MILDURA remains “well ahead of the curve” in the availability of existing and prospective land for residential growth, but it will need to be developed in a co-ordinated and orderly fashion to avoid potential risks, according to a senior local council officer.
Municipal strategy and growth general manager Peter Alexander said there was enough immediate available land for development growth for the next 20 years – five years ahead of Victorian Government requirements.
Responding, in part, to concerns raised this week by a developer who said a proposed 69-lot development at Irymple was being stymied by bureaucratic red tape, Mr Alexander said council could not look at an individual parcel of land in isolation when planning for development growth.
The land in question, on Irymple Avenue, Irymple, is within the Mildura East Growth Area (MEGA) Strategic Framework Plan that aims to shape how land identified for future residential and larger lifestyle lots between Mildura, Irymple and Nichols Point will develop.
Mr Alexander said that within the MEGA framework, council was aiming to make sure that as land was developed, there was enough infrastructure such as drainage in place to service the growth to mitigate or avoid potential risks such as flooding.
He said the proposed Irymple Avenue development was part of an area that had a natural low point and due to the natural terrain and slope of land in Irymple, the majority of stormwater from surrounding areas drained into the centre of the township, and a lot of the time into the Henshilwood Recreation Reserve drainage basin.
“If we were to allow continued development to happen without enough additional drainage capacity, there is a risk of potentially flooding large parts of the Irymple township,” he said.
“In the 2011 rain event, we saw the result of inadequate draining had on surrounding areas.
“The Irymple area needs well-planned drainage that caters for all existing and future residents and this should not be compromised by out-of-sequence proposals that could disadvantage other residents.
“Land development needs to be co-ordinated to make sure other properties in the growth corridor aren’t negatively impacted, particularly in relation to drainage.
“When we plan for development growth we can’t look at individual parcels of land in isolation … particularly when planning for such a large growth corridor.”
Mr Alexander said all landowners and developers should also pay their fair share of costs for drainage infrastructure and to accomplish that, MEGA Strategic Framework Plan work first needed to be completed.
“This will ensure development happens in a fair, transparent manner that does not create unintended negative consequences on existing residents,” he said.
“This can all be achieved if the development and associated infrastructure is sequential and based on correct information and data that takes into account the natural land topography for the entire area, not one specific lot.”
Mr Alexander said that according to Victorian Government figures there was capacity for about 3600 residential lots (18 to 20 years’ supply) on zoned land in Mildura, and an additional 7600 residential lots (39 to 43 years’ supply) on land planned to be rezoned.
He said the MEGA was in addition to the existing land supply and would provide another residential growth area other than Mildura South.
“We’re well ahead of the curve in this respect,” he said.
