Complex plan angers locals
A PROPOSED four-storey luxury block of apartments has sparked community backlash in the small coastal village of Cremorne.
A development application for the 9.5-metre-high proposal at Cremorne Ave has been lodged with the Clarence City Council.
It involves an existing house and former shop being demolished, with a complex of four apartments and one penthouse being built on the site close to the beach.
But the residents of Cremorne, which has a population of about 300, say if the proposal is accepted by the council, it could change forever the look and feel of the village — where there are few two- storey properties.
Resident Marc Hand said it also had other implications for similar areas on the coast in Tasmania.
“This place has a history of being a shack town,” he said.
“People now do live here fulltime but they like that quiet, low-key lifestyle and village feel.
“Something like that is something you would expect to find on the Gold Coast, not Cremorne.
“If it gets approved, and with the new statewide planning scheme, it will potentially open the door for developers to do the same in other areas.”
Property owner Mike Patten said Cremorne’s village feel made the area what it was.
“If it goes through, then I could go and build a five-storey development and make money,” he said.
“But we have all these village zones down here, they have village zoning so they look like a village.”
The residents have raised concerns about the impact the development would have on the environment, especially because Cremorne does not have town water or sewerage.
The development proposes an on-site modified aerobic wastewater treatment system that would discharge to an in-ground “absorption area”.
The proposal is being advertised by the council for public comment until September 6.
Acting Clarence Mayor Jock Campbell said it would probably be assessed by the council on September 25.
“There’s been a substantial response to it,” he said.
“There has been a massive amount of representations regarding it, almost as many as I’ve seen for a development in my time at the council, and I’ve been here for around 40 years.”