Zoning Advisory Panel
During the week the zoning panel met and took submissions. The Residential Zones Standing Advisory Committee – Ballarat Planning Scheme was convened to ensure that changes to zoning were in place by July this year. The City of Ballarat planners got together a proposal which included where they could produce evidence enough for proposing where the three zones could be implemented.
Most of Ballarat East is currently covered by Residential Zone 1. There are basically three new zones we are concerned with:
- Residential Growth – higher density development. 13.5m height limit. No specific controls on the maximum number of dwellings, will still need to adhere to Ballarat Planning Strategy.
- General Residential – moderate development. 9m height limit. No specific controls on the maximum number of dwellings, will still need to adhere to Ballarat Planning Strategy.
- Neighbourhood Residential – limited development. 8m height limit. The City of Ballarat is proposing a maximum of two dwellings on any lot, and a minimum lot size of 800m2, will still need to adhere to Ballarat Planning Strategy.
The first day of the hearing the planning officers presented the City’s proposal for covering most of the city with the ‘fall back’ zone General residential plus some specific areas of the other two. The second day was open to the public to present their submissions about the proposal. Most of the usual suspects were there: BE Net, Friends of Sparrow Ground, Friends of Canadian Corridor, all providing evidence to increase the amount of Neighbourhood Residential Zone to include some blocks west of the proposed area near the Canadian State Forest. BE Net and the Rodier Street mob argued also for protection of this zone in heritage areas close to the Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka.
Developers were representing themselves, and their self interest, in relation to specific blocks (Wilson St & Buninyong) arguing the zones shouldn’t have to apply to their blocks at this stage. They also were united in wanting to have no minimum block size as this should be left to developers discretion (!!). well we have seen what developer discretion can do here in the East. Read the next post!
As soon as we hear anything we will report it here. Thanks to all the Easties for the support through your comments both here and on facebook, your words and texts of support and just knowing you were there.
Here is what the sky looked like by the time I left after spending the entire day at consultations for the future of our beautiful city. Monday its another workshop so I will report back about that too!
Image by Erin McCuskey
Thank you Erin, Ron and others, for all your hard work on this – sorry I couldn’t make it on the day.
Regards, Sue
Thanks for all your work! I would also be very concerned about the nature of ‘developer discretion’ that seems to go along with the worrying concept of ‘Emerging character.’ Here’s to building homes, not fortunes!