19.9 C
Byron Shire
March 28, 2024

Plans for the future of Byron Bay’s town centre

Latest News

Splendour 2024 cancelled

It's official, Splendour in the Grass 2024 has been cancelled.

Other News

Workshop in Creative Writing For Beginners

Have you always felt like you have a novel in you, but don’t know where to start? Or have...

Splendour 2024 cancelled

It's official, Splendour in the Grass 2024 has been cancelled.

Belongil Beach nude bathing

I am very concerned about the proposed revocation of legal clothing-optional beach use at Tyagarah. When I was last in...

Roller derby rocks the Cavanbah Centre

The Red Kennedys have once again dominated the Northern Rivers Revolt Roller Derby Tournament held at the Cavanbah Centre over the weekend of March 16-17.

Editorial – Let’s do the development dance!

Some good questions were raised by residents at last week’s Council meeting – and were ‘taken on notice’ by Mayor, Michael Lyon.

Cinema: Wicked Little Letters

Based on a true scandal that stunned 1920s England, Wicked Little Letters centres on neighbours Edith Swan and Rose Gooding in the seaside town of Littlehampton.

Aslan Shand

What will Byron Bay look like in the future? How will the town be shaped, grow, change and develop?

Two key documents are currently open for comment on how this will be achieved: the Draft Residential Strategy and the Byron Bay Town Centre: Review of Planning Rules, also known as the design control plans (DCP). Comment on this document has been extended to 15 November owing to lack of public advertising or media releases on the changes.

One of the key concerns raised has been the idea of removing the floor-space ratio (FSR) that traditionally determines the bulk and scale of buildings in favour of ‘design excellence’ as the means of assessing future developments.

‘There are some good objectives including the pedestrianisation of the town and reducing car dominance,’ says Dr Phillip Pollard, who sits on the Urban Design Panel for Lake Macquarie City Council, which uses a similar approach to design excellence. However, he says the document in its current format is ‘a well-intentioned but naive document’.

‘I’m concerned that the draft won’t achieve the stated objectives and could be quite counterproductive.’

Independent panel

Dr Pollard, a former Byron Shire councillor who also sits on the state panel for significant developments and advises a number of other councils on planning and design, says that managing development through a design-excellence process can be done but it needs a strong set of provisions for it to work effectively.

‘You need a rigorous process to have a hope of achieving design excellence,’ Dr Pollard said. ‘To achieve that you need a truly independent panel to provide advice to council.’

In particular Dr Pollard said the provisions put into the Local Environment Plan (LEP) need to be strong if they are to stand up in court. ‘It needs teeth for the LEP to be held up in court, as it is the LEP that carries greater weight in court than the DCP.’

Former Byron Shire Mayor and state MP Jan Barham said, ‘The Masterplan identified that better design of the built environment is required, and I support that, but it needs to be a fully informed and cautious approach. The Byron Bay Masterplan Implementation Plan stated that Floor Space Ratio (FSR) would be amended to either remove the need, or to establish a FSR that supports the built form aspirations for the town centre. This hasn’t been done.’

The DCP also recommends extending the building height to 11.5m in the area between Lawson Street and Bay Lane (behind the Beach Hotel) stating that this would not affect the view of the town from the beach due to the angle of the land.

Local architect Christine Vadasz has said that on a recent kayak trip in the Bay ‘looking back it still has that sleepy town look because it is still low rise’ and that it is important to keep the town ‘quirky and different’.

‘But the town has three ways to go – up, out or in,’ she said. ‘We don’t want to go out or up, so the place has to become more dense. We need to be more creative with open spaces, they don’t have to be big but they need to be creative with vegetation, and at a human scale.’


Support The Echo

Keeping the community together and the community voice loud and clear is what The Echo is about. More than ever we need your help to keep this voice alive and thriving in the community.

Like all businesses we are struggling to keep food on the table of all our local and hard working journalists, artists, sales, delivery and drudges who keep the news coming out to you both in the newspaper and online. If you can spare a few dollars a week – or maybe more – we would appreciate all the support you are able to give to keep the voice of independent, local journalism alive.

7 COMMENTS

  1. Beware this paragraph:
    “The DCP also recommends extending the building height to 11.5m in the area between Lawson Street and Bay Lane (behind the Beach Hotel) stating that this would not affect the view of the town from the beach due to the angle of the land.”
    Councillors surely don’t know the building height can be moved because the people of the town have not been asked. Ask the ratepayers. Once the building height is moved it could be moved a lot more upwards once it was moved once. Then that height extension is coupled with a view of the town from the beach, No one goes to the beach to view the town. You extend the building height to view the beach. I wonder what the angle is and what is selling?

  2. I have recently returned from Venice and totally agree with your density option. How does a beautiful built environment make a rather shabby lagoon look beautiful?
    Byron has the opportunity to get it right. Don’t follow the mistakes of other built environments. Locals and tourists love to see something unique. Stop high rise, franchises etc Marthers vineyard in the USA have made these choices and so can we. Keep trying.

  3. I can tell you a few things that WONT HAVE changed;
    The third world country condtion of the roads and street lighting.
    The regardless of lawful wearing of helmets and lighting for push bike riders.

  4. I’d like to see rail expanded to at least mullum and lismore to provide a useful local means of transport throughout the region reducing the need for cars and buses , considering it’s all sitting there why aren’t we utilising this wonderful asset more ? The last thing needed is more traffic ?‍♂️

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

We just love him!

If you’re over 50 you might not be a fan of Tom Jones, but you can bet your mum is. If you’re under 40 you might not even know who he is, but your grandmother probably wet her pants at the mere mention of his name.

Peter Garrett gives Bluesfest the nod

If I say the words ‘US Forces give the nod’, I can pretty much guarantee that you will hear the unmistakable voice of Peter Garrett ringing in your ears. Your head may even start to bob up and down a bit. 

Save Wallum finalist in NSW 2024 environment awards

The Save Wallum campaign has been named as a finalist in the Nature Conservation Council of NSW Environment Awards 2024. The award ceremony will be held in Sydney tonight, and Save Wallum spokesperson and ecologist James Barrie will be attending with Tegan Kitt, another founding member of the group.

New report highlights gaps in rural and remote health

The second annual Royal Flying Doctor Service ‘Best for the Bush, Rural and remote Health Base Line’ report has just been released. Presenting the latest data on the health of rural and remote Australians and evidence on service gaps, it identifies issues in urgent need of attention from service providers, funders, partners and policy makers.