Torquay’s settlement boundaries gazetted

THE long debate about whether development should be allowed in the Spring Creek valley appears to be officially over with the Victorian government gazetting the final Statement of Planning Policy (SPP) in the Surf Coast Distinctive Area and Landscape (DAL) program.

The state government declared Torquay, Jan Juc, Bells Beach and Breamlea and surrounds a DAL in September 2019, which began the process of creating a 50-year vision and land use strategies for the area.

The final version of the SPP was released in April of this year, and South Barwon MP Darren Cheeseman and Labor candidate for Polwarth Hutch Hussein announced on Monday this week the SPP’s gazettal, meaning the policy had been formally implemented into local planning schemes and the new planning controls and settlement boundaries were now in place across the Surf Coast.

Torquay’s town boundary being pulled back from 1km into the Spring Creek valley and fixed at Duffields Road to prevent further development – as promised by Mr Cheeseman in the lead-up to the 2018 election – was one of the most contentious parts of the DAL process.

“I’m so proud to help deliver these reforms for the Surf Coast community. We’ve listened to locals to protect what makes the area so special,” Mr Cheeseman said.

“We can now be confident that what we love about our Surf Coast is protected now and for future generations.”

Torquay and Jan Juc are now part of the electorate of Polwarth, and Ms Hussein welcomed the gazetting of the SPP and the end of many years of debate about housing in Spring Creek.

“That’s up to the voters of Polwarth,” she said.

“This can be the end of it – a vote for Labor will ensure this is done for future generations, whereas it’s clear that a vote for the Liberal Party means it’s hands-on again for developers.

“The community has said hands-off, the Labor Government has said hands-off, [Polwarth Liberal MP] Richard Riordan is saying hands-on.”

Ms Hussein said she believed Spring Creek housing was an issue that had “crossed classes”.

“I think there would be a lot of people who might consider voting Liberal, but knowing how Richard Riordan has shown his true colours over the past month where he’s said a lot of the large-scale developments that the Labor Government have knocked because we think they’re inappropriate… he thinks they should have gone ahead.

“With Spring Creek, I don’t think they [the Liberals] can be trusted on that.”