Strong crowd for “Save Bellarine” rally

A COMMUNITY demonstration attracted around 150 Bellarine residents on the weekend to object to future housing development at local towns.

Protesters gathered at Edwards Point Nature Reserve, St Leonards last Sunday (August 14) for a rally centred on the Bellarine Distinctive Area Landscape (DAL) process, which will determine future planning outcomes and long-term town boundaries for the region’s communities.

Community groups are calling on the state government to outlaw future housing and expansion of urban areas beyond around 15 years’ worth of development already in the pipeline.

A group of developers and landowners are campaigning for more housing progress to increase supply and meet ongoing demand for Bellarine property.

Combined Bellarine Community Associations chair Dr Lawrence St Leger and Protect the Bellarine spokesperson Jenny Knox were among the speakers at the weekend’s rally.

Objectors argued that limiting further housing growth would help preserve the peninsula’s unique characteristics and avoid loss of environmental values.

An advisory committee of state planning experts heard evidence from both sides of the debate during a hearing earlier this year and handed its report to Planning Minister Lizzie Blandthorn last month.

Ms Blandthorn will make a final decision on the Bellarine’s 50-year planning policy but is yet to indicate a timeframe.