PLANNING and DEVELOPMENT

Submissions

Draft Urban Open Space Land Management Plan - 15 August

• The impacts of densification require planning to find the balance between the social, economic and environmental (including climate change) needs of the community to contribute to our quality of life

• Yarralumla Creek could be re-imagined as an urban waterway as it travels from Mawson, through the Woden town centre to north Curtin and the area beyond.  This could include continuous landscape features, improved public access, landscape amenity, habitat opportunities and water quality improvements. 

• The Woden Town Centre, new CIT Woden campus, transport interchange and new mixed-use development on existing surface carparks would benefit by fronting onto a revitalised green watercourse and boulevard.

Woden CIT West Plaza - DA202341703 – Block: 1 and 4 Section: 35 - 10 July 2023

• The West Plaza could be a green cool park, a destination for events and markets to create activity in the heart of Woden. It should attract people to meet and socialise and catalyse businesses around it and the town square to create community. The site is protected from the winds in the town square and has more sun, and chance of social and ecconomic success, than the Boulevard.

• The road connection will take a significant part of the space and will cause a safety risk to pedestrians and cyclists. There has never been a connecting road and it will not be missed. It is not required when there are significantly better options for the space.

18 Darke St - DA202139590S197B - 6 July 2023

• The concerns the neighbours have with the proposal are around the poor process and the bad outcomes that is impacting well-being, particularly overlooking and privacy.

• Declaration, this is Fiona Carrick’s neighbour and provides a terrific case study of poor outcomes and processes.

ACT Planning System Review and Reform Project - Territory Plan and Woden District Strategy - 3 March 2023

• The WVCC supports development and urban infill, however we want it to be done well with a focus on people and the bush capital. Town planning is holistic and balances competing priorities for land, it includes consideration of homes, jobs, public (green) spaces, community facilities and public transport to connect us to our social and commercial hubs.

• The message is that the:

  • Woden District Strategy does not balance competing priorities for land use with uncertainty around public spaces in the core of Woden and a lack of community facilities.

  • The development controls in the Territory Plan through the Woden District Policy and the zone codes do not provide enough certainty to the community about good outcomes as developers will

    push the limits of the guidance.

17 to 23 Townsend St - DA202241265 - Section: 30 Block: 1 - 27 February 2023

• We advocate for densification to be done in the context of an overall plan and at this stage it is not clear what the future of the Phillip Trades precinct is:

  • What will happen to the trades businesses with much of the area being zoned for housing.

  • Will the trades businesses and apartments co-exist and if so, what is the plan for this to happen?

  • The precinct is advertised as the new Braddon, how will this happen with 3m pavements that are too narrow for al fresco dining?

Bonner House east – DA202240924 - 9 Bradley St - Section: 19, Block: 10 - 27 February 2023

• This proposal will deliver a new A-Grade commercial building on the Bonner House East site The proposed 60.9m / 16 storeys (plus plant) development will have a GFA of approximately 25,750sqm and will accommodate retail spaces accessible to the public on the ground level with contemporary office spaces on the upper levels.

1 Brewer St - DA202241103 –consolidating blocks: 4,5,7 Section: 12 - 6 February 2023

• The Woden Valley Community Council (WVCC) supports the renewal of the Woden Town Centre however consolidating blocks to build large high density residential towers needs to be considered in the context of an overall plan and the impact of long term traffic congestion.

Southern Cross Club Woden - DA202240943 – Block: 11 Section: 18 - 6 February 2023

• The Woden Valley Community Council (WVCC) supports the development and renewal of the Woden Town Centre and activation of the streets to bring a ‘vibe’ that attracts people to the area to support small business.

Hellenic Club Phillip - DA202241005, 202241006, 202241022 – Block: 21, 22 Section: 6 - 16 January 2023

• While the Woden Valley Community Council (WVCC) supports the development and renewal of the Woden Town Centre, this very large development does not comply the Territory Plan which requires active fronts on Bowes St. Instead, the proposal internalises activity and diminishes the public realm on Bowes St by overshadowing it.

Planning Bill 2022 - 16 November 2022

• After looking at previous planning decisions and the outcomes achieved for our communities living in the suburbs and using local commercial hubs, it is not clear that the new Planning Bill will improve our built form and well-being by facilitating our social, economic and environmental development.

9 Botany St Phillip - DA202240071 – Block: 1 Section: 42 – 7 November 2022

• While the Woden Valley Community Council (WVCC) supports building new accommodation and homes for our residents, this proposal should not proceed in its current form. It should be reduced in scale to a typical four storey building and contribute to the public realm of the area.

