GOING WEST

Torquay infill development approved

A RESIDENTIAL estate in Torquay years in the making could have lots as small as 350 square metres, according to a plan signed off by the Surf Coast Shire.

The Development Plan for the 32-hectare Briody Drive West estate was approved, with some amendments, by councillors at their meeting on Tuesday.

The land – zoned as General Residential Zone (GRZ) – is held by a group of owners and is bounded by Messmate Road to the west, Grossmans Road to the south, Illawong Drive to the east and Briody Drive to the north.

The Development Plan was first placed on public exhibition nearly a year ago.

The plan, submitted by St Quentin Consulting, features a map of the estate showing there will be 70 “higher density” lots of 350 square metres or 28.5 lots per hectare, and 404 lots of “standard density” of 450 square metres or 22.2 lots per hectare.

According to the report prepared by officers and considered by councillors on Tuesday, the land was originally developed in the 1980s as a low density residential estate with a minimum lot size of 1.5 hectares but was rezoned by Amendment C71, with council support as “a suitable infill development opportunity for Torquay”, in 2012.

Officers have cast doubt on whether the lots will ultimately be that small, stating “it is questionable whether the Development Plan can realistically achieve a density of between 22 to 28.5 lots per hectare, however, this will not be determined until final lot layouts are received by council.

“It is considered that these densities are aspirational and that the actual range of lot sizes will vary, with the ultimate densities and lot sizes to be determined at the subdivision approval stage.”

During the exhibition period, some submitters expressed concern about a higher density residential development being created without any supporting public transport.

The Department of Transport noted the site is more than 800 metres’ walking distance from an existing bus route, so the road network in the estate should be designed to cater for a regular bus service as well as bus stops.

As a result, the council’s resolution on Tuesday included designating Grossmans Road (east of Messmate Road), Illawong Drive, Briody Drive (west of Illawong Drive) and Messmate Road (between Grossmans Road and Briody Drive) as potential future bus routes.