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A group of North Nowra residents against a proposed 400-lot housing estate near their properties have vowed to continue their fight despite Shoalhaven City Council’s development committee defeating a rescission motion on the public exhibition of the proposal.
Council will now consider the proponent’s additional biodiversity assessment prior to the proposal proceeding to public exhibition.
Residents formed a fighting party in December to try and stop a proposal by Huntingdale Developments Pty Ltd and Southbank Land Pty Ltd for a 400-lot development for Warrah Road, Bangalee.
The proponent seeks to have the land, bordered by Warrah Road and Lochaven Drive Bangalee to the north, Gypsy Point Road to the west, Coconut Drive to the east and almost as far as Crams Road, North Nowra to the south, rezoned from rural to residential to allow the proposal to go ahead.
The proposal had previously been considered under Gateway determination, where the state government gives an initial indication whether the proposal would or could be approved or not, but the project footprint had been reduced following a peer review of two environmental studies; one undertaken by the applicant the other by council.
Now the proponent has produced another biodiversity assessment.
A large number of concerned residents, who at times were vocal as councillors debated the issue, attended Monday’s meeting.
Group spokesperson Dennis Johnson, who also made a presentation to councillors on the proposal, said he was not perturbed by council’s decision and vowed the group would continue its fight against the proposal.
“Some members of the group were a bit disappointed by Monday night’s outcome but I was not really expecting the rescission motion to succeed,” he said.
“We were able to make our concerns about the proposal heard and staff even agreed with some of our points, particularly about the lack of infrastructure in the area to cater for such a development.”
Concerns over the sizes of the blocks in the proposed development of 500 square metres compared to the other land holdings in the area of 2500 square metres were also raised.
“This will not stop us we will continue to fight on. This has just made us more determined,” Mr Johnson said.
Council to consider new study
Strategic planning manager Gordon Clark said council staff had received a copy of the proponent’s new further biodiversity study and would consider it.
“Council will assess the validity of the new study and look at the nature of the proposal. It will be peer reviewed by a suitable qualified consultant and we will then know where we are heading,” Mr Clark said.
“At this stage we don’t know if the study is adequate or not. If it is adequate we may have report back council before possibly seeking a new or amended Gateway determination before going to public exhibition.
“The Gateway now is for a proposal in reduced area to what the proponent’s assessment covers.
“Council is just administering the process set by the NSW government. At this stage we have been given approval to proceed down a particular course and now we have to determine where we are with this further review and determine whether we go that course or go back to the Gateway because the study finds a greater area has development potential.”
He reminded residents this was not a development application.
“It is a proposal at this point and we are trying to resolve the land zoning and potentially how much area has development potential,” he said.
“This is really just the first stage.”
While the structure plan identified this area for development in one of the latest stage releases and it could be 15 years before it is considered appropriate for development.
“This is a zoning proposal and not a subdivision proposal, however it may lead to a subdivision application in the future,” he said.
“There are lots of issues the community is concerned about and they are valid but we are not at that level of detail yet.
“We have to work out how much of the site can be developed before we get to the point of how and when services will be provided to the area or the question of things like vehicle access.”
Greens call for public exhibition now
Councillor Nina Cheyne said council was hiding behind a peer review of the biodiversity assessment in its efforts to achieve higher subdivision yields.
“A NSW Planning proposal has given the developer an opportunity to develop part of his land into rural blocks which is a far more acceptable plan to the community than a much high density subdivision that would see a number of smaller blocks be developed,” she said.
“Residents’ concerns about a lack of infrastructure are highly valid, particularly in respect to traffic volumes on Illaroo Road and they have every right to demand that the proposal go to exhibition to allow them to have their say.”
She said the Greens and sole Labor councillor supported the proposal going to exhibition [without the new study] to help produce more certainty around the potential development yield.
“Other councillors are hiding the fact they support the much higher density plan that favours the developer and they need to come clean on their position,” she said.
“The developer has a poor track record on the site and has been fined for substantial illegal clearing.
“The community and the Greens on council don’t want to see the developer achieving any windfall gains from any illegal activities that have occurred on the site.
“The Minister for Planning should instruct Shoalhaven council to get on with exhibiting the Gateway proposal and should the developer continue to persist with trying to divert from this pathway, that the proposal be timed out for five years.”