Ocean Grove Community Association (OGCA) says it is “extremely disappointed” by Planning Minister Richard Wynne’s decision to refer submissions about Bellarine town boundaries to an independent advisory committee for further consideration.
Mr Wynne’s referral has sought advice on whether all protected settlement boundaries designated in the Draft Bellarine Peninsula Statement of Planning Policy (SPP) are appropriate, having regard to the purpose of a SPP under section 46AU of the Planning and Environment Act 1987.
He also asks whether any amendments to those protected settlement boundaries should be made.
However, OGCA chairperson Phil Edwards said Ocean Grove’s town boundary was a case of “Davids battling Goliaths”.
“Let there be no mistake, the existing Ocean Grove town settlement boundary is clearly under attack by developers seeking to get more land for residential development,” he said.
“This is despite council having determined in 2017 there was, based on strong growth calculations, 18 years of existing vacant residential land inside the existing settlement boundaries of the towns on the Bellarine.
Mr Edwards said OGCA believed developers want to shift the town settlement boundary to open up land west of Grubb Road through the existing Oakdene winery area and the open farm land beyond for residential development.
Developers also want to open up farmland and green space east of Banks Road for residential development and want the land north all the way up to the Bellarine Highway, Mr Edwards said.
The state government declared the Bellarine Peninsula a ‘distinctive area and landscape’ in 2019 which triggered the need for a SPP for the area, to ensure significant landscapes, environmental and cultural values of the area will be protected.
Mr Edwards said the draft SPP that proposes to apply permanent settlement boundaries around all Bellarine towns had “received overwhelming community support”.
OGCA’s ‘Enough is Enough’ campaign, which advocates the retention of Ocean Grove’s settlement boundaries in their existing location, has received more than 6000 signatures from community members.
“It is hard to imagine how the community’s view on the boundary issue could have been expressed more loudly or more clearly,” Mr Edwards said.
“We encourage people who want to show their concern and who support the retention of the current town settlement boundary to write to the Planning Minister Richard Wynne and to Lisa Neville, [and] sign our ‘Enough is Enough’ online campaign through our Facebook page if they haven’t already done so, and to ask their friends and colleagues to do the same.”
Mr Wynne said: “This process is the best way to deliver a thorough investigation for this important area − ensuring the character of the Bellarine Peninsula is preserved while taking the views of the community into account.
“I want to make sure the character of the Bellarine Peninsula is protected as part of the Andrews Labor government’s work to preserve our distinctive areas and landscapes.
“Delivering the final SPP for Bellarine is a priority, and we will be acting with urgency to finalise it by mid-year.”