• This proposal changes the accommodation to 56 serviced apartments. This is a very high density development on less than a quarter acre block.

Draft Planning Bill 2022 - 15 June 2022

• Across Australian cities the desire to densify commercial hubs and suburbs is creating tension between the community and developers. While we support the need for more homes, it is the responsibility of the government to ensure competing policies are considered in the pursuit of densification and that a balance of homes, jobs, public (green) spaces and community facilities and services are delivered. It is the government’s responsibility to enable social and economic development across the city to allow residents to work together to achieve a sense of community pride and belonging.

Woden CIT Estate Development Plan - DA202139534 – Block: 1 and 4 Section: 35 - 12 May 2022

• While the Woden Valley Community Council (WVCC) welcomes the Estate Development Plan for the CIT, we want it to be a part of a broader plan for the town centre that includes connections from the CIT to great public spaces and community facilities. These facilities would support young people living at the CIT that are at risk of disengaging from education and becoming homeless.

• The CIT provides significant opportunities to advance the social, economic and environmental aspects of the town centre, to create a contemporary urban hub for Canberra’s south, a destination where students from across the region want to socialise and recreate.

103 Hindmarsh Drive - DA202139568 – Block: 7 Section: 25 - 31 January 2022

• While the Woden Valley Community Council (WVCC) welcomes development in the Woden Town Centre, we note that there are mixed views about the need for another fossil fuel service station and another McDonalds in Woden. We agree that the need for these facilities has not been demonstrated and that there are other more people focused opportunities for this prominent site.

9 Irving St Phillip – the Oaks stage 3 - DA202037978 – Block: 14 Section: 24 - 11 January 2022

• While the Woden Valley Community Council (WVCC) welcomes development in the Woden Town Centre, we want it to be done well, with the needs of the community in mind.

• We are concerned about the increase in the height (to 14 storeys), the number (154) and size of the apartments in stage 3. This significant addition to the population and density of the precinct increases the negative impacts of overshadowing, wind and traffic congestion.

Canberra Hospital Expansion - DA202138534 - 77 Yamba Drive - Block: 1 Section: 58 - 18 June 2021

• TCH is the largest acute care hospital between Sydney and Melbourne serving residents in Canberra and southeast NSW. The ACT Treasury forecasts Canberra’s population to reach 581,000 by 2040 and 703,000 by 2058 (Population Projections 2018 to 2058 - released January 2019). The population in southeast NSW is also expected to increase.

• While the Woden Valley Community Council (WVCC) supports the construction of the Emergency on the Canberra Hospital campus, we have serious concerns about the site on the north east edge of the campus (opposite the Garran Primary School).

CIT Woden Bus Interchange - E DAs 202138229, 202138359, 202138251 - 16 April 2021

• We have serious concerns about building a light rail / bus interchange without investigating and understanding the underpinning data for population growth and forecast demand for public transport services moving through the interchange. Transport modelling is essential for assessing how the transport system is likely to perform in the future, which is essential for the development of effective urban planning.

• Safe access to public transport and effective movements through the interchange impact on our quality of life so we would like to understand the traffic movements through the interchange.

• We are concerned about demolishing the current southern bus loop before we know whether the interchange has the capacity to cope with future demand, particularly during the construction of light rail though Woden.

Corner Melrose Drive and Corinna St Phillip - DA202038092 – Block: 2 Section: 180 (Building 2) - 19 February 2021

• This 16 storey (184 apartments) development is the second of 4 towers (480 apartments in 3 residential towers and 1 commercial tower).

• Our primary concerns are parking on the ground floor, overshadowing the pocket park and car access to the future developments from Furzer St.

• The development should be designed to ensure the ground level is integrated with its surrounds, creating character and an area where people want to be to meet and participate in activities in both public and commercial spaces.

• Ground floor community activities interfaced with wide pedestrian pavements, attractive green spaces and large canopy trees encourage people to linger and enjoy the local community.

9 Botany St Phillip - DA202037969 – Block: 1 Section: 42 - 18 February 2021

• The proposal provides for 38 apartments on 0.08 hectares (the size of many suburban blocks) with 8 ground floor commercial tenancies and basement carparking. The proposal seeks to use public space (which is currently parking near Botany St) for its outdoor area. The storeys are 5.6 metres which increases the size of the building to be well above a typical 4 storey building.

