‘I feel an obligation’: Skylands proponent confident plan will push ahead
Skylands developer Greg Carr wants to ensure development on the Droughty Point Peninsula is not just urban sprawl and wants to “create something beautiful”. HIS PLANS >>
Tasmania
Don't miss out on the headlines from Tasmania. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Skylands proponent Greg Carr says he feels obligated to create something “beautiful” on the Droughty Point Peninsula, after the masterplan for his proposed development was given a potential lifeline by Tasmania’s planning Minister.
Mr Carr, who has flown from the US for meetings around the development, said the land had been in his family for decades, and he felt a sense of obligation to ensure the right development went ahead.
“My dad bought this land in 1981 … dad left me in charge of it when he passed on,” he said.
“We want to create something beautiful … I feel an obligation.
“I don’t want to get to heaven and look back and say ‘god what a mess you left there, there was this beautiful peninsula and instead of creating something terrific you just subdivided and put lots of houses on it’.”
The Skylands masterplan, which would result in the build of 2500 homes on the peninsula was knocked back by the Clarence City Council earlier this month.
The plan includes allocating more than 30 per cent of the land for green space and building neighbourhood centres to create a sense of community.
Days after the decision, the state Planning Minister Michael Ferguson announced the government would be intervening to allow the masterplan to be assessed by the Tasmanian Planning Commission and to initiate a process to extend the urban growth boundary.
Mr Carr has met with Mr Ferguson, and said he felt confident the development would go ahead.
“I think there’s a small group of activists who are not reflective of the overall community,” Mr Carr said.
“They don’t represent the population.”
Mr Carr said he’d spoken to other residents who were in favour of the plan.
“They like the idea of the community, they love the idea of having access to all of the waterfront.
“They like the idea of the park on the hill, how much nature it will bring.
“We’re giving up 38 per cent of the land, we only have to give up five per cent.”
Mr Carr said the family once developed a 150 lot subdivision, called Camelot Park.
He said it was important the latest project would be more than homes and urban sprawl.
“One of the that disappoints me about what we’ve done (with Camelot Park) and I didn’t really grasp it until we were well on the way to completing it, when you drive through it, it’s really just urban sprawl, it’s house after house after house,” he said.
“What they’ve (the council) voted against is what everyone says they want, it doesn’t make any sense,” Mr Carr said.
“If you don’t change the urban growth boundary you cant complete the neighbourhoods, if you don’t complete the neighbourhoods you can’t give up all this park, the whole thing doesn’t work.”
Mr Carr said one of the things opponents brought up was how the development would affect the view.
“You stand on the waterfront here and look across and what is it? It’s a bare patch of hill …
Why would anyone think that’s better?” Mr Carr said.
“Why would you object to having a beautiful park up there?”
North Melbourne cuts its Tasmanian commitment
The Kangaroos have slashed their four-game commitment to Tassie in half as two of their Hobart AFL games hop away to the West. Here’s what will happen in 2025.
Spirit availability a ‘nightmare’ for Hobart fisherman
Businesses having invested big to capitalise on new Spirit capacity promised for this summer are suffering a ‘nightmare’ situation, Labor says. Here’s how it’s impacting one business.