Page 4247 - Week 14 - Tuesday, 29 November 1994
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On 23 September, members of the committee inspected quite extensively the site of the Gungahlin Town Centre. We walked around the edges of the proposed town centre and over some of the ground, to get a feel for the lie of the land and the varying conditions that prevailed in particular areas. We thereafter received further briefings on the site, and at this meeting the committee requested additional information on the social infrastructure planning of the proposed town centre and the nature of the endangered species affected by the draft variation. It was probably at that point that we first started to raise questions about the impact of the development of the town centre on the striped legless lizard.
When we held our public hearing we heard from a number of witnesses who appeared before us - Mr Connor, a private citizen; Mr Darlington, the director of the Conservation Council of the South-East Region and Canberra; and Mr Warren, Mr Rosenstraus and Ms Hoskings of the Gungahlin Community Council - and we also heard, on the public record, from the Chief Planner and other planning officials. We further requested officials to brief us about the draft variation and to respond specifically to matters raised during the public hearings, including the information contained in two recent environmental reports, which Mr Berry referred to earlier. We also asked questions to do with the proposed shopping centre in the town centre and we raised issues to do with the traffic calming and design measures proposed in the town centre. On 4 November we heard a further witness in relation to the draft variation for the town centre, Mr Horscroft. We also received a further briefing by planning officials and by an official from the wildlife unit of the ACT Parks and Conservation Service. We further considered the draft variation at our meeting on Friday, 18 November 1994.
It is disappointing to me, as a member of the Planning Committee, that we spent some two months considering this draft variation, only to decide at the end of the day that we really could not proceed with it any further. As Mr Berry has said, it became apparent that no final decision could be made on the town centre because of the survey work in relation to the striped legless lizard that still needs to be undertaken. In fact, that survey work is happening now because the creatures cannot be trapped for survey purposes before November - the appropriate time for that to occur.
The implications of the surveys for the town centre's development are quite profound. Depending on the outcome, the extent of development on the site will be affected. The question of the need to retain a wildlife corridor to link populations of striped legless lizards may need to be considered in the future. In addition, the outcome of the surveys may affect major road alignments in the area. The committee in its report deferred further comment on the draft variation for the town centre until the outcome of the surveys is known. We also deferred comment on other issues in relation to the town centre, including the proposed employment base for the town centre, the provision of community infrastructure roadworks, and traffic calming measures. I reiterate that it is a disappointment to me that the Planning Committee needs to come before this Assembly to present a report of this nature, recommending that the draft variation not be considered; but I agree with other committee members that we had no other choice.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
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