Dear News Of The Area,

THE local community must have adequate time to consider Council’s revised Nelson Bay Strategy.

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Tomaree Ratepayers and Residents Association (TRRA) has been advised that the next stage in the long running review of the Nelson Bay Town Centre and Foreshore Strategy will see Council’s proposals tabled for decision at the Council meeting on 25 September.

The papers will only be seen by Councillors a week before the meeting and they will only be publicly available a few days beforehand.

The review of the Strategy has been highly controversial, with the draft published earlier this year proposing a more than doubling of height limits to allow ten storey buildings throughout the town centre, despite clear opposition to major height increases in the 2017 round of consultation.

We are aware that Council received many submissions this year, again objecting to major height increases. We will soon see how Council has responded to these submissions, but indications are they will still propose high rise buildings in at least some areas.

Given the significance of this issue, and the high level of public interest, TRRA says that it is completely unacceptable for the community to have less than a week to digest and form a view on what will undoubtedly be lengthy and complex documents. Councillors themselves need more than a week to review the proposals and consult with their constituents.

TRRA calls on Council to defer formal consideration of the revised Nelson Bay Strategy to allow for a longer period for public consideration and reaction, before any final decision is made.

Geoff Washington
Tomaree Ratepayers and Residents Association