Approval for Jonson St DA paves the way for change in Byron CBD

Paul Bibby

The transformation of southern Jonson Street into a medium-density residential and retail hub is set to begin, after Byron Shire councillors granted a developer approval to exceed height and floor space ratio policy for a large-scale mixed-use development.

Accepting staff recommendation, a majority of Councillors approved the 22-unit development at 139 Jonson St. Cr Richardson and his fellow Greens councillors, Labor’s Paul Spooner and independent Alan Hunter, defeated a motion by independent councillor Cate Coorey, who sought to defer the application so that further changes could be made.

Her motion included ameliorating the loss of privacy and amenity and a reappraisal of the  traffic and pedestrian conflict potential on the proposed Ruskin Lane access.

The project, led by local developer Graham Dunn and his son Jason, involves two levels of underground car parking, retail, commercial and cafe tenancies at ground level, with 28 shop top residential units in two levels above.

The first proposal was rejected by the Northern Region Planning Panel on the grounds that it significantly exceeded floor space and height limits.

It comes after more than a year of debate, and concerted opposition from a group of impacted residents.

The approval decision paves the way for the transformation of Jonson Street foreshadowed in the Byron Bay Town Centre Masterplan.

Page 69 of the plan suggests the Jonson Street south precinct be ‘incrementally transformed into a mixed-use district that supports medium-density living and local business’.

Controversially, Mr Dunn was originally a member of the Masterplan group, but quit with conflict of interest pressure with his proposal.

The approved development still breaches the rules in both of these areas, though significantly less than in the previous DA.

A small group of neighbours asked for further changes to the proposal, most notably to the parking arrangements, which involve up to 976 traffic movements a day along a narrow back lane that is directly adjacent to some of their houses.

However, a majority of Byron councillors elected to approve the development with a number of minor additional conditions.

Mayor supports

‘This is an absolutely significant shift compared to the previous [DA],’ Greens Mayor Simon Richardson told the chamber.

‘A whole level’s been knocked off – that’s not insignificant.’

‘I wish this was a little smaller and I wish it was slightly better designed…But it’s pretty good.’

‘In terms of the precedent and people saying that this is going to kill Byron and change us for ever – in 12 years I’ve heard that so many times…’ Cr Richardson said.

‘The reality is that height increases started well before I came on the scene, and will happen well after I jump off.

‘The masterplan is a brilliant document, and part of that is that it gets people to live in town, and this is one of the first [developments] that actually does this.’

Cr Richardson said there was not enough ‘to justify stopping it’, and was fearful of a court case  challenge from the developer if refused.

He was also satisfied with the traffic management plan. ‘You need to show reasonable reasons why it is not satisfactory,’ he said, adding that planners are ‘allowed to have flexibility’ with their decisions.

But Cr Basil Cameron said there may be potential conflict between cars and pedestrians on the Ruskin Lane access, and that aspect of the development came without any assessment.

Cr Cameron also said that Council’s local traffic committee had unresolved concerns, yet the May 12 meeting minutes that tabled those concerns were ‘incomplete’.

As of Tuesday, Council staff had not published those meeting minutes online.

Cr Coorey said in support of her motion, ‘We should also support the resident’s amenity and capital values approving developments that minimise the negative effects on an intensive development on their boundary,’

‘There was no consideration for neighbours,’ she added.