Public
Meeting re Maroubra Bay Hotel DA
2006
Update
Maroubra
Bay Hotel
A
public meeting will be held on Wednesday March
19 at 7pm at the picnic shelter along the Northern
side of the Maroubra Beach Surf Life Saving Club
(in the park opposite the Seals Club). If it rains on the night, the meeting will
be held the following night.
A
delegation of local residents will be meeting with
Mayor Dominic Sullivan this Thursday to convey their
concerns and to officially hand over a petition
containing thousands of signatures protesting against
the DA. As
the Council has failed to call a public meeting
to discuss this major development, the local residents
have decided to take it upon themselves to hold
the meeting. The meeting will also elect office bearers
for the precinct committee for the next year.
Local
resident Graeme Harrison said “I've interviewed
hundreds of local residents on the issue and about
98% feel the Local Environment Plan should stand,
while about 2% feel the developer 'should be able
to do anything they like with the site'.
Those who want the LEP enforced believe council
needs to follow the its own protocol of extensive
public consultation if it wishes to do anything
which would overturn the LEP.
It took years of public consultation to get
agreement on the existing height limits and setbacks.
The community feedback has consistently been
that people want Maroubra Beach to retain its village
feel, and do not want tall structures along the
beachfront, as was done at Coogee. I think there is too much hypocrisy when Council
enforces its design rules absolutely with respect
to a homeowner submitting a DA, yet as soon as a
wealthy developer comes along, Councillors start
talking about the planning rules being 'a mistake'
and openly supporting DAs which are floors higher
than allowed by the planning laws.”
Dr
Ute Vollmer-Conna, of the UNSW Dept of Human
Behaviour said in my submission to the Premier I
said “As residents, we demand that the natural beauty
of Maroubra Bay is enhanced or at the very least
maintained by future developments. We strongly object
to the current proposal as it clearly does neither.
Future submissions should only be accepted if they
comply with local planning instruments. Local residents
do not want six storey blocks along Marine Parade.
If a precedent is established with this development,
we can look forward to a solid wall of such developments.”
While
the developer has proposed removing one floor (to
five stories), with an increase in the bulk of the
development, the residents are questioning whether
one needs to see as many as 50 apartments built
on a relatively small site.
Mr Harrison said “If Council approves this
DA with or without modifications, it will mark a
low-point in local politics. Half a semi-detached
house will remain and the other half will be replaced
with two storeys of underground parking and five
levels of horizontal slab and glass apartments.
Council will need to revise its planning documents
to update its sample photo of a poor redevelopment
of half a semi!
But we need everyone who feels passionately
about Maroubra Beach to come to the public meeting.”
...ENDS
Profiles
Maroubra
Bay Hotel
Maroubra
