While Campbelltown Council has agreed to allow public worship at the Australian Muslim Welfare Centre on Eagleview Road, Minto there will be one more hoop to jump through.
Before the officer’s recommendation was put to the vote, Cr Meg Oates sought confirmation that a development application (DA) would be required before public worship could take place on the five acre site.
The answer was “yes’’ from the council officers.
A noise impact assessment will be required as part of any future development application.
Only independent councillor Adam Zahra voted against giving the proposal the green light, saying: “The location is my main concern – this is a rural setting, where people go and live for a peaceful lifestyle,’’ he said.
The site at 13–17 Eagleview Road is currently zoned C4 – Environmental Living under the Campbelltown Local Environmental Plan 2015 and does not permit places of public worship.
The planning proposal before council at Tueday night’s meeting would enable a place of public worship there.
A report to council said the five acre property was “capable of providing sufficient space to accommodate on-site parking and associated facilities’’.
“It is important to note that this does not automatically permit the use of the site as a place of public worship. Before the site could be used as a place of public worship, a separate DA will be required.
“This DA must include, among other requirements, details such as the anticipated number of users, comprehensive traffic modelling, and proposed mitigation measures to address potential noise and traffic impacts. These matters will be thoroughly assessed as part of the DA process,’’ the report said.
The planning proposal to allow public worship on the site went on public exhibition from May 5 to June 18 this year.
Properties within 100m of the site were notified, hard copies of the exhibition material were made available at the council administration building, HJ Daley Library, and Greg Percival Library, and the documents were available on council’s website and the NSW Planning Portal.
One submission was received from a community member objecting to the proposal.
The submission raised concern that the site’s intended use was previously misrepresented, that places of public worship are better suited to industrial areas rather than residential areas, as well as raising concerns about traffic, noise and dust.
State agencies were also consulted and raised no objections to the planning proposal.
Transport for NSW noted that additional information will be required at the development application stage.
The site is approximately 3km from Minto railway station and is serviced by the 873 bus service.