New ban on Brisbane townhouses, apartments
Brisbane City Council is about to rezone a massive parcel of land, effectively shutting down new plans for townhouses and apartments in some areas.
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THE construction of apartments and townhouses in Brisbane’s low-density neighbourhoods is set to be officially banned under a range of sweeping changes that will also protect the heritage-listed Lamb House.
The council will move to introduce a raft of reforms to the City Plan at today’s meeting as it pushes ahead with a bid to safeguard the character of neighbourhoods and protect parts of Brisbane’s heritage.
The Courier-Mail can reveal that this will include rezoning a massive 40ha of land across the city so that its primary use is for low-density residential buildings, preventing apartments from being built on the land. The rezoning will make it harder for developers to apply for commercial developments.
The 40ha, which is currently classified as “emerging community”, is spread across 54 parcels of land in suburbs such as Kenmore, Mansfield, Belmont, Carindale and Sunnybank.
City Planning chair Matthew Bourke told The Courier-Mail they wanted to give residents certainty that they could expect one or two-storey homes on those blocks of land.
Not all emerging community land will be rezoned.
Labor’s lord mayoral candidate Patrick Condren savaged the LNP administration’s city planning record, accusing them of letting developers to “rampage” through Brisbane suburbs.
He questioned what could be done to save the backyards that had already been “taken away”.
“What about the backyards that no longer exist because this unelected lord mayor ... let developers rampage through the suburbs of Brisbane,” he said.
“All of the sudden in the shadow of an election, they want us to believe that they’re going to protect the backyards.
“In mean, give me a break.”
The council will also today vote to ban townhouse and apartment developments in all low-density residential areas across Brisbane.
It follows months of consultation, where some concerns were raised about the impact that the reforms could have on housing affordability and diversity.
Cr Bourke said they had received “very strong feedback” from residents that they wanted less townhouses in areas that were meant for one or two story homes.
“They want areas in those outer suburbs in particular that are one and two-storey homes to remain that way with that particular character and feel,” he said. “They’d like to see density and growth in the city happening around major transport corridors and transport nodes.”
Lamb House at Kangaroo Poin t is also to be given better safeguards, with the land it sits on to be rezoned so that it reflects current temporary protections.
More than 60 significant trees and 27 newly identified pre-1911 home are set to be added to the City Plan as well.
Carparking space requirements in suburban areas will also be adjusted, making it mandatory for apartments with two bedrooms to have two carparking spaces – up from the current requirement of 1.25 spaces. A three-bedroom unit will also require two car spaces while units with four or more bedrooms will need 2.5 spaces.
Several other changes, including the rezoning of emerging community land, will require further community consultation, as well as State Government approval before they can formally be introduced to the City Plan. Council Opposition Leader Jared Cassidy described the changes as the “longest mea culpa in Brisbane’s planning history” and said that they were an attempt from the LNP to reinvent themselves before an election.
Cr Bourke hit back, claiming the Opposition had “no ideas and no vision”.
Alderley mother of eight-year-old twins Alexis and Oliver Taylor, Naomi Dorland said preserving back yards was vital for children’s health and development.
“I’m all about back yards,” she said. “We’re lucky to have one as big as we do.”
Having already lost some view due to development in her suburb, she said the changes were more than welcome.
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