No Brave New World to be found.

I have just come from the reassessment of the apartments on 449-553 Beach Road in Duncraig. The argument to properly review this against SPP7.3 Vol.2 was strong and would have yielded a better outcome for all. But I was never hopeful.

Deputation follows:

Good morning and thank you for allowing me the opportunity to raise some points of concern regarding this development. Though I live close enough to be affected by this apartment building, when it was first assessed I did not learn about the DA in advance.

I know others in the community who feel that we did not get a right of reply last time, with the sole complainant ultimately describing it as a waste of time. The community feels disenfranchised.

But now, with the advent of better public consultation and the release of the Apartment Codes, I am hoping we are in a brave new world where better design outcomes for multiple dwellings are not only possible, they are expected. As Minister Saffioti is quoted as saying:

The new rules address developments that have previously resulted in poor outcomes for streetscapes, cramped interiors and a lack of green space. I would argue this broadly describes the Beach Road proposal.

But as the Minster also said:

"This policy is about learning from some of the mistakes from the past and moving forward to create more sustainable, vibrant, attractive and healthy neighbourhoods.”

Starting with this development, because as the biggest in HOAs so far – it will set a precedent that other will surely invoke. And while I sympathise with the developer about the rule change, I can’t see why that would justify not applying the new rules. When the rules changed and I was rezoned to R40, nobody afforded me any special protection on the basis that it was R20 when I bought there.

And if the new apartment codes are applied, it will yield a much better result, so to me, it’s a no brainer. A chance to fix the overdevelopment of this site, the lack of meaningful landscaping which will turn the carpark into an oven in the summer months, the inhospitable communal area, the lack of meaningful solar access to the north and the imposing 3 storey blank walls that bookend the building, with the eastern aspect towering over the neighbouring block, exacerbated by the 2m setback and the sloping ground. This is a golden opportunity to make the case for a better outcome for future residents and neighbours.

Except that, the City’s planners have made it very hard for themselves to make that case. Because they have attempted to assess this development, without much of the necessary documentation the apartment codes expect.

The applicant must provide these and make the case for this development. Particularly when asking for as many discretions as this apartment would need. For example, why should they be allowed to exceed the plot ratio by more than 10%? If the drawings were to scale you would see the plot ratio is 0.89 in lieu of 0.8 – which in any case, should not be seen as a target, but a maximum. This discretion has serious repercussions. It allows for two extra units, requiring more car spaces, that in turn eats into the landscaping and so on. Likely without it, the four-storey discretion and other various setback issues wouldn’t be needed and the minimum communal open space area could be met.

What are the justifications for these discretions? The new codes say they can be granted in exchange for tangible community benefit. I look forward to hearing the rationale, but I can’t find it in the application.

A4 and A5 of the codes list all the information that should be provided and we have hardly any of it: Not a landscaping plan, not a summary of the development details, no site plans or sections, or building performance diagrams and on and on…

And it’s a problem, because without this, things will get missed. As an example, in the absence of a proper landscaping plan, the officer reviewing this development seems to have missed the fact that there are no areas on site big enough to host a large or even a medium sized tree. If this has been missed, what else? Inexpert as I am - I could find quite a number of examples. And then there’s the criteria that would require technical assessment, like the acoustic report – particularly on such a busy road. Without that information, how will you be able to confidently reach a decision? And how can we have confident in your decision?

I am sure the community will take no comfort in hearing that this will all be fixed later with ‘conditions to the approval’. In an era of Opal Towers, where oversight is failing, we expect issues to be addressed now, before approval.

Please. I ask you to defer your decision today. Ask the applicant to make their case for this development. Ask them to provide the required documentation and make the improvements to meet the requirements of the new Apartment codes. Let’s make sure the development you ultimately approve is one that ticks all the boxes.