Bellbird Park Preservation Group flags concerns over development of Goodna retirement village

It’s billed as the country’s best luxe eco-retirement village, with cutting edge features for comfort, connection and the environment but this environmentalist group says there is one essential issue with the multimillion dollar Goodna project.

An Ipswich environmental group says a mega retirement and assisted living ecovillage planned for Goodna will affect the future of local koalas once it is built.

Essential koala habitat in Goodna is fragmented by urban development resulting in the endangered animals having to trek past housing estates and across busy roads.

About 4.4ha of an 11.4ha site is earmarked for the development of the Abadi Gaia Adult Residential Village, a PGS Invest project located on Church Street.

The area is considered a potential passageway for koalas moving from site to site.

In line with state legislation, the Ipswich City Council has a Koala Conservation Habitat and Management Plan in place to protect green spaces, and although the site falls under the umbrella of the Redbank Urban Consolidation Area it has not been deemed core habitat.

PSG environmental reports dating back to 2007, and more recently in 2021, by independent specialists show koalas do not seem to be using the site much — however two to three may pass through once a year.

But Bellbird Park Preservation Group chairperson Terry Winston said a member of the community saw a koala on site.

Ms Winston said she wished there had been better community consultation, and said the group was not against the development of a retirement village, just its proposed location.

Visionary behind Ipswich’s Abadi Gaia Adult Residential Village. Picture: Urban Planning

PGS Invest CEO Adam Slijderink said he was surprised by that statement as he personally reached out to the group on a number of occasions to no avail.

“(Also), a week long survey was undertaken prior to lodgement in 2021 (and) it was seen by over 50,000 Ipswich residents … only 143 responded (and a) majority supported the project,” he said.

A Bellbird Park Preservation Group spokeswoman said the development would be detrimental because koalas may be restricted in navigating their way through the bushland.

“(They’ll have) to navigate through a corridor that not only runs parallel to the high voltage transmission power lines, but has a minimal width varying from 45 metres to 51 metres,” the spokeswoman said.

Mr Slijderink said there would be no barriers on site prohibiting or forcing koalas to use that corridor.

PGS director Paul Slijderink and CEO Adam Slijderink. Picture: Supplied

Mr Slijderink said that extensive works would be undertaken to ensure better access for koalas, and that only 10 per cent of the site would be fenced.

“I understand their concern … that’s why we made sure it was addressed appropriately,” he said.

“On completion over 75 per cent of the site will remain trafficable to koalas (and) clearing works are staggered.”

The former environmental consultant said the site, which was clear in the late ‘80s, was not currently reaching its potential due to invasive weeds, inefficient nutrition in foliage, disturbance and light pollution.

“All of our development is in the disturbance area, all of our development is in the lowest areas of juvenile koala trees, or non-juvenile koala trees,” he said.

“(But) it’s critical that they are in high nutrient and well-watered soil, and we are in a low nutrient rapid draining soil.

“So the koalas pass through our sight but there’s not enough nutrients in the vegetation for them to digest it so we are trying to fix that.”

Mr Slijderink said he would be spending more than $2m on making the site better habitable for koalas and for each hectare of land cleared (4.4 in total), three hectares of ideal koala trees would be planted in Ipswich.

Bellbird Park Preservation Group with the Ipswich Mayor. Picture: Facebook

“We have done an enormous job to mitigate any impact there. Unfortunately you can’t do any development without some impact and that’s the truth,” he said.
“We are very environmentally minded.

“The community can rest assured that the project team fully support and seek to advance all environmental and sustainable development objectives.”

The Bellbird Park Preservation Group spokeswoman said development offsets like replanting trees were not good enough, and the group hoped Ipswich City Council would buy the surrounding bushland and work with the developers to ensure it was rehabilitated.

“Offsets are inadequate and misguided compensations for koala habitat cleared, as it will take years to be of any benefit to future koala populations,” she said.

“Koalas are already listed as endangered, they don’t have time to wait for trees to grow.

“Every koala that dies prematurely today, through stress, relocation … will in turn affect the potential for future koalas to be born.”

Visionary behind Ipswich's Abadi Gaia Adult Residential Village. Picture: Urban Planning

The future of the retirement village which is billed to be the best of its kind in Australia, is currently in the hands of local and state governments which are reviewing the project plans and community submissions.