• Additional points:

  • apartments are unnecessarily small, as low as 27m2

  • he buildings pavements are too narrow to provide for:

    • landscaping which is negligible and not adequate for public amenity or to counter the heat island effect

    • al fresco dining and improvements to the public realm (public car parks near Botany St are removed to provide outdoor space for the development)

  • no visitor parking so the surrounding public car parking will be severely impacted. The car hoist could be difficult for access during peak periods.

    While the Woden Valley Community Council supports urban infill, we want it to be done well.

W2 - 49 Furzer St Phillip - DA201017864 – Block: 8 Section: 54 & 84 - 2 February 2021

• W2 will overshadow the focal point (Town Square) of the Woden Town Centre. It will increase the wind in the area and reduce the livability of the heart of Woden – it is urban vandalism.

• The proposal provides for 222 apartments on 0.2 hectares on the north west side of Woden’s Town Square.

• It is not clear how the addition of around 444 people in W2 at the expense of the livability of the Town Square for the broader community implements the vision in the Master Plan for the Town Square to be the centre for social and community activity in the Town Centre.

1 Brewer St Phillip - RE DA202037991 – Block: 4 Section: 12 - 28 January 2021

• The proposal provides for 288 apartments in a 16 storey tower on 0.257 hectares. Assuming an average of 2 people per apartment, this extrapolates to 2,241 people per hectare.

• Extremely high density in the Committee for Sydney’s 2016 report Density Done Well, is 600 people per hectare. The benefit of going up is to provide more space around the base of the buildings for public amenity.

• This development takes the whole block. There is no space for people at the base other than footpaths and it appears to focus on yield rather than creating homes in a great setting. It is not clear where the green space is and where the children will play.

9 Irving St Phillip – The Oaks stage 3 - DA202037978 – Block: 9 Section: 24 - 28 January 2021

• We are concerned about the increase in the height and number of apartments for stage 3 and the inclusion of a separate serviced apartment building in the place of green space.

• The zoning in the Phillip Precinct Code for this area is 12 storeys with an additional 4 storeys per block for developments that are close to public transport and within the building hierarchy. The subdivision of the block has allowed an additional 4 storeys on multiple blocks which is not in the spirit of the law to provide mixed building heights and limit the density of apartments. T

• his proposal increases the building height of stage 3 from 11 storeys (73 apartments) to 16 storeys (178 apartments) leading to three 16 storey towers instead of one. There is a significant increase in the number of apartments, from 401 to 506 across the site, an increase of 26%.

ACT Planning System Review and Reform Project

The reform is intended to provide an outcomes based planning system to accommodate the 70% infill policy for the growing population.

The new Planning System include a new Planning Act, Territory Plan and introduce a new level of planning called District Strategies.

The Planning Bill 2022 was introduced to the Legislative Assembly on 21 September 2022.  It provides for an outcomes focussed planning system.

The new Territory Plan is centred on quality, results and performance rather than just compliance with prescribed technical rules planning system.

District strategies are a new level of strategic planning that will capture and protect the valued character and attributes of each of Canberra's nine main districts. They will focus the planning priorities from the ACT Planning Strategy into more specific and targeted directions for each district. In short, they will guide the strategic management of growth and change on a district scale in the context of green and blue spaces, good travel connections, housing, employment growth and the revitalisation of our shopping centres.

2015 Woden Town Centre Master Plan

The town centre is centrally located and has potential to be a great community and commercial hub for Woden and the wider region, including public cultural and recreational facilities.

The Master Plan enables the ACT Government’s policy for a compact city - the 70% infill policy - by zoning for residential towers across the centre.

While the WVCC supports development, we want it to be done well with a balance between homes, jobs, public (green) spaces and community facilities.

A 30 year population forecast is required to plan for the growing community and ensure the town centre is liveable and traffic congestion is managed.

The Vision in the Master Plan is:

• Woden town centre is a major community and commercial hub for the Woden Valley and wider Canberra region.

• It will be a place that attracts people to live, work, socialise and enjoy throughout the day and evenings.

• The town square is the central focal point for social and community activity that will connect people to a network of safe and active streets and public parks.

This is a reasonable vision but how well has it been implemented over the last 7 years?

The Woden Experiment upgraded the square with tables, a small uncovered stage and more trees which look better however there are still no cafes, restaurants or bars facing onto the square (or wind mitigation measures).

The fight for public spaces

Cities are fundamentally about people. Public spaces are the key to planning a great city, they are what make it come alive. Great public spaces don’t happen by accident, they require incredible dedication and enormous attention to detail.

Have a look at this TED Talk. Amanda Burden was New York’s Chief City Planner between 2002 and 2013 and provides inspiration about the challenges and persistence required to create great public spaces.