Hansard – 9th October, 2002
PEULICH – This is not a 2030 vision, it is a current nightmare. I say that very much from a local perspective, with one of my local councils, Glen Eira, forging ahead with the state government in piloting and preparing an amendment designating something like 117 streets in the Bentleigh electorate for high-density development. We are not talking about something 30 years into the future; we are talking about an imminent threat to local amenity, local residences, our suburbs and our local streets — and the aggravation of local parking problems, which are already severe. Currently an independent panel in the City of Glen Eira has been put together to hear objections. There have been 150 very substantial submissions made to the independent panel. Today I tabled a petition collected within only seven days and signed by over 100 objectors to the state government’s plan. It is not a metropolitan strategy with a vision.
This is a nightmare that is to be imposed upon the suburbs, and the suburbs will not wear it.
Quite clearly this is going to make the medium-density housing policy of the previous coalition government look like an open space policy, because the definition of high-density development in the City of Glen Eira, which has been guided and advised by and has been working closely with the Department of Infrastructure, is that high density is one storey higher than the height of existing buildings. Given the local streets which have been designated and which I have listed in the petition that I am currently circulating, it means the entire electorate is going to be crisscrossed by high-density development. That obviously includes secondary roads such as Brewer Road, Wheatley Road — I also mention that I live on Tucker Road, which is one of these roads — Chesterville Road, South Road and Bignell Road, as well as all the surrounding local streets within 400 metres of activity centres.
Some of these are close to railway stations or railway lines, but many of them are not. The government has devised this plan even around bus routes.
The whole concept is ludicrous, especially when you have a look at the significantly ageing demographic profile of my electorate, which has the third highest number of over-65s. These people catch a taxi to go to the doctor or to the local supermarket. They do not walk kilometres in order to get to their destination.
This is an absolutely outrageous plan, and the suburbs will rebel. Yes, we all want a vision for the development of Melbourne and we all want plans that preserve open spaces, but the government at the same time is fostering and taking action that is going to see a further diminution of open space for the suburbs.
Mr Nardella interjected.
Mrs PEULICH — You will hear about the plan.
We are not going to provide you with the solutions; we are not going to let you get off the hook. We will provide you with our ideas during the election campaign so that the voters in the suburbs which have been targeted will have a clear choice.
If you thought the town halls filled by objectors to medium-density housing in your Brightons, your Stonningtons and your Bentleighs were well attended, let me make a forecast. There will be wall-to-wall objectors in the suburbs!
I note the Premier’s own suburb of Williamstown, where he has purchased a $1.4 million home, is not singled out for this high-density development. Neither is Northcote, which is where my opponent at the next election lives.
Honourable members should look at where these plans will be implemented and where loss of amenity will be suffered by residents, where we will end up with three-storey houses in local streets, where there will be many more cars cluttering the streets and where there will be far less open space than there is currently……
As I said before, the local suburbs will not wear it. I have called on the Minister for Planning as well as the Premier to scrap plans to open up 20 per cent of my local electorate to high-rise and high-density development. Based on the definition, in secondary roads where there are already three-storey developments, we are looking at four-storey developments. It is an ever incremental plan. In local streets where there are two-storey developments there will be three-storey developments. If we thought — and the government argued — that the infrastructure and the drainage system were inadequate to cope with the increased density of our suburbs, what will it be with this strategy? …….
Mrs PEULICH — …..The controversial C25 planning amendment of the City of Glen Eira in fact shows this is not a vision, a 2030 vision; it is a nightmare. It is here and now. It is a threat, it is being fast tracked, and it is being implemented quickly by this government. I asked myself why the City of Glen Eira was so keen to go down this track. Quite a few of its councillors opposed it, including the mayor.
The answer came to me the other day, when I found out that the chief executive officer had for some time worked for a former federal housing minister and Deputy Prime Minister, the Honourable Brian Howe — as did the Bentleigh Labor candidate, Rob Hudson. Clearly the two are fast-tracking this plan to increase housing density in local streets. The Labor candidate for Bentleigh does not give a hoot about the loss of amenity, the increased density, the increased clutter of cars in our local streets and the stress to drainage, because he lives in Northcote. His suburb is not listed for higher density, and neither are those of a substantial number of government members.
I am calling on the Premier and the Minister for Planning to protect our local streets. We all understand there has to be some consolidation, but it should not be at the expense of our local streets. It should not be at the expense of open space even in the suburbs — it counts.
The strategy will have a profound and negative impact on my community. It is a timely illustration of what will happen in so many other areas that are listed for high-density development, including Bentleigh, Carnegie, Caulfield, Elsternwick, Glenhuntly, Clayton, Oakleigh, Moorabbin, Brighton, Hampton and Sandringham — they are just some of the surrounding suburbs that are being targeted by Labor. Let me tell you, Mr Acting Speaker, the south-eastern suburbs will not be railroaded by the likes of this strategy or this government.
Glen Eira Debates 
April 27, 2011 at 11:18 AM
The culmination of this atrocity is the C60. Peulich talked about 2 storeys become 3. Under Newton there is no height limit and the pathetic lot of councillors believe that 20 storeys instead of 23 is an improvement and that 8 storeys instead of 10 is satisfactory. Newton has a lot to answer for together with his complicit allies.
April 27, 2011 at 5:11 PM
The proof will be in the eating, as they say. Let’s see what the Liberals will do and whether Peulich’s speech of 9 years ago comes back to bite them on the bum. I do however agree with her statement. The start of the Glen Eira rot began with this amendment and it has not let up since. Our neighbourhoods have been handed over, carte blanche, to developers who do not give a damn about amenities such as open space, traffic congestion, the destruction of trees. There’s lots more. In the end, this council has aided and abetted these individuals. As one of the architects of these amendments and the ‘visionary’ behind the planning scheme, then Newton has to accept most of the blame and those councillors who voted for this mess, must also accept their share of the responsibility. 80/20 is on a hiding to nothing. It has successfully devastated Carnegie and is now doing the same to Bentleigh, McKinnon, Ormond, and so forth. This is insanity, especially when our so called population targets have already been exceeded. From whatever angle this is viewed, the underlying belief is that the residents don’t matter – that time and again they will be ignored. I just hope that enough people are angry enough over the C60 to ensure that this madness doesn’t continue and that those responsible lose their jobs or positions. People need to have long memories!