The City of Unley in Adelaide had no choice but to approve plans for seven two-storey townhouses to be built on a single block in the suburb of Myrtle Bank, a council representative said this week.
Councillor Rufus Salaman, one of the people on the panel who approved the project, told the Eastern Courier Messenger that the panel was obliged to conform to new planning rules introduced by the State Government in July. He said the new rules allowed buildings of up to three storeys along the road in question, Fullarton Road.
If the council rejected the proposal it would make no difference to the end result, though he said he would not like to have the development next to his house. Myrtle Bank residents packed an Unley Council planning meeting to protest against the plans. More than 500 people signed a petition calling on the panel to reject the application.
Speaking for the developers, Urban & Regional Planning Solutions, managing director Marcus Rolfe told the meeting the State Government rules encouraged high-density developments. “This is a regeneration zone and an area for transformation,” he said.
Panel member Ann Nelson said while the panel “may share this disquiet about the intensity of the development” they had to deal with the rules. The proposal “gives us some sort of hint about what the future is likely to look like.”
Next month the panel is expected to consider an application to build eight three-storey apartments nearby, at 25 Culross Avenue.