Page 5783 - Week 18 - Tuesday, 10 December 1991
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Mr Speaker, at the time that this draft variation was put before the community, back in October this year, there was some concern about a number of issues. The first issue related to a change from single residential to multi-density within an area that would allow two-storey apartment buildings as opposed to the single-storey houses that had been developed.
It is true that in that area it is possible for people to build two-storey homes. But what has happened is that the majority of the people in that area, including the unit development on block 16, have constructed single-storey dwellings. So, the nature of the suburb has been to retain it as a single-storey area.
The proposal put forward in the variation, leaving aside its content and the amount of information that was provided, is for a number of four by two-bedroom two-storey townhouse developments and 16 one-bedroom two-storey units, all in one location. Basically, we are talking about a large concentration of public housing, particularly public housing of the single bedroom type.
It would appear that in the past approval had been given for standard residential on this particular block. In fact, the person who owned it had sought to develop a cluster development but had not been allowed to turn it into medium density and handed the block back to the ACT Government. Subsequent to that, the ACT Housing Trust purchased this block, knowing full well that it had approval for only single residential. Presumably, they thought that they could slip through a variation to the Territory Plan to enable them to construct this sort of facility on that site.
What we are talking about, Mr Speaker, unfortunately, is a smaller version of a Melba flats type of situation, with a concentration of small public housing in an area that, quite frankly, does not have the sorts of community facilities that are required to back up the sorts of clients who would be moving into that suburb. So, there is that issue that was raised at the time as well as the concern about the bulk and the size of the proposal and its effect on the existing residences. Quite frankly, they saw it having a major effect on the property values within their area.
Let us be fair and realistic about this. When they bought their houses and their land it was quite clearly single residential. They bought it and they knew that it was going to be single residential. All of a sudden, out of the blue, came this proposal, with the ACT Housing Trust purchasing this land with a view to seeking to quickly upgrade it.
I accept and acknowledge that the ACT Housing Trust has a problem in providing these sorts of facilities; but I suggest to members that Theodore, which is a southern suburb of Canberra, is not the appropriate location for
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