ALLAM Property Group is walking away from a controversial development proposal at Stuarts Point.

It cited sewerage, groundwater and biodiversity issues as among reasons it will not pursue plans for a major residential development.

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Stuarts Point and District Community Organisation (SPaDCO) chairperson Mary-Lou Lewis said she received email notification that Allam Property Group had decided to withdraw from the Stuarts Point proposal.

Allam senior development manager Carmen Osborne wrote on June 13: “We have decided to stop working on this project and we are withdrawing from our options to purchase the sites.”

There were 600 dwellings planned for those sites, with a projected population of 12000.

“The key issues that remain unresolved will take quite some time to work through and we want to let the owner make their own decisions on the future of their land,” wrote Ms Osborne.

“Thanks for facilitating the community information session and we hope the sewerage, groundwater and biodiversity issues can be resolved in the next few years.”

The initial proposal was introduced by Allam late last year, with Stuarts Point and district residents invited to attend a community consultation event on 7 December 2022 at the Community Hall, which attracted many individuals armed with local knowledge and questions.

Follow-up community consultation events, supported by a dedicated contact forum via Allam’s website, were scheduled for March and May 2023.

These planned events never happened and any reference to Stuarts Point has been removed from the company’s website.

The unresolved ‘key issues’ mentioned by Carmen Osborne – sewerage, groundwater and biodiversity – remain ongoing problems for residents, who await the progress of groundwater studies being undertaken by Kempsey Shire Council, which require monitoring for several seasons and rainfall events.

By Jen HETHERINGTON