By Kirra Grimes
DEVELOPERS have abandoned plans for a $38 million resort at Coronet Bay which received over 350 objections from the community.
Due to come before Bass Coast Shire Council at their September 16 meeting, the application, for 92 Norsemens Road, was withdrawn at the final hour, with Council notifying objectors on Tuesday, September 1, that they’d officially “closed the file”.
“The applicant has not provided any reasons for the withdrawal of the planning application, a council spokesperson told the Sentinel-Times last week.
The resort and function centre was intended to promote local tourism and cater to Victoria’s growing tourism sector, “in particular Chinese tour groups,” according to planning documents from 2017 and 2018.
It’s unknown what will happen to the development site now, with neither the developer Ausco Investment Group nor their consulting firm Urbis responding to requests for comment.
The Our Line in the Sand (OLITS) group, which formed in response to the development proposal, has celebrated the news, with spokesperson Sue Linley telling the Sentinel-Times, “For now we can breathe great sighs of relief,” but adding that “the need to protect the area may not be over yet”.
Sue thanked the OLITS committee members and other community volunteers who helped deliver pamphlets in a letterbox drop, which was “instrumental to the early high number of objections,” she said.
Council received 363 objections in total, with concerns centring on the potential impacts on the local environment, particularly Western Port Bay, and the appropriateness of such a development in an area zoned for ‘Rural Activity’.
So sick of old-timers who have nothing better to do than to object to advancement. Other residents are desperate for infrastructure and investiture in the area.
Just plain old Yay, yippee and phew…. It pays to have a voice
I’ve lived here for more than 20 years. I can see why many locals wanted the prospect of job growth, however, my concerns were more to the long term impacts on a small town as well as the projected numbers of cars and buses on Agar Road throughout the year. An impact too big and too fast for this town, who is still holding out for at least a Supermarket (and has been waiting for many years).
While i imagine the Developers may regroup and decide on future proposals down the track, for now I am relieved and grateful that this town can grow at pace (a number of estates are cropping up here now) and without such a large and brutal change that was to severely change the existing landscape. Progress IS important. This was overcapitalism and greed.
For all those complaining please note that this company pays zero tax in Australia.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/ng-interactive/2019/dec/12/tax-transparency-which-companies-pay-the-least-tax-in-australia