Residents ‘stunned’ as OTR’s Kensington Park petrol station plans recommended for approval
OTR’s cut-down plans for a petrol station for Kensington Park have been recommended for approval, stunning residents who have fought against it for years.
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New plans for an OTR service station in Kensington Park could be approved on Tuesday night.
Burnside Council’s assessment panel will consider OTR parent company Peregrine’s revised proposal for the corner of Kensington Rd and May Tce.
Peregrine’s original application for a $3 million, 24/7 service station at the location was rejected by the council and the State Government’s assessment panel in 2017.
Its appeal in the Environment, Resources and Development Court was also dismissed.
However, Peregrine has reduced the size and height of the revamped servo building, and the size of the canopy over fuel dispensers.
There have been changes to the station’s proposed entry and exit points and Peregrine says it has also addressed concerns with vehicle queuing at fuel bowsers.
The council’s panel has been recommended to approve the development.
However, several residents have raised concerns with noise impacts — particularly from cars within the carpark and delivery vehicles — and the size and scale of the development.
The Messenger revealed in February that only a handful of residents would be able to have a say about the proposal, with “approximately 10” properties immediately adjoining the site being notified of the new plan and eligible to make submissions.
Local resident Chris Shakes, who will appear at the panel hearing on behalf of a concerned neighbour, said the report was an “absolute stinker” and “seriously flawed”.
“We are stunned by the recommendations,” Mr Shakes said. “Traffic issues have not been resolved. They have made cosmetic changes to the original plan proposed. But there’s more to it than meets the eye.
“We look forward to addressing its deficiencies at the meeting tomorrow night.”
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OTR’s head of development, Phil Moir, said the former plan was a “substantial new development at the front of the property”.
“The current proposal however is to simply refurbish and reuse the existing structure at the rear of the site, which was formerly a service station and then until just 18 months ago a full mechanic’s workshop,” Mr Moir said.
“Our design team and traffic engineers are confident this repurposing of the existing structure will address the issues identified in the decision of the ERD Court.”