VCAT to determine Elsternwick Woolworths proposal at 10-day hearing
Shoppers are being called on to boycott Woolworths as the supermarket giant’s “grotesque development” proposal for Elsternwick, which includes two high-rise towers of 10 and 14 storeys, heads to the state’s planning tribunal — again.
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A lobby group is calling on shoppers to boycott Woolworths stores amid a stoush over the “grotesque development” slated for the former ABC studios site in Elsternwick.
Plans for the massive Selwyn St development will head to the state’s planning tribunal next week after Glen Eira Council twice rejected the supermarket behemoth’s “excessive” proposal earlier this year.
The plans include two high-rise towers of 10 and 14 storeys, with 160 apartments, a supermarket, bottle shop and other retail, and a community space for Jewish Cultural and Arts Precinct.
More than 220 car spaces will also be built on site.
Stop the Elsternwick Towers lead campaigner Karen Boyd-Jones said Woolworths had continually ignored residents’ wishes to “defiantly proceed with a grotesque development”.
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The group has held several rallies to protest the development and a petition against the plan garnered more than 2000 signatures.
But Ms Boyd-Jones said Woolworths had refused to listen “to the grave concerns of thousands of Glen Eira residents”, forcing them to take their money elsewhere.
“I haven’t set foot in a Woolworths store since this saga began and I won’t — I refuse to,” she said.
She urged people to do their grocery shopping elsewhere in a bid to make Woolworths “take notice”.
“They keep saying they’ve listened to the community and improved designs but it’s just been minute changes,” she said.
“This is inappropriate in this position and will completely change the heritage neighbourhood.”
Ms Boyd-Jones said traffic experts estimated the development would bring 5000 extra cars per day to the “pretty, residential, suburban streets” of Elsternwick.
VCAT will determine the proposal following a 10-day hearing from Monday, November 18.
Woolworths’ head of property development Andrew Loveday told the Leader the proposal would “make a positive contribution to the community”, and was in line with the council’s vision to create a cultural precinct in Elsternwick.
He said plans were consistent with the current framework for the area, which allows scope for buildings higher than 10 storeys where “community benefit and design excellence is delivered”.
“We are confident our proposal would deliver a vibrant and lively community hub for local residents that would be a catalyst for a significant cultural precinct,” Mr Loveday said.
“We have been engaging with key community stakeholders as part of the VCAT process and have made changes to our plans as a result of these discussions.”
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Glen Eira Council planning and place director Ron Torres said he hoped VCAT would uphold the council’s decision to reject the plan.
“The council stands behind its decision to refuse a planning permit,” he said.
He said while the proposal included “a number of positive elements”, they did not outweigh the key issues, including height and design, increased traffic and the impact to public amenity.
Mr Torres said the council would call six expert witnesses at the hearing to discuss planning, traffic, urban design, heritage and acoustics.