Yarra Ranges Council’s proposed Planning Scheme Amendment for the southern network of the Warburton Mountain Bike Destination has been approved by Victorian Minister for Planning Sonya Kilkenny, bringing the beginning of construction ever closer.
The next phase of the project is for Council to complete and submit several plans to the Minister as part of the secondary approvals process, including:
Construction Environment Management Plan
Operational Environment Management Plan
Emergency Management Plan and a
Native Vegetation Offset plan.
Deputy Mayor David Eastham said this is a long-awaited step in the planning process as they move towards making the WMBD project a reality.
“These additional plans will provide information on how these issues are to be managed not just during construction but afterwards to protect our environment, look after our community regarding bushfires and provide an economic boost in a well-managed way for our municipality,” he said.
“This project has been something Council has been working on for many years and, with the support of our funding partners in both State and Federal government, we are working towards starting construction in 2024.
The amendment allowed for all of the plans above to be submitted in one document to the Minister for Planning in order to speed up the approval process and avoid going back and forth for each subsequent plan.
Cr Eastham said this part of the project will consist of 52 new and upgraded mountain bike trails, totalling approximately 100 kilometres, providing varying lengths and levels of difficulty.
“The northern section of the project will be progressed as a separate Planning Scheme Amendment in the future as we continue to work with affected landowners around any issues and concerns.
“We look forward to reaching the next milestone as we progress this important project,” said Cr Eastham.
The Planning Scheme Amendment does mean that third parties such as residents or community groups will not receive notice or have the opportunity to make a submission to an independent planning panel as would occur otherwise, but the documentation involved was all exhibited in the EES process and is publicly available.
When the amendment was discussed at the 28 March Council meeting, O’Shannassy Ward Councillor Jim Child said normally with a planning scheme amendment, they’d appoint a planning panel to then advise the minister.
“But what we’re dealing with at the moment, we’ve already done that process and we’ve done it stronger than any other planning scheme amendment I’ve ever seen,” he said.
Lyster Ward Councillor Johanna Skelton also spoke to the motion at the meeting and said as the submission process has already been very hefty, going to the community again would be not meaningful.
“It’s important that we acknowledge that this planning amendment is not the last that the community will see of this process. These amendments take some time to do, so I don’t think it’s right that we hold up the community anymore.”
The Minister for Planning Sonya Kilkenny was contacted for comment.
