[By Sue Bolton] The new council has had its third council meeting since the November 2016 election. All councillors are now on the Urban Planning Committee to vote on development applications. The most important way to prevent bad decisions being made by council is for residents to get organised to protect your rights and your suburbs. Continue reading
Tag Archives: development
Morrison’s Hand-Out to Developers no Solution to Housing Affordability Crisis
[By Sue Bolton] The federal treasurer’s “solution” to the housing affordability crisis is to get state governments to relax restrictions on housing developers to increase supply. Scott Morrison told the industry’s peak body, the Urban Development Institute, on October 24 that “housing in Australia, especially in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, is expensive and increasingly unaffordable, but that does not mean it is overvalued.” How can you have more affordable housing and keep prices up at the same time? The answer is you can’t do both. Continue reading
Save Pentridge heritage
[By Martin Smith] Over 100 protesters gathered outside the former Pentridge Prison on 16 January to say NO to the planned 19-storey residential Pentridge tower.
A plan to build a 19-storey apartment complex within the walls of the former Pentridge Prison was lodged over the Christmas vacation period. The proposed residential tower will totally dominate and overshadow the guards’ watchtower. It will also be the tallest building in Moreland. This would set a precedent for the height of buildings in central Coburg. Continue reading
Don’t leave Coburg high and dry
This is a letter from a concerned Coburg resident published in the Moreland Leader on 9 November, 2015. The letter is about the loss of rights of Coburg residents regarding the plan for 10-story buildings in the centre of Coburg.
‘DON’T LEAVE COBURG HIGH AND DRY’
I’m writing in response to the new Moreland mayor’s stated list of priorities (“Change in council dynamics”, Moreland Leader, 2 November). Continue reading
A win for Coles at April Council meeting
[By Sue Bolton] The supermarket juggernaut Coles had a win at the Moreland council meeting on April 9. The meeting voted 5 to 3 to rezone the old Bunnings site on the corner of Sussex and Gaffney Streets from an Industrial 3 Zone (IN3Z) to a Commercial 2 Zone (C2Z) to allow Coles to build a super-Coles store. The councillors who voted against were myself and Lenka Thompson & Samantha Ratnam (both Greens). Continue reading
Moreland Community Against the East-West Tunnel update
[By Sue Bolton] There was a fantastic MCAT meeting last Thursday night (January 23). More than 20 community members and activists got together to discuss our plans for the new year. We want to build this campaign to involve all of Moreland and beyond! Continue reading
Rally: No East-West Tunnel
Council votes to turn Coburg into concrete jungle but residents win some concessions
[By Sue Bolton] The Moreland Council meeting on December 11 voted to turn Coburg into a concrete jungle, but residents did win some concessions. The gallery at the Brunswick Mechanics Institute was packed with more than 100 people for the second meeting in a row. While residents mobilised on a number of issues, the majority were there for the vote on the future of Coburg. Continue reading
Moreland Community against the (East West) Tunnel (MCAT) gets under way
[By Sue Bolton] We had a successful first meeting with 45 people on November 28 to launch the group. This follows on from the 160-strong public meeting organised by the Moreland Council in West Brunswick. The group has been set up independently of the council but will be involved in and support the council’s campaign. (See articles below.) Continue reading