A group of developers is calling for a new suburb to be created on Hobart’s Eastern Shore

A southern Tasmanian council will seek the views of the public about creating a new suburb on land where more than 270 residential lots are about to go on the market.

Clarence Alderman Brendan Blomeley is delighted a community survey will go ahead to see if people want to have a new suburb — known as Howrah Gardens — created. Picture: LUKE BOWDEN

COULD Hobart’s Eastern Shore be getting a new suburb?

The Clarence community will be surveyed soon to determine if there is support for the formal creation of a new suburb called Howrah Gardens.

The new suburb would be created on an area of subdivided land situated between Howrah and Rokeby where there are 272 residential lots about to be released into the housing market.

The request for the new suburb name came from the Howrah Gardens Group, which is comprised of Tranmere Point Pty Ltd, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hobart and Malwood Pty Ltd, developers of the land.

They argue the area is already colloquially known as Howrah Gardens and formalising the name “simply reflects what the locality is already known as, and avoids the tensions that might arise through identifying with either Howrah or Rokeby”.

They also point out the proposed boundary is logical and will reduce potential for confusion related to access and property addresses.

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Clarence Alderman Brendan Blomeley moved the motion for a survey at a council meeting this month and said it was a no-brainer.

“To meet the demand of Hobart’s tight housing market, there has been significant interest in developing the area known locally as Howrah Gardens and council has received several approaches for the formalisation of the name.”

“The area in question is well known as Howrah Gardens and this is an opportunity for council to engage with our community to ascertain their views on the formalisation of Howrah Gardens,” he said.

“Collectively, landowners in the Howrah Gardens area are planning to release an additional 272 residential lots onto the market, which will significantly improve both the availability and affordability of housing in southern Tasmania.”

But a council officers’ report says the request for a new suburb did not “assist in promoting Rokeby as a desirable residential location” and “may serve to increase a sense of segregation between Howrah and Rokeby”.

“It is considered that the reasons put forward by on behalf of the developers, when considered overall and specifically, do not warrant council supporting the request to either alter the boundaries of Rokeby and Howrah or to introduce a new suburb of Howrah Gardens,” the report says.

If the community is in favour, the next step would be for the council to make a submission to the Nomenclature Board seeking to formalise the suburb name.