Toowoomba Regional Council explains why 500-lot estate ought to be refused

For four years developers and Toowoomba Regional Council worked on a master planned 500-lot housing estate in Glenvale. Now in court documents the council has explained why it wants to refuse the development application.

Toowoomba Regional Council has explained why it wants to refuse a development application for a 500-lot housing estate in Glenvale.

Developers of the Eustondale master planned estate Teedale Pty Ltd and Douglas Property Group Pty Ltd took matters into their own hands in September, lodging an appeal in the Planning and Environment Court seeking an approval for the project four years after they submitted it to Toowoomba Regional Council.

Now, lawyers for TRC have set out their position and the reasons they wish to refuse the development application.

In a document filed with the P & E Court, TRC said the development ought to be refused for a number of reasons.

The first of which is that precincts four and five of the development are for sensitive land uses in areas that could or would be impacted by operations in the Glenvale Key Resource Area.

The council also said that development of parts of all five precincts of the master planned estate would “not avoid natural areas, in particular the ecosystem of biodiversity networks, native vegetation and areas of ecological significance”.

Another reason the development ought to be refused is that the proposed development “does not avoid areas of scenic amenity values and areas with open space values”, according to the council.

The development also “does not avoid areas with development constraints and areas exposed to natural hazards”.

The council is also opposing the development because precinct one is primarily for lots less than 500 sq m and includes lots as small as 250 sq m and is therefore “an inappropriate residential development”.

The council also said the proposed development of the remaining precincts “does not establish a quality residential estate with a high-quality residential character”.

“The proposed development in its current form is inappropriate,” the council concluded.