Planning officers have recommended councillors refuse permission for a controversial "barrel" accommodation project in the foothills of Mount Buninyong.
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The application for 67 Yendon Number 2 Road is due to be considered by councillors at a special planning meeting on Wednesday evening.
The upshot of the discussion will formalise the City of Ballarat's position on the proposal, which would involve the construction of five one-bedroom 'barrel' villas with steel supports.
Under the plans, the so-called barrels would offer views down across the valley and would be aimed at a high-end tourism market with fees of up to $1,000 a night.
Four of the barrels would be grouped together at the north end of the site, and would all include a bedroom, bathroom and large windows with a view towards the south.
Another slightly longer barrel is planned further north, with a separate one-bedroom accommodation unit slated for the north-east corner of the site.
The latter would be constructed from shipping containers and designed with disabled access.
The barrels were on sale for $1,000,000 with a leaseback agreement last year, but the owner confirmed they had been withdrawn from the market for now late last year.
The application, which was submitted to council planners in June last year, met strong resistance from the Buninyong community.
There have been 57 objections received since the planning application was advertised and five submissions in support of the development.
City of Ballarat planning officers have now clarified their stance on the application with their recommendation to refuse it. Grounds stated for advocating for a refusal includes inconsistency with planning guidelines "to respect the valued areas of rural character".
In the agenda, a planning officer report also says there was not enough information to judge whether the site could have an adequate effluent management system, nor was there enough detail on about an accessway that would be constructed for CFA requirements.
If councillors support the recommendation to refuse the application, further legal discussions seem inevitable.
The developer behind the project David Penman is already taking the City of Ballarat to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) for failing to give a decision within statutory time limits.
Mr Penman, who runs the Clifftop at Hepburn hotel, made a separate VCAT application pending for neighbouring Hepburn Shire after a proposed glamping site was knocked back by councillors last year.
The council's vote on the Yendon No 2 Road proposal will not be taken as a decision, but rather as the City of Ballarat's position on the application when it goes to VCAT.
A compulsory conference for the matter is scheduled for March 2 with a hearing date set for May 17.
The special planning meeting takes place online at 6.30pm tonight and will be broadcast live with a recording released afterwards.
Another item on the same agenda is a proposal for the Dollar Bill brewery in Invermay, which garnered 30 objections, 19 submissions in favour, and a supporting petition with 382 signatories.
Council officers have also recommended that application be refused.
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