“How many years does it take for a building to be constructed? How many times can a planning permit be issued or revised. Why can’t the planning permit for this property be found on councils planning register? How long does a public footpath have to be unsafe before council does anything?
The multi-storey building in Koornang road which includes 26 units and shops has been under construction for years and years and years. How can this be? Surely building permits and planning permits must expire. There has been so little movement with this development over so many years.
Who owns this property and why are they not forced to finish it and tidy up the site and repair the damage to the footpath? Has anyone from council ever looked at this site? Does it comply with public safety requirements?
Should we be suspicious about this never ending construction process? Does the owner have some special privileges that put the site outside public safety compliance? Questions I can’t answer but maybe someone else knows what is going on and can explain why Carnegie has been blighted by an unfinished construction site for so many years and residents have had to put up with the unsightly mess and the very unsafe footpath.”
Glen Eira Debates 
March 12, 2013 at 10:32 AM
The official view of Council staff is that a developer only needs to reinstate the footpath at the end of the development—until then footpath can be left in a degraded state. Since permits can be extended indefinitely, it could be decades. I agree about the lack of progress on that particular development, which is nearing its first decade. The first 5 years were spent with a hoarding closing part of the footpath—after that a series of weeds were allowed to grow as a novel landscaping experiment. Actually the somewhat uneven asphalting is a relatively recent improvement. The development also secured at VCAT the Right to use Council land to access their basement carpark at the rear of the premises, but whether any consideration was paid in compensation for compromising the future development potential of Council (our) land is a secret. The President of Carnegie Traders Association may be able to answer the remaining questions.
March 12, 2013 at 9:08 PM
I would have thought construction has been going on for slightly more than 5 years, rather than closer to a decade. One of the shops on the site was “Toy Kingdom” and I well remember buying a toy there for my son when he was 1 or 2 years old – and he is now 7!
Putting all that aside, unfortunately this is one of the prices of urban consolidation, financial problems of developers resulting in sites sitting idle for years. It happened with the apartments adjacent to the railway station car park, after the developer went bust. The butchers shop across the road, where the roof collapsed in July 2009 has only just now had reconstruction work commence. Work on the four storey apartment complex on the corner of Koornang Road and Arawatta St ground to a halt some time ago, although I noticed recently that a dentist is now occupying the ground floor retail space on Arawatta Street. One suspects that economic conditions might ultimately “achieve” for many developments what objectors wanted but failed to get. The apartment site in Morton Avenue opposite the station had the advertising hoardings taken down sometime ago, without any subsequent work (unless demolition of the house next door is part of the same site).
However getting back to the site in question, I am disappointed that nothing was done, or is being done, to at least make things look neater, and particularly fix up the pavement. By the looks of it the Koornang Road streetscape dates from the 1980s, given the quantity of brown brick used, and is well due for updating. At least one street tree has been lost, and not replaced (in fact the planting spot is now filled with bitumin).
March 12, 2013 at 12:52 PM
The issue of planning permit extensions is not new. Last year GERA put up a post on this issue and it’s worth a read for all those concerned about such “largesse” to developers. See: http://geresidents.wordpress.com/category/planning/planning-permit-extensions/
March 12, 2013 at 2:45 PM
The original officer report and comments from Crs Hyams, Lipshutz, Pilling were indeed lamentable. It is routine for Council to include conditions on Planning Permits specifying expiry dates (typically start within 2 years, finish within 4 years). This gives Council (or more likely its delegate) an opportunity to review the state of a development, find out why it is failing to comply with its conditions, assess whether changing conditions no longer support the Permit, and consider whether “temporary” degradation should be allowed to continue. In more serious cases, tracking Permit expiry dates may reveal that somebody is developing without a valid Planning Permit. Unfortunately, extensions are now just considered to be a revenue stream and compliance is optional.
March 12, 2013 at 1:23 PM
Just following up on the comment about Planning Permits for this development and Council’s planning application register: the original application can be found (with the usual difficulty given the search engine is stuffed) as GE/PP-15093/2002. In 2008 VCAT ordered an amended permit to be issued, for “Construction of a 4 storey building comprising 2 shops and 11 dwellings with associated basement car parking in accordance with the endorsed plans” and this is P1755/2008. There is also GE/PP-23660/2011 for bank(office), reduction of carparking, illuminated signs; and GE/PP-24792/2012 for 26-lot subdivision. The 26-lot subdivision does strongly suggest one or more permits and amendments are missing from this list, but you can’t rely on the online register for information despite Council’s naive assertions.
March 12, 2013 at 4:17 PM
Drive anywhere in Glen Eira and there will be razed blocks of land standing empty for years upon years. Maybe in 5 or 6 years some apartments based on 6 year old plans will go up and plenty of permissions for extended times. It works for the developer and not residents.
March 12, 2013 at 4:54 PM
Council (neither the Administration or Councillors) care about how many planning permits are being given rubber stamped extensions and obviously has no intention of doing anything about it. Council just ignores the implications it has for traffic congestion or parking demand. Other Councils track/follow up extensions but not this one – every permit and extension is viewed in isolation and the term “cummulative effect” is not in their vocabularly.
Long after Newton, Burke, Akehurst and Swabey have retired to enjoy their generous superannuation, which will be continually topped up by residents, Glen Eira will have worse traffic and parking issues that any metro municipaliity..
March 12, 2013 at 8:36 PM
In order, here are more detailed responses to the questions asked:
1. Indefinite.
2. Infinite (no limit).
3. Online planning register’s search engine is broken.
4. Unknown and not covered by existing council policy, but is a breach of legislation.
5. Developer can take as long as they want, but probably cashflow problems.
6. (a) See VCAT decision; (b) strength of personal relationship.
7. Only obliquely, while canvassing for votes. No councillor lives in or near Carnegie Urban Village.
8. No. But public safety is not a priority.
9. Yes. The decision lacks transparency.
10. Yes/Maybe. Private deals between council staff and developers can’t be scrutinized.
11. Inadequate policies and supervision of staff, compounded by lack of interest.
March 12, 2013 at 10:58 PM
The gera report made a lot of sense to me. If a permit is extended time after time and nothing happens then what was okay years ago might not be okay now. If the permit has waived car parking and that was reasonable 4 or 5 years back it doesn’t mean that it’s reasonable now.
If the developer goes bust then all that means is that residents have to put up with an eyesore, vandalism, and maybe squatting until he either sells with the permit or hangs on for a few more years until he can start up. There’s a place near me that was sold over two years ago. It’s derelict with busted windows and grass up to your armpits. A couple of months back a sign went up to buy off the plan. It will be at least another year or two until these units are built. In the meantime the place is a mess and council doesn’t even do anything to make the owner mow the grass on a regular basis.
March 12, 2013 at 11:00 PM
The burning question… when C60 takes a decade plus to construct will ALL THE GOOD TRAIN TRAVELLERS BE EXPECTED TO WALK ON THE ROAD FOR 20YEARS?
April 2, 2013 at 3:37 PM
I too have been disadvantaged by the unfinished site. I’m a freelance journalist from the Glen Eira Voice and wish to cover this story. If anyone impacted by this potentially dangerous construction is free for a 5 minute interview please email me at amyedw@optusnet.com. Your help would be much appreciated.