A GROUP of residents is calling on Ballarat City Council to block a 37-lot subdivision proposed for Wilson Street, claiming the city’s east is under “siege” by rampant development.
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Coughlan Civil’s proposal for a 37-lot subdivision at 809 Wilson Street has not been determined by the council and the developer has lodged an application for review at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
The council is set to decide at tomorrow’s meeting whether it will support the application at VCAT.
Ballarat East Network (BE Net) spokesperson Erin McCuskey said the development would be adjacent to the Canadian State Forest, with a koala overlay and wildlife corridor to consider.
But it was also just the latest in a series of similar developments under way in the city’s east.
Ms McCuskey said developers were running rampant in the city’s east while all eyes looked towards Ballarat west and the growth corridors in the new suburbs.
“We are so under siege here,” she said.
“It just feels like developers are coming in and concreting the place because it lies between Ballarat and Melbourne.”
Ms McCuskey said BE Net was not against development in the east, but was calling for sensible and sustainable development.
The council received 31 objections to 809 Wilson Street after an application for a 39-lot subdivision was lodged 18 months ago.
The Country Fire Authority also requested further information relating to bushfire risk, and in October the applicant lodged an amended planning application seeking approval for a 37-lot subdivision.
The recommendation by council officers is to not support the application at VCAT, on the grounds of insufficient stormwater treatment information, native vegetation impact and koala habitat impact.
rachel.afflick@fairfaxmedia.com.au
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