New estate proposes 470 residential lots
Plans for another major residential subdivision on Warragul’s southside have been submitted to Baw Baw Shire.
The 470 new housing blocks proposed will be at the southwest corner of the future town boundary set under Warragul’s Precinct Structure Plan.
The development will be west of Butlers Track and between East West Rd to the south and Landsborough Rd to the north.
Documents lodged with the shire by consultancy Planning Central of Oakleigh on behalf of owner Coolibah Estates Pty Ltd of Pearcedale do not indicate any planned starting date for the development.
The application that was lodged with Baw Baw Shire on July 31 is listed, but without the detailed proposal, on the council’s planning register.
The shire said it was exempt from the need to publicly advertise the application because it was under the PSP and on land located in the Urban Growth Zone.
An engineering report submitted with the application estimates that when completed the new estate will generate about 10,410 traffic movements daily.
These would be from residential traffic as well as a possible new state primary school, sporting reserves and a neighbourhood centre/community facility.
The two main accesses to the proposed estate will be via Butlers Track, connecting to Landsborough Rd, and EastWest Rd connecting to Warragul-Korumburra Rd.
Roundabouts are proposed at both of those intersections.
The total area of the development will be just over 80 hectares with housing blocks that would average 742 square metres in size utilising almost 35 hectares.
Waterway corridors would account for 11.3 hectares, 6.75 hectares are set aside for sporting reserves, 3.53 hectares for possible schools and 2.8 hectares for parks.
The housing blocks would be developed in 15 stages.
Concerns have been mounting in the district over traffic congestion and road and pedestrian safety associated with future housing development on Warragul’s south outlined in the PSP.
Baw Baw Shire Council has already identified a $7.5 million upgrade to the existing roundabout at the Princes Freeway, Korumburra, Landsborough and Bon Vista Rds intersection and the installation of traffic signals at the Korumburra Rd-Burke St junction as high priority projects it will advocate to Regional Roads Victoria to help address traffic issues on the south side of the town.
Korumburra Rd, and its extension to become Howitt St (South Rd), and Princes Freeway are the main routes to and from the south to Warragul’s business district.
Developers will be required to upgrade Butlers Track to connector road status where it will link with King St, providing another possible southern access via Burke St, Gallaghers Crossing and Princes Way.
The application to council claims a series of “technical assessments” did not raise any relevant matters that would prevent the plans being approved.
However, it stated work was continuing on an aboriginal cultural heritage management plan after 59 surface artefacts were identified.
Among the other matters assessed in reports were the land’s physical features, biodiversity, presence of the great Gippsland earthworm and Warragul burrowing crayfish and stormwater run-off.