Legal feud over Redland Bay housing estate as ACCC finalises Stockland takeover review
A long-running dispute over approval for 224 houses on Moreton Bay’s foreshore has escalated after local residents launched a legal challenge against the developer, the local council and the state government.
Redlands Coast
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A long-running dispute over approval for 224 houses on Moreton Bay’s foreshore has escalated after local residents launched a legal challenge against the developer, the local council and the state government.
Residents of Serpentine Creek Rd at Redland Bay Paul McGowan and Janice McWatt McGowan lodged their objection in the Planning and Environment Court in June, claiming the proposed Villawood development threatened to flood their bayside property.
The proposed Villawood housing estate is next to land where Stockland-owned Halcyon plans to build 535 relocatable homes, which will border Lendlease’s 4000-lot Shoreline estate, which Stockland plans to acquire.
The $1.3 billion Stockland acquisition of 12 Lendlease communities, including Shoreline, is the subject of an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission review into anti-competitive practices, with findings expected next week.
The McGowans claim a watercourse and potential stormwater discharge from the upstream housing estate will run downhill and into their two driveways, inundating and eroding their Kidd St land.
Documents lodged with the planning court also show a new $6.53 million upgrade at the Kidd St and Serpentine Creek Rd intersection with traffic lights, would be at least 0.32m higher than the current road denying the McGowans access to both their driveways.
The couple said their concerns had been compounded by two-and-a-half years of “discussion, intimidation and veiled threats” from developer Villawood.
They claim the plans will also dump hundreds of vehicles onto their quiet rural street and the traffic lights planned for the new intersection with Serpentine Creek Rd would add to congestion woes in the area.
The McGowans engaged with Redland City Council and developer Villawood in an effort to resolve the issues before appealing the council’s May decision to approve the housing subdivisions.
Along with addressing the immediate flooding concerns, the couple’s appeal also includes broader ecological impacts, including damage to local wildlife habitats.
“This is a longstanding issue that we’ve been fighting for years,” Mr McGowan said.
“We previously spent $170,000 in court successfully fighting similar flooding issues. It’s frustrating to see this happening again without proper consideration of the impacts.”
In documents lodged with the court, Redland City Council said the development aligned with its planning scheme, complied with relevant benchmarks and would not adversely affect the local community.
The council documents also said the upgrade to the Serpentine Creek Road intersection was a state government jurisdiction and crucial for managing traffic flow and safety.
Properties along Kidd St and Serpentine Creek Rd are predominantly acreage and on septic sewage systems.
The 224 Villawood homes, the 4000-lot Shoreline estate and the proposed 500-unit relocatable housing park being built by Stockland’s Halcyon, will eventually be connected to Lendlease’s Redland Bay sewerage treatment plant currently under construction.
However, before then, tankers will truck the sewage to the Logan sewerage treatment plant but under terms of the Villawood development approval, only the first 59 residential lots will be serviced by the temporary sewage tanking.
Villawood said the appeal was from a single resident and the development would manage its own storm water.
“There will be no impacts to adjoining properties,” a spokesman said.
“The development proposes upgrades to Kidd Street to ensure no unacceptable traffic impacts arise from the development and complies with Redland City Council’s transport, servicing, access, and parking benchmarks.
“Villawood has secured approval from TMR for the construction of a four-way signalised intersection at the corner of Kidd St and Serpentine Creek Rd and will comply with all relevant design standards.
“Following construction completion of the lots, the Southern Redland Bay Wastewater Treatment Plant, which is currently under construction, will be operational.
“Villawood, Stockland and Lendlease will collectively deliver key infrastructure to service the southern Redland Bay area.”
The ACCC, which is due to hand down its findings on the Stockland takeover of Lendlease Communities on September 12, said its investigation had included Lendlease’s Shoreline project in Redland.
But an ACCC spokesman said the Stockland and Supalai acquisition of the Redland Bay project had not raised competition concerns.
“Lendlease’s Shoreline project has not raised competition concerns under the legal test because neither Stockland nor Supalai have existing masterplanned communities in the Redlands region,” the ACCC spokesman said.
The ACCC investigation is to ensure no property acquisitions by Stockland will substantially lessen competition in the market, which critics believe could influence housing prices in some of the estates.
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