Housing talks labelled ‘sham’

Andrew Mathieson
RESIDENTS and councillors invited to join State Government public consultation on a controversial Moorabool Street residential development have slammed a lack of transparency over the project.
Government developer Vic-Urban wants to hand-pick 10 “community representatives” including residents living around the site, a member of Action on Moorabool community group and two Geelong councillors.
VicUrban plans a series of workshops to discuss the final mix of housing options for stage two private residences, including design character, height options, reuse of heritage buildings, open space, traffic management and retail opportunities.
The discussions will not include a “social housing” component of the project.
But Action on Moorabool spokesperson Peter Dowling said the Government’s removal of appeal rights against the project 12 months ago had already fired up residents.
“We were told the reason we weren’t consulted was because they (VicUrban) were exempted because it was social housing,” he said.
Residents had since discovered that the development would also include at least 45 private townhouses.
Works have begun on the first stage of 30 “affordable” housing units for the elderly.
Mr Dowling said VicUrban had insisted that stages one and two were commercially “linked” despite federal funding driving the social housing component.
Action on Moorabool believed the Government agency was using commercial confidentiality as an excuse to withhold information from the community.
Council planning portfolio-holder Andrew Katos predicted a “sham” public consultation.
The Government had already locked out Geelong councillors from plans for the $50 million development when residents awoke to find construction fences around the former Gordon Institute of TAFE site.
Cr Katos said VicUrban instead only briefed the City Hall planning officers about the project.
“You couldn’t have a great conflict of interest here: the owner of the land, the developer of the land and the planning authority of the land are the same entity, the Victorian Government,” he said.
“If this was a private developer, there is no way they would be able to do this.”
Mr Madden said the Government was committed to delivering a “good design solution” for the Moorabool Street project.
He believed the redevelopment would complement the character of the existing area.
“The community should have confidence in the rigour of the planning and consultation process and I encourage all interested parties to take part in the discussion,” he said.