Planning fears increase

RESIDENTS in the city’s targeted growth suburbs are to face a double whammy.

Their quiet streets will be flooded with more people and longtime residents will be slugged higher rates as houses disappear and luxury apartment blocks are built to handle a surge in population, according to the council.

Another concern at Labrador, Biggera Waters and Southport west – shared by residents, councillors and MPs – is whether transport infrastructure can be upgraded to reduce congestion in narrow suburban streets.

Main Beach Association leader Sue Donovan, who attended a City Plan update meeting on Monday night, said the response from the council confirmed the worst fears of residents about rates.

Residents were told a rate increase would not be imposed by the council but would happen regardless, “forced upon property owners” by the State Government due to an increase in land values from redevelopment of their suburbs.

“The increases would be spread across the next three years. Rates will rise in the targeted growth areas due to the rezoning. It will mean a lot of people will be forced out,” Ms Donovan said.

“For some it will be good because they can sell up and downsize. But there will be a lot of people forced out. They will sell because they can’t afford the rates. It is an unintended consequence of the planning changes.”

Some residents told how developers were already targeting elderly land owners at

Biggera Waters as they attempted to amalgamate blocks for unit developments.

In the past five years Biggera Waters recorded land value growth of almost 20 per cent, while Labrador (9.3 per cent) and Southport (5.5 per cent) had lower increases.

Under revised population growth targets for 2041, Biggera Waters will welcome an extra 1400 people, Labrador will increase by 10,400 and Southport west by about 8000.

Protests by residents to the proposed City Plan changes have made the council rethink its planning, with the number of extra dwellings cut back by at least 3000, reducing the targeted population increase by 7500.

Ms Donovan said the meeting was told the late changes by the council to the City Plan were made according to the number of submissions in a particular area.

“So if your area was unaware, tough luck. They assumed that owners in those areas were happy with the changes – a major misconception,” she said.

Other residents raised concern about the Broadwater suburbs being targeted for growth yet not being part of the light rail corridor.

Bonney MP Sam O’Connor fielded concerns about the inadequacy of public transport.

But he welcomed the council’s positive reaction to feedback from residents and was pushing for further “tweaking” of the City Plan.

Under the reforms, a benefit for developers in which they could apply for a 50 per cent increase in the size of a project would be removed in the targeted growth areas.