Councillor takes a stand over residents’ right to engage with planning decisions in their neighbourhood

A decision to stop a community from having input into a neighbourhood townhouse development has angered a local councillor.

A MORETON BAY councillor has taken a stand after a community in her division lost the right to have a say over a future townhouse development in their estate.

Councillor Brooke Savige (Div 1) said she would no longer support any application that removed a resident’s ability to have input on matters that significantly impacted their communities.

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Cr Savige was reacting to a council decision this week for a rezoning that would allow townhouses in the prestigious Pacific Harbour golf course estate, on Bribie Island.

The decision means any future development application for the site — so long as it met the new zoning conditions — would be “code assessable” and not go to the community for feedback.

Cape Blue precinct with the Pacific Harbour Golf and Country Club in the far left.

“My greatest concern around this application stems from a fundamental belief that communities should have the right to engage on developments that impact on the quiet enjoyment of their homes,” Cr Savige said.

“Making these developments code assessable means this is the last opportunity I or even the residents will have to engage on the outcome of their area if the developer submits an application in line with these conditions.

Div 1 Cr Brooke Savige.

“I cannot support any proposal that removed the community’s ability to have a say on matters be it development or otherwise that significant impact on their communities and the future of their communities.”

Moreton Bay Council CEO Greg Chemello said during the meeting that 80-90 per cent of all development applications were code assessable, meaning they were assessed against the planning scheme without further community input.

Retired planner Howard Briggs, who has contributed to several major Queensland planning frameworks, said the best time for residents to have their say on planning was either before or during the creation of a council’s planning scheme.

“Communities live with the effects of poor development for a long time and conversely are

enlivened and enriched by good ones,” he said.

Howard Briggs, retired Brisbane land use planner.

“It affects your quality of life, economy, mobility, safety and to maximise future flexibility in the enjoyment of natural resources by avoiding decisions that are irreversible.”

Mr Briggs added that there was a lot of discretion taken by council planners when assessing developments against the planning scheme.

Moreton Bay’s current planning scheme was adopted in 2016 after significant collaboration with the community.

However, it has since been widely criticised and the subject of several amendments, including one high profile failed amendment that triggered an internal council review.

Cr Savige said there was still a lot of room for improvement in the current planning scheme to make it better reflect community expectations.

“It will be absolutely imperative that the community takes every opportunity they can to come on board and have their say (on any new or amended planning scheme),” she said.

Plans for infill development in the Pacific Harbour estate Bribie Island.

“People are becoming more engaged in the planning process, and it is great to see active engaged communities.

“It’s through that community engagement that we best align our decisions with community expectations.”

Some residents in the estate were against the townhouses, and also had concerns about potential traffic and parking issues resulting from an increase in the estate’s population.

Residents and councillors were also in the dark over how any future development in the estate would look, as little detail was provided in the application.

When it came to voting on the application, councillors were deadlocked at 6-6, and deputy mayor Denise Sims used her casting vote to approve the application.

Cr Savige was one of the six councillors who voted against the application, the others being Mark Booth, Sandra Ruck, Adam Hain, Tony Latter and Karl Winchester.

New conditions imposed on the rezoned land included restricting building height, lot sizes and setbacks.

The council would also investigate options for a second road access into the estate.

Once fully developed, the site would be well under the 1240 dwellings that was part of a much earlier approval for the site, dating back to the early 1990s.