A Campbelltown councillor wants residential covenants like the one in Glen Alpine to be made legally binding.
Cr Bob Thompson says that would be the only way to protect residents from overdevelopment in such suburbs.
He was speaking after a bid by a Glen Alpine resident to subdivide his 1,504 square metre property into four lots in Figree Crescent was deferred at Tuesday night’s council meeting.
The plan before the council calls for demolition of the existing house and the construction of four new houses of two storeys each.
Cr Thompson said at the meeting that council needed to protect the people who bought at Glen Alpine over the years.
“I am actually very upset to see this application come before council,’’ he said.
He supported a motion by Cr Darcy Lound to defer the matter so council could inspect the property before making a decision either way.
This morning, speaking to the South West Voice, Cr Thompson said council should make a concerted effort to protect residents who bought properties in suburbs marketed with covenants.
In the Glen Alpine covenant, among other things, owners agreed that there would be one house per building site throughout the estate.
Cr Thompson said that three years ago, when an application had come before council from a Glen Alpine resident who wanted to build a duplex house on his site, he urged council to act on such covenants.
“I warned that unless we made the covenants legally binding we couldn’t protect residents from overdevelopment in certain suburbs,’’ Cr Thompson said.
“I wanted all covenants covered by such a legally binding policy, across the entire Campbelltown area.
“But it went nowhere because I didn’t get the support for such a move.’’
Council rejected the development application for a duplex and the owner appealed in the Land and Environment Court, which upheld council’s decision.
“That’s the thing, we should not be afraid to stand up for residents because the developers may take us to court,’’ Cr Thompson said.
The Figree Crescent development application, which involves subdivision of the property, went to council on Tuesday night with a recommendation for approval.
A report to council said the plan was “consistent with the aims of Campbelltown 2025 Looking Forward, a statement of broad town planning intent for the longer term future of the City of Campbelltown that:
• responds to what Council understands people want the City of Campbelltown to look, feel and function like;
• recognises likely future government policies and social and economic trends;
• sets down the foundations for a new town plan that will help achieve that future.
The document establishes a set of strategic directions to guide decision making and development outcomes.
• The strategic directions relevant to this application are:
• growing the Regional City of Campbelltown;
• creating education, employment and entrepreneurial opportunities.
The application is consistent with the above strategic directions as the proposal would provide well-located higher density housing that would enable the Regional City to grow as well as providing employment opportunities within the construction industry,’’ the report said.
In response, residents who addressed the council warned that approval would set a precedent for similar subdivisions in Glen Alpine.
[social_quote duplicate=”no” align=”default”]“We expect council to protect the ratepayers of Glen Alpine,’’ one told council.[/social_quote]
“This the thin edge of the wedge,’’ said another.
