Est. 2013 Issue: Vol. 3 No. 4 1 APRIL 2015 Please take one
WILLUNGA ---GAZETTE---
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A monthly publication of the Willunga Business and Tourism Association Inc This was a measured and informative meeting, not to be underestimated by those absent. All speakers were mindful of the difficulties brought to bear by legislation, and understood the dilemma for Council staff. Nevertheless the meeting was scathing in its criticism of the Council’s categorising of this development and was equally critical of the mindset of the developers.
COMMUNITY ACTION: WILLUNGA, THE PLACE OF GREEN TREES
Building on the actions of a core group of residents concerned about the fate of trees at the Aldinga Rd housing development led by members of the Friends of Willunga Basin and its chair, Geoff Hayter, a series of meetings and events took place that galvanised the wider community. On Wednesday the 11th of March, a public meeting was called by the Willunga Business and Tourism Association in order to seek clarification on the fate of trees at the Aldinga road housing development. Sixty people attended the football clubrooms to hear an address by Geoff Hayter and to take part in what turned out to be an informative Q&A session. In the absence of representatives from the developers, (Willunga Developments) and the City of Onkaparinga, Geoff was able to tread a carefully balanced path under the circumstances, aided by well informed, well-read members of the audience.
The following evening saw in excess of a hundred Willunga residents attend the Development Assessment Panel’s meeting at the Council Chambers at Noarlunga Centre to hear the panel discuss the developer’s submission. The impact of so many people quietly registering a visually silent protest must have been felt by the panel, and there was no doubt that there was more than a sense of discomfort in the responses and questions to the spokesperson for Willunga Developments. While the panel provided some breathing space and the tress were given a ‘stay of execution’ this was an opportunity missed by the panel. It was a case of what was not prosecuted by the panel more so than what was. While the chair commended the behaviour of the gallery, he was clearly pleased to see the space empty once the discussion had closed. A week to the hour after the previous week’s public meeting, the WBTA called another one, this time focusing on the planned High St development. This time eighty people attended the football clubrooms to hear a panel led by the project leader Victoria Masterman speak about the report to be presented to council the following Tuesday, and field questions from the floor. Continued page 4
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