By YASEMIN TALAT
CAIRNLEA residents were happier last week following the release of the revised Cairnlea masterplan.
Residents were happy to see that the revised masterplan by Places Victoria had a significant reduction in the size of the proposed commercial area and now includes an expanded residential area instead.
In a letter sent to Cairnlea residents last week, Places Victoria addressed that the revised plans for the area bordered by the M80 and Ballarat Rd would “better reflect the views of the community”.
“Our new plan includes an expanded residential area, with the commercial area now confined to the southern part of the site along Ballarat Rd,” senior development manager Kris Wilson said.
“Under the revised plan, approximately 71 per cent of the site will now be zoned General Residential, with five per cent to be Commercial 1 zone. The remainder of the site will be dedicated to public open space and wetlands,” Ms Wilson said.
Places Victoria will also apply to have the Commercial 1 zone in the area for commercial uses that support a residential area, such as shops, while restricting industrial land uses.
A planning scheme amendment application will be submitted later this month with the Planning Minister expected to make a decision later this year.
But residents still had concerns surrounding traffic congestion, schools and the effects on parkland and native bushes prominent to Cairnlea.
“We bought into this area on advice from VicUrban that it would be a guaranteed 30 per cent parkland/native bush. This will not happen even under the new plan,” resident Graeme Blore said.
“I cannot speak for all residents, but feedback I have got is that concerns remain about issues such as lot sizes, the proposed higher density housing on the western corner of Ballarat Rd and Cairnlea Drive, what mix of residents will be housed here, and how high these buildings will be,” he said.
“Residents are also very concerned about the potential traffic nightmares ahead with egress”
