Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Community Action

I've been going to meetings about protesting our local council's heavy-handedness in development applications, of which most are approved.

The main objectives are to get the council sacked and to have a number of applications rejected for various reasons.

Where I live is, I guess, a tourist area. Come Summer and the place swells with families and holiday-makers, here to enjoy the Bay and all the water activities they can handle.

The Council would take advantage of that to build apartments along the coast regardless of what the permanent residents want or need and regardless of any economic, social or environmental impact.

This one building we are protesting is set to be the benchmark for construction on any waterfront land in the Shire if it is approved.

We only have around fifty percent occupancy rate year round and yet this Council would build more residential facilities.

It burns my wick to see proposals for four storey buildings that will block views, shadow adjoining residences, are susceptible to flooding, will encourage road degradation, lack vision, will remain empty for most of the year, all manner of reason, all for the mighty dollars it will bring in from wealthy out of Shire purchasers.

All across this State, Councils are under investigation for less than optimum performance and yet the sheer, bloody arrogance continues.

Unless the citizenry become more vocal in protesting, a lot of the beautiful coast will be subjected to high-density, predominantly empty constructions and ruin what so many come to see.

The fight will continue, one ill-considered development application at a time.

2 comments:

Pandababy said...

Fight on Jaye! (sob) if Oz falls, the cause is lost.

Jaye Patrick said...

Being a rebellious lot descended from convicts, (well, not me, but it goes to the Aussie character) no authority can stand up to us! Vive Le Fr... Oz!