Council settles unit appeal

THE Toowoomba Regional Council has called a legal settlement that green-lit a controversial gated community development “the best possible outcome”.

The final judgment in the planning and environment court appeal between the TRC and developer Shangri-La Pty Ltd over its planned 40-unit proposal at Prince Henry Heights was handed down on Friday, nearly two years after the council rejected it at a special meeting.

Councillors voted in December to settle the matter, with both parties agreeing to an eight-unit reduction and improvements to conditions around bushfire hazard reduction and stormwater.

Planning and development commitee chair Cr Chris Tait acknowledged the community outcry after the development was proposed, saying it was still the best result for both the immediate community and the region’s ratepayers.

“Both parties have been assisted by court experts to investigate the issues in a finer grained detail and to resolve the issues of bushfire, environmental, geotechnical, stormwater, traffic and planning,” he said.

“While we realise not everyone in the community will be completely satisfied with the final result, we have worked hard to ensure we get the best possible outcome for our residents and community.

“Through the negotiations, the council successfully negotiated a reduction in the scale of the original proposed development from 40 three-bedroom townhouses to 32 threebedroom townhouses.

“The negotiated changes will also significantly improve the ecological outcomes over the site and address the community concern of bushfire hazard and stormwater along the escarpment.”

In the ruling, Judge Michael Williamson QC issued the judgement subject to 119 conditions, a number of which required the developer to adopt ongoing measures to manage bushfire fuel loads and weed propagation through regular site maintenance obligations.

Prince Henry Heights residents expressed their disappointment at the result back in December, saying the development would have untold impacts.

“It’s come as a great upset to the community of Prince Henry Heights,” resident Philip Collins said at the time.

“I still maintain … the proposed development is totally out of character for the escarpment of Prince Henry Heights.”