EXPANDED planning powers for the state government authority overseeing the Suburban Rail Loop are necessary to “have some consistency” across train station precincts, an SRL project manager says.
SRL precincts are the 1600 metre areas surrounding train stations along the rail loop. There will be one around Cheltenham Station on the Frankston line. Legislation passed earlier this month will give the Suburban Rail Loop Authority more power to make planning decisions within those precincts.
Kingston councillors have written to the planning minister to express concern that planning power is being taken out of their hands. At a recent council meeting, Kingston councillors voted to communicate “council’s strong dissatisfaction with the proposed planning reform relating to the Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) and the process to date, the stripping of planning powers from local councils as planning authorities, denying council that opportunity to actively and effectively represent the Kingston community and all stakeholders impacted by the SRL” (“Rail loop one step closer” The News 13/10/21).
Suburban Rail Loop’s executive general manager of rail and infrastructure delivery, Nicole Stoddart, told The News that the legislation “does not remove any council powers, they will be a key focus of those outcomes. We know the importance of working with councils, it’s a real partnership with council and the community.”
“We have consulted with the council and the community for quite some time on this, having had over 250 meetings with key stakeholders. Council are a key partner in this and we have been working with them. We will continue to work closely with them through the structure planning process, as we know they have plans for the precincts,” she said.
“We hope we will be able to work together to get the best outcome for the community. We want to shape the precincts around what the community wants them to be, taking into account the character of the existing community. Councils have expert knowledge on what makes these communities tick, and we think we are pretty well aligned.
“We have been working with [council] a long time, I don’t see that it will come to a point where it’s one person over another.”
Ms Stoddart did not rule out the possibility of high rise housing being approved in SRL precincts.
“SRL precincts will support a range of well designed housing choices near amenities, and we intend to work with council and community on them,” she said. “There is a need to create housing, and we will be focused on creating housing. As you grow a population you also need more education and service provisions. Then you say that there’s more people, so we need more open space and amenities. It’s a holistic view of what will make a great place to live and work so that people don’t have to travel into the CBD to be employed. It’s about more than focusing on high rise developments, it’s on amenities and outcomes for the community.”
Final say on planning matters will still lies with the planning minister.
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 27 October 2021