Highfields town centre: Chamber of Commerce unveils alternative master plan after 3200 residents sign petition to Toowoomba council

An alternative proposal for the long-awaited Highfields town centre master plan has emerged, after more than 3000 residents signed a petition urging the council to change course on the project.

Thousands of Highfields residents have vented their anger at the Toowoomba Regional Council’s handling of the community’s new town centre plan, ahead of a major vote on the future of its fire station this week.

Nearly 3200 people have signed a petition by the Highfields Chamber of Commerce, which will be tabled by deputy mayor Rebecca Vonhoff at council’s meeting tomorrow, calling for the council to incorporate more resident input into the final design before starting divestment.

The backlash followed a radical revamp of the plan earlier this year that was fuelled by a market-sounding exercise by consultancy firm JLL.

The report, which saw reductions in higher-density housing and mixed-use commercial spaces, drew upon on the advice of developers who had experience in Highfields and Toowoomba.

It concluded a number of elements within the plan would see no immediate returns.

The growing backlash comes after the council hosted a packed out forum on May 7, where responses from TRC representatives left many locals disappointed.

Lisa Deeth, Highfields Chamber of Commerce president, addresses a community meeting on April 15 over the community's town centre proposal.

“They presented a new plan to the community and it had some things that we had not seen before and included some high rise buildings,” Highfields Chamber president Lisa Deeth said.

“It had very little change to the residential land component which we were concerned about.

“We as the committee were not happy with the presentation that they gave us.

“The committee, we were quite angry and quite upset by the lack of not listening to the community.”

The chamber organised a similar meeting in Highfields on April 15, which was attended by Toowoomba North MP Trevor Watts and councillor Bill Cahill.

Ms Deeth said the organisation had even drafted its own version of the town centre based on the feedback from residents to help push for further reforms, echoing how the original master plan was developed more than six years ago through the Highfields Community Heart Project.

Highfields Chamber of Commerce's proposed revamp of the town centre master plan.

The alternative proposal includes a new pedestrian mall similar to Nicholas Street in Ipswich, an activation street with multi-story buildings, expansion of the commercially-zoned areas and medium-density housing areas to transition between the town centre and existing low-density housing.

“A local town planner is on our committee and has been working with us, listened to the suggestions of everything that actually applies to council’s requirements, and we put that suggestion to council to say ‘here’s an alternative’,” she said.

Concept art of the Highfields town centre master plan, which has been revamped by the Toowoomba Regional Council following a market-sounding report that saw input from developers.

“It is still similar to what they had, but it reduces the amount of residential space, there’s a lot more commercial space available and there are (streets with) some shops down the bottom with potential units or apartments above it.

“On our new plan, we’ve actually got one section where there still is medium density, which is the buffer between the existing houses and the town centre, and the reason we’ve done that is just so that there’s a step down from commercial to the residential, which is what the community were wanting.”

It comes as councillors prepare to vote on selling off about 3000 sqm of land off O’Brien’s Road to the Queensland government, which will become the expanded permanent Highfields fire station.

According to the report by council’s strategic infrastructure planning principal Josh Leddy, the Queensland Fire Department made the purchase request on March 3 for the land after 21 other sites were assessed.

A breakdown of the 2018 vs. 2025 Highfields town centre master plans.

“Importantly, this location does not compromise the intent or delivery of the Central Highfields Masterplan and is located in the precinct’s northwest corner,” the report said.

Mr Leddy noted the government had the power to acquire the land if the council chose against a formal sale process.

Ms Deeth acknowledged the battle to shift the fire station had been lost, but believed there was still time to correct course on the balance of the master plan.

“As our committee, we have said we’re not going to win everything, we are not going to win all of the things that we would like,” she said.

“(But) if we can compromise and we can make it a win-win for the council, then we can have the fire station there as long as they then take it into consideration the requirements we have.”