53 Fairlawn St, Nathan, Brisbane development controversy
THEY are known as NAG and tomorrow the group will meet Brisbane City Council to do just that. The Nathan Action Group will meet council officials to thrash out a solution to a massive multi-storey housing estate on the cards for their suburb.
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THEY are known as NAG and tomorrow the group will meet Brisbane City Council to do just that.
The Nathan Action Group will meet council officials to thrash out a solution to a massive and controversial multi-storey housing estate on the cards for their suburb.
The group says the impact assessable development application, before the council, backs on to Toohey Forest, will cause traffic chaos and will double the population of the southside suburb if it is approved.
Brisbane City Council has ordered the developer of the project to undertake a traffic management study and address height concerns before a decision on the development application can be made.
The Nathan Action Group (NAG) was formed after a community meeting earlier this year,
organised by Brisbane City Councillor Steve Griffiths and supported by State Member for Toohey Peter Russo, to discuss community concerns over the density and scale of the proposed development which could be up to 500 units (which would include aged-care and student accommodation).
NATHAN RESIDENTS FEAR IMPACTS OF DEVELOPMENT
Councillor Julian Simmonds, the chair of the Brisbane City Council Planning Committee, has agreed to meet with representatives of the group tomorrow night.
Nathan Action Group spokesman Blake Buchanan said the group had written to each councillor on the committee requesting a meeting to share the concerns of Nathan resident prior to them finalising their decision on the development application.
The Development Application (No: A004679280) submitted by Tam Dang Planning (on behalf of Southway Services No. 2 Pty Ltd) to rezone 53 Fairlawn St, Nathan from light industrial to
residential is currently being assessed by Brisbane City Council (BCC).
“We, the NAG actively champion the sustainable development of this site, providing it is sympathetic to Toohey Forest and the existing suburban footprint of Nathan,” Mr Buchanan said.
“We also support the proposed material change of use (MCU) in-principle, from light industrial to low/medium density residential (LMDR 2).
“We support a maximum of 250 dwellings (townhouses) of mainly two storeys (and some three), but vehemently oppose the medium density of 500 plus dwellings (three to five storeys) proposed by the developers.
“The NAG recognises the need for this MCU, in line with Brisbane’s growth and the changing
character of the area. However, we want to ensure this development enhances the quality of
living for current and future residents of Nathan.
“We have concerns that the existing infrastructure (including water supply and road network) may not adequately service the indicative future local population of Nathan and surrounding suburbs of Salisbury, Moorooka and Tarragindi.”
Southway Services Pty Ltd spokesman Mark Woelders told the Southern Star: “The current proposal is better for the community than general industry, which is our as of right to redevelop under the current zoning.
“We are working with council to achieve a satisfactory outcome to make the change to residential which would be a great outcome for the community,” he said.
“The current proposal has two story dwelling facing the street and builds to multi-story at the very rear of the site.”
Mr Woelders did not respond to the Southern Star’s questioning about how the number of units/town houses are proposed and whether they will be for student accommodation and retirement. He also failed to respond about how many storeys the development would be.
City Planning Chairman Julian Simmonds said council was currently assessing an application for the master plan for future development at 53 Fairlawn Street, Nathan.
“Council does not support the application as it currently stands and after collating community feedback, has a number of additional serious concerns which have been raised with the developer,” Cr Simmonds said.
“While Council supports the future transition of this site from industrial uses to housing, it does not support the density that has been proposed and requires the developer to undertake a more detailed traffic study.”
Mr Buchanan said: “NAG also appreciates that some BCC councillors including Lord Mayor Graham Quirk and Councillor Julian Simmonds (Chair of the Planning Committee) have publicly expressed concern over the proposed scale and density of the existing proposal,” he said.
He said: “Toohey Forest is home to at least three animal species that have been identified as endangered or vulnerable -the koala, tusked frog and powerful owl.
“Due to the proximity of the proposed development, we are generally concerned that large-scale construction and the scale and density of the current proposal (if approved), will impact negatively on this unique ecosystem,” he said.
“Importantly we note that the Brisbane City Council Community Engagement Policy commits the council to meaningful consultation with the community and encourages active participation by the community, regarding decision-making processes that will impact the quality of their day to day lives.”
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