COUNCIL has rejected a controversial development application to turn the Teak Lane Reserve at Victoria Point into a shopping centre car park.
In a sometimes heated debate, councillors voted against planning officers’ advice to approve the development application.
Residents have been campaigning for the buffer zone to stay and for it to be better maintained and policed due to complaints about drunkeness, drug taking, vandalism and anti-social behaviour.
In a report to council, officers said although the development did not comply with local zoning, there were sufficient grounds to approve it.
It was a place of on-going anti-social and crime issues and turning the 80m wide bushland strip into a car park would go some way to resolving these problems.
The council report said police, Town Centre Shopping Centre management and council had tried to reduce anti-social behaviour.
While the land was originally meant as an environmental corridor, this was not now considered to be the best use.
It said the site did not meet active or passive recreational needs of residents or visitors.
There was no evidence of koala activity and a landscape plan would be put in place to provide a vegetated buffer zone between car parking and houses and lighting fitted to improve security.
Councillors Lance Hewlett and Paul Golle argued fiercely against the development, saying there was no evidence that building a car park reduced crime or anti-social behaviour.
Cr Hewlett said the real problem was steeply rising population levels.
He said the block had substantial wildlife and was used by walkers, bird watchers and photographers and, despite what council officers said, was still linked to other remnant bushland.
Resident Maria Sealy made an emotional plea to the council before the vote, saying locals had maintained the area which had been meant as a buffer zone between the commercial area and houses.
It was a conservation area that should be saved and residents felt betrayed by council at the prospect of the block being developed.
Ms Sealy said to develop the bushland block was an easy option.
“I think they just saw this as an easy answer to ongoing problems,’’ she said outside council.
While she was glad the development proposal had been rejected, she was furious with how council had handled the issue.
Victoria Point Shopping Centre owner and developer, Ian Lancini of Lanrex, said he had always worked with council in the management of the land. “We thought we had Redland City Council support,’’ he said.
Cr Murray Elliott said council had make a mistake by handing over trusteeship of the land in 2014 which led to the Newman government proposing to sell the land.
In April this year after a new council was elected and pressure from residents, council decided to write to the government, seeking to regain control of the reserve.
Cr Elliott said a rejection of the development application was likely to lead to a court battle which would see the car park approved and council having to pick up court costs.
Mayor Karen Williams was in Hobart for a conference and unable to make telephone contact for the vote.
Ms Sealy has previously offered to pay for security cameras to be set up in the reserve to tackle unsocial behaviour.
