LOBBY GROUP: HANDS OFF OUR BELLARINE

THE Bellarine Peninsula’s key qualities would be forever lost if the region continued to bear the weight of Geelong’s population growth, a key lobby group has warned.

“The threat is immediate and real. The Bellarine is now on the cusp of losing its distinctive character,” the Bellarine Community Council said.

“Further expansion of residential development areas … cannot occur without causing irreparable damage to the attributes and qualities of the Bellarine.”

The community organisation has called for the Bellarine’s existing settlement boundaries to be fixed and for new housing to be limited to infill or consolidation developments.

The BCC’s plea comes as the council progresses its Geelong Settlement Strategy, which looks at how and where the city’s rising population will be situated over the next 20 years.

A rising amount of new

“The threat is immediate and real. The Bellarine is now on the cusp of losing its distinctive character. “BELLARINE COMMUNITY COUNCIL

housing has been seen on the Bellarine in recent years, with the region hosting 37 per cent of all new lots in the last half of 2017.

If a 2.5 per cent annual growth rate is maintained over the next two decades, more than 73,000 new homes will be required by 2036.

The strategy notes the “mixed messages” being sent about the region, with some policies calling townships growth areas and others seeking to preserve the area’s rural landscapes.

“Clear direction must be provided about the balance of future residential land supply between urban Geelong and the Bellarine. The share of new development on the Bellarine Peninsula should decline over time.”

The Bellarine Community Council has called for more certainty with planning, and wants the council to lobby the State Government to have the Bellarine declared a Distinctive Area.

The reform — which has already been applied to the Macedon Ranges — would see fixed settlement boundaries amended only by the Victorian Parliament.

The BCC said allowing housing outside of Ocean Grove’s town boundary along Grubb Rd showed how flexible settlement zones had previously been.

“The Oakdene residential development and others ... have already substantially degraded what was an important facet of the rural/agricultural character.

“The threatened loss of the Oakdene winery to residential development would complete the destruction in this area of the Bellarine.

“It is futile to talk about protecting the unique character qualities and vistas of the Bellarine if they are allowed to be eroded by continually encroaching developments.”