VICTORIA Point residents have slammed a proposal to build about 270 homes near Clay Gully Road.
Council is set to consider an application from Ausbuild for the development on Wednesday.
Council officers have said the application is in conflict with Redlands and state planning instruments but recommend it be approved.
Their report in the council agenda for Wednesday’s meeting says the development conflicts with those instruments but has sufficient grounds to justify approval.
The lots are proposed as the first stage of a larger development, which could comprise up to 2000 houses.
The area under consideration is bordered by Double Jump Road in the south, Clay Gully Road in the east, and Brendan Way in the north and towards Bunker Roads in the west.
Councillors Lance Hewlett and Wendy Boglary and Redlands MP Kim Richards met with residents on Saturday.
Clay Gully Road resident Kylie Ramsay said the development would impact on roads, schools and facilities for the aged. She said there had been a meeting for residents only two years ago.
“We moved here for the lifestyle. We would be happy to have development if it was ‘like for like’ and the process should be open and transparent.”
Brendan Way resident Joy Rowe said she wanted council to plan for the whole area.
“We need to make sure the roads are there, the schools, shops and ambulance services,” she said.
Mrs Rowe said Brendan Way was not designed for the number of cars that would use it if the development went ahead.
“We have children who walk that way to the high school and people with children. It would be so dangerous,” she said. “Width-wise the road is not designed to accommodate services like ambulances, fire trucks and rubbish removal.”
She said play areas for children were also needed.
Clay Gully Road resident Keith Griffith said the community would not object if the proposed development was for properties similar to those already in the area.
Cr Hewlett said he shared many residents’ concerns and believed it was hard to justify support for the development given the lack of main road infrastructure to support it.
“My major concern and that which has been expressed by the community is the impact on the already congested Cleveland-Redland Bay Road and the impact to intersections at Double Jump Road, Anita Street and Benfer Road,” Cr Hewlett said.
“The only upgrade specified at this point is an upgrade to the Benfer Road intersection with the addition of a slip lane.”
Ms Richards said she was concerned about the impact on infrastructure of the development of the whole area, not only that included in the present application.
She questioned the time councillors and residents were given to consider the application, published on the council’s website on Friday, ahead of Wednesday’s meeting.
“We need to look at the whole context,” Ms Richards said. “This is putting the cart before the horse. There hasn’t been a proper structure plan done ahead of this application.”
Cr Hewlett said the development in the area needed to be considered holistically not in a piecemeal way.
He said if the plan was approved, multiple small residential lots would be created along the fence line of large residential properties on Barcrest Drive.
“One home on Barcrest Drive could have nine neighbouring home sites along their back fence,” he said.
“In my opinion, these areas should have suitable transitional zones to mitigate the impact on existing residents.”