Sunbury Residents Association vows to continue fight to save Jacksons Creek Valley from development
THE official panel report into how Sunbury will grow over the next 30 years is in - and the town’s residents’ association says it will spend the run-up to the state election fighting a residential development as part of the plans.
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THE Sunbury Residents Association will spend the run-up to this year’s state election advocating for the abolition of potential residential development at Jacksons Creek Valley.
The campaign comes as association president Peter Free hit out at the release on December 20 of panel reports by Planning Panels Victoria on the Sunbury South and Lancefield Road Precinct Structure Plans.
“It’s disappointing the release of such a major report which sets out the virtual doubling of Sunbury’s population was released five days before Christmas, but we will be pouring over it and writing to (Planning Minister) Richard Wynne,” Mr Free said.
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Despite a prominent campaign to save the Jacksons Creek Valley from development, the only concession in the report is increased design controls at the site.
Villawood Properties will reduce its proposed lots from 407 to 286 but the panel recommended a permit be granted for the Sherwood Heights Estate.
“There are two places where Sunbury people do not want housing and that’s Jacksons Creek Valley and Jacksons Hill,” Mr Free said.
“The panel report goes to the minister for sign-off now, so our focus will be on persuading him Sunbury residents don’t want this.”
Victoria Planning Authority acting executive director regional Victoria Rob Ball told the Leader while PPV provided qualified support for the development of a smaller portion of Jacksons Creek Valley in the Lancefield Road PSP, the planning minister “has ultimate responsibility for approving the PSPs”.
“This could include any changes to the Lancefield Road PSP in relation to this site,” he said.
Mr Ball said the VPA was working through all recommendations of the panel and hoped to finalise the PSPs for the minister’s consideration by mid-year.
Mr Free said while the rigour dedicated to mapping out Sunbury’s expansion through the PSP process was a sound principle, the association was sceptical critical infrastructure such as the Bulla bypass and a third rail crossing in Sunbury would be in place by the time the expansion ramped up.
“We need the Bulla bridge situation sorted out and the Sunbury centre where an extra crossing is needed sorted out as well,” he said.
“Without these problems dealt with, living in Sunbury in the future is set to be chaos and livability would drop.”
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Mr Free said the panel report, coupled with the draft Jacksons Creek masterplan, gave his group impetus in the lead-up to the election.
The residents association said it was a virtually unanimous view held by submitters to the Jacksons Hill plan that no housing should be permitted at the heritage site, while a proposed secondary college there did not align to where Sunbury’s growth would come from.
The VPA expects the new precincts to eventually be home to about 55,000 people, with Sunbury’s population to reach 125,000 by the year 2050.
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