planned community in the Springfield Lake region. The comfort, presence of amenities and high security inside as well as outside the community accounts for the same. However, the community does have several negative implications too, unlike what is portrayed in its advertisements, which are discussed in the following section.

The Drawbacks of Living in Springfield Planned Community

However, in spite of the presence of huge facilities and benefits of residing in the equipped and integrated planned community in Springfield, there remain several drawbacks of the same. One of the primary issues, which the potential residents face while trying to buy properties in this planned community, is the issue of high maintenance fees and HOA fees. The master planned community in the Springfield Lake region, is one of the best in the country inclusive of all the necessary as well as luxurious amenities[5]. However, these conveniences, which are enjoyed by the residents in this community, do not come free of cost and the residents are required to pay maintenance fees on a regular basis.  These fees are often high as compared to normal residences, thereby creating a tradeoff between convenience and savings for the residents.

Apart from the problem of high fees, the problem of externalities also exist in planned communities, where the level of individual freedom and privacy is considerably low and there also remains the problem of others determining the way of living of an individuals. Springfield is not an exception to this. In spite of its lavish expanse and beautifully created and maintained residences and amenities like parks and community areas, the residents still feel the absence of freedom to a considerable extent, due to the strict rules which the management imposes regarding the maintenance of the properties as well as in the aspects of discipline and welfare of the other residents. This restricts the creativity of the residents. The elderly people and the children have lesser contact with the outer world and needs to stay in the societies for longer time. Therefore, these people are negatively affected by the presence of such restrictions in the Springfield community.

Recommendations and Conclusion

Springfield planned community is one of the primary ones currently operating in the geographical boundaries of Australia. Much of the popularity of the community is attributed to the facilities it provides to its residents, the robust communication and transport networks, the school, health care, grocery stores in the walking distance and also the high security within the community. There, however remains a scope of improvement in the delivery of the services of the same in terms of cost effectiveness and the overall fees structure, the reduction of which may help in increasing the number of potential residents in these planned communities, thereby increasing the cost efficiency of the same. Addressing the drawbacks present in the infrastructure of the Springfield community can help in increasing the conveniences and the welfare of the families living in the community, by catering more to their specific needs.

References

McMahon, Edward, Master Planned Communities: What Does The Future Look Like? - Urban Land Magazine (2018) Urban Land Magazine https://urbanland.uli.org/development-business/master-planned-communities-what-does-the-future-look-like/

PART 14—SPRINGFIELD STRUCTURE PLAN (2018) Ipswichplanning.com.au https://www.ipswichplanning.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0013/2065/ips_part_14_springfield_structure_plan.pdf

Qm.com.au, Top 10 Most Wanted List For Master Planned Communities (2018) QM Properties https://www.qm.com.au/top-10-wanted-list-master-planned-communities/

Springfield Lakes Community Vision - Lendlease (2018) Communities.lendlease.com https://communities.lendlease.com/springfield-lakes/living-in-springfield-lakes/community-vision/

The Pros And Cons Of Planned Communities (2018) Actforlibraries.org https://www.actforlibraries.org/the-pros-and-cons-of-planned-communities-3/