Gold Coast tram farce: developers getting approvals for construction of units on station site

The State Government has ticked off on a construction management plan an apartment tower on the Gold Coast — despite it being the site for a future light rail station.

The State Government has ticked off on a construction management plan for a 15-level apartment tower at Burleigh Heads, despite it being the site for a future light rail station.

Documents obtained by the Bulletin show State Development officers last month approved site management plans for Pointcorp Burleigh Pty Ltd.

It wants to develop its old Caltex service station site next to the Old Burleigh Theatre Arcade.

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Proposed Burleigh tower site, where light rail station is to be built.

Emails also show the Gold Coast City Council is in the final stages of negotiating a development approval which does not consider the impact of the tram line on the site.

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The State Opposition is convinced these sorts of approvals along the future Broadbeach to Burleigh light rail route will spark multimillion-dollar compensation packages.

Burleigh MP Michael Hart said he had spoken to several developers who had acquired land either on or near the Gold Coast Highway and prepared expensive consultant reports for council to approve high-rise projects from Burleigh to Palm Beach.

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Artist impression of the Burleigh Heads station.

“All these people have put in DAs (development applications) before the Government has designated the (light rail) route. They may not be able to build later,” Mr Hart said.

“I tend to think the Government will have to pay them double for what they paid. It’s going to be millions of dollars (in compensation) for sure.”

A Cardno development plan for Pointcorp concluded that “the development is not located in areas that compromise future transport corridors, including roads, public transport and active transport”.

Council planning committee chair Cameron Caldwell said officers could only assess an application according to the City Plan and zonal maps. A light rail overlay occurs only after the tram route is confirmed.

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Proposed Burleigh tower site.

The Palaszczuk Government has pledged $351 million for Stage 3A in a bid to have the trams running to Burleigh Heads by 2023, but the project depends on more Commonwealth funding.

Pointcorp director Chris Vitale confirmed the Transport Department, as a referral agency, had approved construction plans for trucks using the site and the council was “diligently” completing its analysis of the DA.

“I’m in the business of developing properties and I have a development site I want to build, and currently the zoning laws allow me to do it,” Mr Vitale told the Bulletin.

“I need to get a DA and press on. Yes, I look at the photograph on the DTMR website and it’s gone. It’s got a tram station on it. It’s quite amazing.”

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Burleigh MP Michael Hart is predicting million dollar compensation payouts.

Transport Minister Mark Bailey said TMR had been in confidential negotiations with the owners of the Caltex site since June last year about securing land needed for the road to be widened for Stage 3A of light rail.

“Mr Hart and the Gold Coast LNP need to stop trying to undermine light rail and get on board with the next important extension for Coast residents,” he said.

“The alignment and construction area for the next stage of light rail to Burleigh has in fact been formally gazetted as a corridor, which hapless Mr Hart has either forgotten or is unaware of.

“It really is time for Mr Hart to retire given his inability to be across the basic facts of a well-known and significant project in his own electorate.”