The long-running saga of 23 Compton Drive, East Ballina, has finally been resolved, with Ballina Council agreeing to the demolition of the existing restaurant, which will be replaced with a two-storey house.
As the old abandoned restaurant has fallen into disrepair, the owner of the property overlooking Shaws Bay has been stuck in development limbo for years, with plans for this site and the adjoining block complicated by the lack of driveway access, landslide risk and other issues.
On the recommendation of Ballina Council staff, councillors have now voted to allow the development and associated earthworks and vegetation removal to proceed, subject to a number of conditions.
Cr Therese Crollick said it was obvious why the development should be approved.
‘Firstly, the building that has been sitting there idle for many, many years, is an eyesore, to put it mildly. So anything that can improve that site would be an improvement. But having said that… there’s number of issues and a number of potential problems with building on this site, and particularly building a residential dwelling.
‘However, having read through all the attachments and the information provided by Council, I personally am satisfied that the issues have been significantly addressed and that the oversight will be rigorous and that the conditions set out will be adhered to.
‘Having seen the artist’s impression, it looks quite a nice building that’s going to be there. A lot of people will probably be fairly envious when it’s built, I think we’d all like to live in that kind of a dwelling with that view over Shaws Bay. The parking will be off street, so that issue is addressed.’
Setback and landslide risk
Cr Eva Ramsey questioned whether any other new DA would be approved with the setback issues of the property, with the current restaurant immediately adjoining Compton Drive.
Staff explained said it wasn’t that simple, and such issues had to be decided on the merits of each case, which were complicated here by the different histories of the two parcels of land in question.
Cr Erin Karsten said her concern was the amount of earthworks that were needed for the DA.
Cr Ramsey then brought up the issues of landslides on the adjoining property, and insurance concerns. ‘My concern is it’s now edging on to that property that we’re speaking about, so as that slippage comes along, what sort of restraints have we got if they put this here?’
Ballina Council’s director of planning and environmental health, Matthew Wood, said ‘the geotechnical conditions have been a key factor in the assessment. We’ve required pretty rigorous assessment of that.
‘The proponent, from our perspective, demonstrated that they can construct the retaining wall to a standard that won’t cause further slip, and in fact, could improve the situation, because it’ll be an engineered wall…
‘If there turns out to be slip or problem, the responsibility ultimately rests with the landowner.’
Cr Simon Kinny asked about plans for the toilet block next door, and whether it was going to be repainted, as some public submissions requested.
Mr Wood said Council’s intention in the longer term was to move the toilet block to the other side of the road and replace it with a more modern amenities facility for people using Shaws Bay, so they wouldn’t be repainting the existing block.
The final decision to allow the development to proceed was passed with the support of all councillors except Cr Ramsey.
More stories about Ballina Shire Council:
The agenda for Thursday's meeting includes six notices of motion from four councillors, with issues including missing persons, volunteer recognition, and arts funding. Construction on a $4.35 million flood-resilience upgrade of Ross Lane at Lennox Head is due to begin today, ahead of a nine-week closure of the busy road later this month. With Ballina Shire Council General Manager Paul Hickey deciding to retire after almost twenty years in the role, and even longer as a staff member, the task of finding a replacement has begun. Cr Damien Loone was also returned as Deputy Mayor after Cr Simon Chate withdrew his nomination. September's meeting opened with a minute's silence for much-loved community member and Lennox Head restaurant owner Blake Rogers, who lost his life last week. Fresh from winning pre-selection as the Nationals candidate for the state seat of Ballina, the 'independent' first-term Ballina councillor Michelle Bailey has put forward a notice of motion asking Council to scrap its fixed 2030 net-zero target in favour of what she describes as a 'flexible sustainability strategy'.
Big meeting for Ballina Council this week
Ross Lane flood-resilience works begin ahead of nine-week closure
Ballina Council will be getting a new general manager
Ballina debates dog parks and net zero
Michelle Bailey targets net zero in Ballina
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