City Plan 2018 was strongly opposed when put out for public consultation in September 2015
Redland City’s new planning scheme starts today making it easier for property developers to squeeze more units on land zoned medium density and reducing controls over tree clearing in many areas.
Preparation of the Redland City Plan 2018 began five years ago, early in Karen Williams first term as mayor, when the Council was “open for business and investment”.
A request by Cr Paul Bishop for the community to have a say in preparing the new city plan was rejected, but some of the city’s property developers were consulted secretively through the Development Industry Reference group (DIRG).
Communities gathered across the city to protest against their parks being sold.
When the Draft City Plan 2015 was put out for public consultation in late 2015 thousands of people made submissions opposing measures such as:
- sale of neighbourhood parks for development by the Redland Investment Corporation
- increasing urban density
- reduced environmental regulation
Strong community protests forced the Council to abandon its park privatisation plan before the 2016 local council elections. But otherwise the community’s opposition to the proposed city plan was largely ignored.
In February 2017 at a hastily convened special meeting the Council voted to adopt the plan with some changes. Most of the 5,347 properly made submissions were disregarded.
The amount of tree clearing that could be done as of right on large properties was reduced slightly. And the minimum size housing block was increased from 250m2 (in some areas) to 400m2.
But the Council stuffed up its wording of the 400m2 minimum block size provisions, resulting in delay to approval of the new planning scheme by the State Government.
The new planning scheme, incorporating changes required by the state government, was finally approved by Redland City Council on 6 July 2018, on the basis that the new plan would commence on 8 October (today).
The motion to adopt the final version of the new city plan was supported by crs Karen Williams, Peter Mitchell, Paul Gollè, Lance Hewlett, Mark Edwards, Julie Talty, Murray Elliott, Tracey Huges and Paul Gleeson.
Crs Wendy Boglary and Paul Bishop voted against the motion.
Amending the brand new City Plan 2018
The resolution passed on 6 July included a proviso that Council would fix up its error in wording of 400m2 minimum block size provision. It said Council would expedite a “potential future amendment” to ensure minimum lot sizes in established low density residential zoned areas are not reduced below 400m2 (except in areas which are predominately small lot housing such as Kinross) “…with the expectation that major amendments would be progressed “immediately”.
But the brand new city plan, five years in the making, also needs other major amendments which will be discussed (in closed session) at the council general meeting on Wednesday 10 October.
Hopefully, councillors will ensure that there is public consultation about the preparation of this major amendment package so that the community has an opportunity to suggest ways of fixing the new planning scheme.
The things to do list includes increased control of tree clearing especially in areas of koala habitat.
Heritage protection, especially of privately owned properties, is another issue which has been disgracefully ignored by the Council during Karen Williams tenure as mayor.
On Wednesday councillors will also discuss (also in closed session) an amendment to the City Plan to incorporate protection of environmental corridors in line with a council resolution on 21 February (Item 12.2.5).
The community would welcome some clarity about when protection of these environmental corridors can be implemented in the City Plan 2018.
Who’s To Bless And Who’s To Blame
Some of our local councillors are very adept at blaming others for unpopular decisions such as approval of developments which the community opposes.
For years we’ve been hearing that Council’s hands were tied by the 2006 planning scheme, adopted when Don Seccombe was mayor.
From today, current Redlands councillors are responsible for the planning scheme which determines what gets built where – and which trees get chopped down. It’s their City Plan.
The next local council elections are due on 28 March 2020.
Redlands2030 – 8 October 2018
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3 Comments
So we have Redland City Council’s Development Investment Corporation to blame for earmarking some 2 dozen parks & reserves to be developed leaving no open space or park playgrounds for local families. How could any local govt bodies even consider treating ratepayers so shabbily to satisfy insatiable greed of developers who care nothing for wellbeing and health of communities. I was particularly horrified that Reserve I helped establish along with housing commission residents on Denison Crt when Bowen St Bush, highly valued by locals, nursery for koalas who walked from Valantine Park (helped establish over 10-yr period) was transformed into units by Asian developer. First Mayor Eddie established the environmental levy by purchasing 2 blocks for the local community, namely: children’s playground on cleared house block, and beside it, the treed Keith St Reserve. Seeing sign removed, & hearing from locals the reserve was to be transformed into yet more housing, having signed petitions, could not believe Williams Administration would go that far as to deprive ratepayers of their valued space we all paid for. Relieved to see sign returned on Bowen St entry prior to last local government election.
Protection of environmental corridors? Wouldn’t we all like to see that! Won’t happen in my view, never has, never will. Watched in horror as specially protected wetland site 29-37 Moreton Bay Rd was changed from special protection zoning to ‘commercial’ so Peter Endacott could plant towering concrete walls just short of the creek bank, forever creating a dark dangerous place no local dare enter as, while one day walking my dog along Crotona Rd creek bank nearing 19 Crotona Rd. a young man came running yelling not to enter…too dangerous.
An Ormiston wildlife corridor never to be built on during Seccombe’s Council Administration, nod, nod, wink, wink, was!…driving one local resident who moved there because of the corridor, seeking greener pastures. No corridor is safe from developers in my view, having seen policies that allow housing estates leaving no real set backs, back yards, or open space.
Voting pattern in RCC appears to be the same as during years of what became known as the Seccombe Six Administration it seems to me.
Let me tell you that in 1980 the only people up in the Jabiluka area of NT that held up the uranium mining contract of a US based multi-national company were the Aboriginal Elders and just as well because now we have a world renowned Kakadu National Park with plentiful wildlife. If PM Malcolm Fraser and other short sighted politicians had had their way this whole area would have been destroyed and most of the profits would have gone back to the USA, leaving us with a big hole in the ground and a tailings dam to pollute the surrounding countryside. Let’s hope the Aboriginal Elders can have the same success with the Toondah and Adani proposals. Both have major flaws, which many Australians can see through but it appears that some of our local councillors and state politicians can only see dollar signs. Even the Federal Member for Bowman appears to be hoodwinked by a wealthy developer, judging by his biased newsletter to residents promoting the ideas of jobs and tourism. We have heard all this before when the Raby Bay developers made a killing and then skipped out, leaving the Council and the owners to stop their land from slipping back into the Bay. One of them now refuses to fill his swimming pool because it just keeps cracking. As for our diminishing koalas, do you think this advert placed in RCB by the Council, will save them? It was paid for by the ratepayers while the Council keeps allowing developers to clear huge sections of mature Eucalypts in koala areas. Do you see the gum leaves in the advert? They are the key to koala survival, along with the mature trees they grow on.
The Minister for State Development Infrastructure and Planning launched The Economic Development and Other Amendments Bill 2018. This affects Toondah Harbour, Priority Development Areas (PDAs) and the Planning Scheme for more potential and variable PDAs. The Ministers Speech is perpetuating a new URBAN MYTH for Planning and EDQ. ” The amendments will guide and provide for; efficient, effective, transparent, integrated, coordinated and accountable system of land use planning.”
These attributes are largely missing from the Planning Acts 2016, SEQ Regional Plan 2017 and the Economic Development Act 2012 and the Bill. Reading the Bill provides more powers to EDQ to deal in land and units and facilitate changes to PDAs and to develop in more difficult sites without assessment and approvals. The changes to Infrastructure charges still are not available at this time.
Some minor beneficial changes to the Planning Acts are evident, but land use planning has been dealt another critical blow against residents rights, the urban form and the natural environment that detrimentally impacts on the East Coast of Queensland.