In celebration of Wall Planning & Environmental Consulting’s 10th Anniversary in April 2021, we’d like to share a special post about founder Renee Wall and the journey that brought a world of town planning experience to Central Queensland.  We hope you enjoy!   Interview by Dani Logan.

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For Wall Planning Director Renee Wall, town planning has been a passion from a young age, and from the day a town planner gave a presentation at her school, she knew exactly what she wanted to do.

Renee recalls,  “I was sold! They must have delivered a pretty dynamic talk, as there were 8 town planners from our year of 100 students!”

Shoot forwards a whole bunch of years and Renee has found her niche in regional planning in Central Queensland and has most recently expanded to include a team of passionate and dedicated town planners. Wall Planning’s success is that it’s a small-town business with a larger regional scope, built on a diverse and amazing journey.

BRINGING THE WORLD TO CENTRAL QUEENSLAND

Growing up in Brisbane, Renee studied Town Planning at the University of Queensland. It was here that she met her husband, who would introduce her to the rural lifestyle she loves – after a stint in London, that is.

“I loved working in London! I used to walk from our tiny flat in Pimlico, through Green Park, past Buckingham Palace to get to the office. I thought I was living the dream.”

During her 5 years in London, Renee worked in both the local government and private sectors in urban areas that were experiencing an enormous amount of redevelopment and gentrification. She was delighted to watch spaces – communities – rapidly transform and take on a new life right before her eyes.

“I have been extremely lucky to have such a diverse career. I’ve worked on some of the largest examples of regeneration with highly esteemed architects, delivering affordable housing in London. I’ve worked for QGC on the QCLNG project, off the coast of Gladstone. And I’ve travelled to Houston to meet with project engineers to explain the layers of the approval process.”

Renee brought that diversity and rich experience back to Central Queensland, where she settled just outside Clermont on her husband’s property ‘ Peak View’  and discovered a community that inspired a whole new dream to live – and Wall Planning & Environmental Consulting was born.

STARTING A BUSINESS IN RURAL QUEENSLAND

“Honestly, when I first started, I thought my business would be a nice hobby; a chance to keep a foot in my career and perhaps provide a bit of pocket money. I didn’t expect there to be so many opportunities in our region!”

Renee admits she was concerned that being on a property in a rural area might be too big of a barrier to overcome in maintaining her career, but then a colleague offered some consulting work and things naturally grew from there.

“I started with an ABN and a Hotmail email account – no website. The business has grown organically through word of mouth and repeat clients. The ability to work online is also a major factor in the success of a rural business – it is now possible to start a business regardless of your location.”

INFRASTRUCTURE AND SUSTAINABILITY IN SMALL COMMUNITIES

With all the incredible experiences abroad, you might be surprised to learn that, for Renee, regional planning has turned out to be the most rewarding phase of her career – particularly within her own community.

“I think regional planning is a real opportunity to be involved and discover solutions at the grass roots level. We help small and medium businesses, and mums and dads, to achieve approval for their developments. We also get to work with the larger scale clients in renewable energy and mining, which are an important part of the local infrastructure. We bridge between community members, large companies, and government to grow the community into something unique!”

This bridge can even span between industries. At present, Wall Planning is working with both the coal mining sector and the renewable energy sector, both of which are key players in the sustainability of many Central Queensland communities, including Clermont.

It’s an exciting time for Wall Planning to be involved in these industries, as Queensland charges toward the target of 50% renewable energy by 2030. But mining can’t just be written off, says Renee. Despite the shift toward renewables, mining will be a big player in the Central Queensland economy for some time and so a strong and balanced relationship with both energy sectors is necessary – during the transition and beyond.

“Coal is still a reality; providing jobs and consistent, reliable energy. Eventually the world will move towards renewables, however the minerals and resources industries provide many of the components needed to generate and store renewable energy.”

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT IN TOWN PLANNING

Two of the major services offered by Wall Planning are Social Impact Assessments along with Community and Stakeholder Engagement . With the ultimate goal being the creation of sustainable rural communities, Renee points out that the people are the key to sustainability and successful regional planning.

“The strength of local communities is the people. They are friendly and resilient and really look out for one another. Community engagement gives you the opportunity to listen and garner great ideas that are specific to that community and can be implemented as a part of a project. Successful projects are ‘owned’ by the community and the stakeholders.”

According to Renee, opportunities for regional areas around Australia are growing. The challenge for regional planning is ensuring that social infrastructure is developed such that, regardless of where one lives, they have access to health care and education.

THE KEY TO A SUCCESFUL REGIONAL PLANNER

Renee’s confesses that she’s excited for work every day and her true professional passion lies in the community.

“I love solving problems for clients and helping them – taking the frustration away, smoothing the process, and making development a more positive experience.”

And the keys to her success?

“I think it started with passion, skill, and determination and then has expanded further due to my wonderful team and the skills and experience they bring. Having a team with a growth mindset and a love for town planning makes it all so much more rewarding!”

WHERE TO FROM HERE?

Wall Planning & Environmental Planning have been servicing regions outside of Central Queensland for some time now and are continuing to expand into those areas as well as putting Renee’s international and domestic planning skills to good use in metropolitan planning.

Contact Renee today for a chat about how her extensive experience can kickstart your development or planning project.