A CONTROVERSIAL application to turn a suburban house into so-called rooming accommodation has been rejected by Redland council.
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The application was for a property on Ziegenfusz Road, Thornlands.
Residents fear it will end up a site for early-release prisoners like the former Breaking Through Transitional Services set-up on Woodlands Drive, Thornlands, where substantial problems had occurred.
Robyn Thwaite, speaking on behalf of residents, told council’s first general meeting of the year that the house had a transient population.
She said the area was unsuitable for such premises as it was close to schools and had the potential to devalue surrounding properties.
Ms Thwaite said town planners working for the owner had told her that its residents were of good character but she wondered how this conclusion could be arrived at given the mobile nature of people who lived there.
“This area is a settled residential family-oriented area with a reputation for high quality homes and for being a safe and secure suburb,” she said.
She said such accommodation – where people individually lease rooms – was the result of the state government failing to provide appropriate housing for places where prisoner supervision could be maintained.
Cr Murray Elliott said the project was no different to about 15,000 other Redland rental properties.
He said any rental property could be deemed to have transient residents by its mere nature. The application had met planning requirements and councillors should be careful lest they give the proponent a day in court.
Cr Paul Gleeson, who has had a similar rooming application in his Capalaba division in 2016, said such places were a scourge on the community and he feared more would come.
He said no one living at the premises had responsibility for the property. “These things have got to be stopped,” he said.
Cr Paul Golle said the application was out of character for the area.
He said residents had put in eight submissions against the proposal and a petition and had a strong belief that people on parole would end up living there.
Cr Julie Talty said she was torn on the issue. She understood the needs of young people needing cheaper accommodation and did not believe that they were necessarily of poor character or would behave badly.
Cr Hewlett said the project was inappropriate on many levels, including its car parking which saw five parks supplied at the front like a hotel-motel.
Mayor Karen Williams said conditions set by council on the project could protect residents’ interests.
Council had refused a similar development application at Capalaba. Both the Capalaba and Thornlands properties had been used for rooming before the owners applied for planning approval.
The Thornlands house has four bedrooms, a guest bedroom and communal kitchen, dining and living areas. The applicant has asked for a maximum of five tenants at any one time.
