The latest proposed addition to Ballarat's huge infill upsurge could see 37 new townhouses and a community veggie garden built next to a former tip site.
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The Black Hill site, at 112 Sim Street, consists of a single title just under a hectare containing a home, associated outbuilding, a dam and vacant land bordered to the south by Chisholm Street Reserve.
Ballarat's Porter Architects will design seven different styles of townhouses at the site, ranging from two and three bedrooms which will be carbon neutral and energy efficient.
"Townhomes [will] incorporate sustainability measures including a 7 [The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme] rating, no reticulated gas provision, electric boosted solar hot water or rainwater tanks for garden and toilet use to larger dwellings, provision for solar PV where feasible ... battery storage space and electric vehicle conduits in all garages," the proposal noted.
Two-bedroom homes will have one allocated car space and three-bedroom homes will have two.
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Ballarat-based planners Niche Planning Studio have submitted the 37-lot planning application to the City of Ballarat on behalf of developers Hygge Property.
"The natural slope of the land creates opportunities for homes to enjoy significant views over Ballarat East, Mount Warrenheip and Mount Buninyong," the project page on Hygge Property read.
"A well-established neighbourhood in Ballarat, Black Hill offers the best of local living with a primary school, swimming pool, post office and hotel.
"The project site borders the Chisholm Street Reserve and is located within walking distance to the Black Hill Reserve - home to well-known bush trails and mountain bike paths."
The proposal also includes some dwellings which will be designed to accommodate community housing.
Outside of the 37 dwellings, the 9,442 square metre site will also be home to an onsite orchard and vegetable garden, playground, undercover seated barbecue area, two 40,000 litre water tanks, and seven visitor car parking spaces.
The public accessible reserve adjacent to the application site was a council-owned landfill from 1978 and 1982, and was the subject of a landowner complaint to the Environment Protection Authority in 2016 that resulted in Ballarat City Council being fined for failing to fully comply with a notice that required it to detail the extent of waste that existed beyond the boundary of the former tip.
A council report undertaken in 2016 confirmed waste had been found outside the boundaries of the landfill site but it did not "pose imminent risk to human health or the environment".
A letter to council from planners in November 2022 stated, "owing to known suspected previous land uses on adjoining sites (landfill)," site soil testing will be required for the infill project.
Proposal documents note in a pre-application meeting between the planners, developers, and council on April 1, 2022, "council was generally supportive of the proposal and didn't raise any matter of concern".
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