By ALESHA CAPONE
MORE than 70 residents have unanimously voted to fight plans to build a commercial precinct within Cairnlea.
They made the vow at a meeting organised by the group No Industrial Zone for Cairnlea, on 2 December at the Cairnlea Soccer Club.
At the meeting, Western Metropolitan Region MP Khalil Eideh listened to residents’ concerns about a Places Victoria proposal to build more than 146 townhouses, 50 apartments and a commercial zone on land bordered by Cairnlea Drive and Ballarat Rd.
More than 60 people have signed a petition against the redevelopment which will be delivered to Brimbank City Council.
Places Victoria has already dropped plans to include an industrial zone on the site, increased the proposed residential area and provided more recreational space.
At the meeting, resident Peter Brandecker described Cairnlea as “an oasis in the Western Suburbs”.
A key worry of protestors has been a plan to remove 300 sugar gum trees to make way for the development and instead plant 750 new trees.
Another Cairnlea resident, Graeme Blore, said Places Victoria should plant a minimum of 2000 new mature trees.
Arboricultural consultant Dr Peter Yau completed a report on the sugar gums safety in January 2012.
Dr Yau said the trees had health and structural defects but would not be “considered a high hazard risk to public safety”.
However he said plans to make the area a residential zone would make the trees a “high risk” to new property owners.
Mr Blore said residents have also been worried by plans to locate a park and residential area on top of land potentially contaminated by the former Albion Explosives Factory near the corner of Ballarat Rd and the Western Ring Rd.
A Groundwater Quality Restricted Use Zone has been applied to the land on the south-east corner of the former factory – and part of nearby Ardeer – due to residual groundwater contamination in the area.
