Peninsula Community Access Edition 289
News Phone 4325 7369 Fax 4339 2307
16 April 2012
Council rejects seniors housing plan Gosford Council has rejected a proposal for a seniors housing and aged care facility, with 126 units, at Empire Bay. The council has resolved that the planning proposal was inconsistent with a number of Council policies and plans including the State Environment Planning Policy, Community Strategic Plan-Gosford 2025 and Biodiversity Strategy. Council also decided to write to the Minister for Mental Health and Ageing Mr Mark Butler, parliamentary secretary for Health and Ageing Ms Catherine King and Minister for Ageing and Disability Services Mr Andrew Constance regarding the exceptionally high costs involving the provision of residential care for older people. It will urge the government to create incentives to make it financially viable for developers to provide this form of housing in urban areas. The matter was considered by Council at its meeting of Tuesday, February 14, only to be deferred to the meeting held Tuesday, April 3. In a report prepared by the council’s environment and planning directorate the planning proposal was described as inconsistent with the general and specific aims of State Environment Planning Policy No 19-Bushland in Urban Areas as the site, located at Lot 1 Empire Bay Dr, was covered by large, mature forest scale trees that exhibited an open forest structure. “This vegetation provides habitat for a range of threatened and non threatened fauna species. “Any proposed aged care facility would result in extensive tree and habitat loss.
“The value of the bushland has been weighed up against the social and economic values and it is considered that given the above environmental concerns, other locations that are more centrally located to town and village centres should be considered for this land use.” The planning proposal was also contrary, according to Council staff, to the intent of the State Environment Planning Policy as residents would need to have facilities to access shops, banks, community services, recreation facilities and general practitioners. “‘Access’ means being located not more than 400 metres from these services or from transport able to take residents to these services. “Such access to these services or to the transport source is to be by a sealed footpath with a suitable grade. “The nearest and only services in the immediate vicinity of the site are the general store-service station at Empire Bay which is 500 metres distant. “There is no footpath to facilitate pedestrian access.” Mayor Cr Laurie Maher voted against his fellow councillors and in favour of the development, using the retirement village in South Kincumber as an example of how not all retirement villages were in walking distance to shops and other facilities. Council staff, however, stated in the report that the land was “simply not the right place”. “The land is not even on the edge of the urban footprint as it does not adjoin an urban zone. “In fact it is 560 metres from the urban zones of Empire Bay and 1.5 km from the urban zones of
Bensville.” “The main reason the applicant has provided for justification of this planning proposal for seniors housing at Empire Bay is the current and future lack of seniors housing on the Woy Woy Peninsula.
“This alone is not a strategic planning justification for locating, what is essentially an urban use, on land that is zoned for Conservation and Scenic Protection purposes and acts as a ‘green’ buffer between settlements. “The location of such a use
outside of the existing urban footprint is contrary to approved Council strategies such as the Community Strategic Plan and Biodiversity Strategy.” Gosford Council Agenda ENV.28, 3 Apr 2012 Photo: Gosford Council
No NBN for three and a half years National Broadband Network fibre optic services are not expected to be available on the Peninsula for at least three and a half years, with parts of the Peninsula not getting services before July 2016 - over four years away. Despite our front page report last issue stating that the rollout on the Peninsula starts this month, work will not actually start on the Peninsula under the first three year rollout plan until September 2014 at the earliest, with work on some parts of the Peninsula not starting within three years at all, according to the NBN company website. “We will commence work in
your area from September 2014 in phases with last work scheduled to commence in June 2015,” the website stated. “It is estimated that the average time from work beginning to NBN services being available is 12 months.” The Peninsula News report stated incorrectly that work in listed Peninsula areas would start between April 1 and June 30. The report was based on a media release from the Member for Robertson Ms Deborah O’Neill, which included Gosford and other areas within her electorate where work is expected to start this month. The media release stated that
work would start in all listed areas up to June 30, 2015. The year was omitted from our report. It also referred readers to the NBN website. This reference was also omitted from our report. “We were wrong to omit these details from our report,” said Peninsula News editor Mr Mark Snell. “These details were not included in the item I was editing,” he said. “We ask that items submitted to Peninsula News are just about the Peninsula. We do not cover areas beyond our own locality. “All items submitted are vetted for relevance to our Peninsula
readers before they are forwarded to me. “Any references to areas outside the Peninsula are removed and sections are rewritten in an attempt to ensure statements accurately reflect plans for the Peninsula. “In this case, our process failed and relevant details were also removed.” Mr Snell said the media release from Ms O’Neill’s office was, nevertheless, misleading in that services under the so-called “first three year rollout plan” were not actually expected to be available on the Peninsula for up to four and a quarter years, and work in some parts of the Peninsula would not start within three years.
Peninsula News put in a request with Ms O’Neill’s for clarification of timing of the work on the Peninsula for this edition. No response had been received before we went to press. “The bottom line is that, in this case, I did not apply the maxim: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” said Mr Snell. “A rollout of NBN on the Peninsula starting this month was just too good to be true. “I did not double check the facts. “I should have. “I take full responsibility.” Mark Snell, 13 Apr 2012 Website, 13 Apr 2012 National Broadband Network
THIS ISSUE contains 54 articles - Read more news items for this issue at www.peninsulanews.info