The state’s planning tribunal has upheld Hobsons Bay council’s refusal to permit a subdivision at Newport, agreeing that neighbourhood character and the openness of adjoining backyards should be respected.
The Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) rejected an appeal by Luka Mrkonjic Town Planning Services for three double-storey attached dwellings behind a three-bedroom, single-storey house in Gordon Street.
The council opposed the proposal, saying it was excessively bulky and would be a highly inappropriately dominant development that did not respect the low-scale nature of surrounding single-storey dwellings.
An objector living next door to the site said three continuous dwellings with protruding balconies would have overlooked his backyard, which was a “treasured area”.
In refusing the application, VCAT member Christina Fong noted local planning policy aimed to retain a sense of openness in backyards in precincts where this was an important character element. She concluded the proposed design was “wanting” when held against the preferred and existing neighbourhood character.
Earlier this month, Star Weekly reported that Altona North resident Nick Ostrovskis had launched a campaign against a “massive increase” in double-storey subdivisions in his street, saying they spelt the death of the Aussie backyard.
“The street dynamic of my suburb is metamorphosing almost overnight from single-storey family houses with big backyards, fruit trees and vegie patches to several double storey townhouses, all choc-a-bloc, built up to the fenceline, on the same address,” he said.
Residents can have their say about neighbourhood character in proposed new residential zones at Participate Hobsons Bay on the council’s website.
