Glenelg Seawall: Holdfast Bay Mayor Amanda Wilson writes to Premier about planned development

A western suburbs mayor has written to the Premier as a coastal community fight back against plans for a 13-storey apartment complex on their foreshore.

Holdfast Bay Mayor Amanda Wilson has written to Premier Steven Marshall while Glenelg residents fight a proposal for a 13 storey apartment complex. Picture: AAP/Roy Vandervegt

A western suburbs mayor has written to the Premier as local residents continue to rally against plans for a $165 million apartment complex on the Glenelg foreshore.

Holdfast Bay Mayor Amanda Wilson has called on Steven Marshall to address a “breach of standards” and “disconnect” which has allowed the controversial $165 million Chasecrown development to be assessed before the State Commission Assessment Panel (SCAP).

In her letter, Ms Wilson said the application for the 13-storey apartment complex on the Esplanade at Glenelg South was in an area designated as a five-storey maximum.

She said the area had been endorsed as a five-storey zone in 2016 after extensive public consultation by the then Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure (DPTI) and community input.

“A community should not be forced to mobilise against the absurdity of a 13-storey building in a five-storey zone, particularly when that same community was provided with a legislative commitment as recently as 2016 regarding maximum building heights in their neighbourhood,” the letter said.

“A community information sheet was also produced by DPTI at the time, reassuring residents that 12-storey buildings would only occur on the section of the Esplanade “ … south of Jetty Road up to the alignment of Saltram Road”.

“This was then reinforced by the gazettal of zoning changes that capped building heights to five storeys for the allotments south of the Saltram Road alignment (being the site of the current 13-storey proposal).

Artist’s impressions of Chasecrown $165 million apartment development at 21-25 South Esplanade, Glenelg. Picture: Chasecrown

“It is therefore difficult to reconcile DPTI’s reassurances and the community’s expectations at the time with the scale of development that is before the SCAP now.”

Ms Wilson questioned what impact allowing the proposal to go ahead would have on future height limits in the Holdfast Bay area and what the government’s objectives were in allowing this “breach of standards”.

“If developers can simply submit proposals that are at significant odds with set standards that are informed by community input, then our Council will advocate for fundamental reform to the planning system as a means to provide our community with the reassurance it is entitled to regarding the planned and orderly development of our neighbourhoods,” she said.

Community group SOS Save Our Seawall Apartments has rallied against the Chasecrown proposal and its size since plans for the development were revealed in February.

Founding member Karen DeCean said the Mayor and council’s support for the cause was reassuring.

“It validates the fact that the residents and the community matter which is of course of great importance to us,” she said.

“It was just very reassuring to see that the council is behind us on that it is so grossly over current zoning guidelines.”

A Chasecrown spokesman said the building design lodged with SCAP aligns with council’s plan by scaling height across the site from 13-storeys down to five-storeys.

“It’s important to be clear that the Development Plan for the Holdfast Bay Council specifically states that ‘additional building height above five-storeys is appropriate’ for this site,” the spokesman said.

“Heights above five-storeys are specified in order to achieve a transition in scale from the taller buildings anticipated in the adjoining site which is currently occupied by Saltram Tower, a 12-storey residential building.”

Ms Wilson and the State Government have been contacted for comment.