Letter to the Editor: Misguided development plan

DEAR News Of The Area,

IT is sad to see that Bellingen Council is on course to set a new low bench-mark for housing development, by recommending that the last little piece of accessible bushland in suburban Urunga, Lot 1 Ferry Street, be given to a local affordable-housing group as the site for a multi-dwelling social housing experiment consisting of cheaply-built houses totally out-of-character with the surrounding area.

This will entail the destruction of dozens of trees, including magnificent towering blackbutts, all part of a healthy little eco-system supporting local plants and wildlife in a suburban setting.

If this regressive plan proceeds, it will mark a watershed moment in the development of Urunga, taking it down a path based on the obsolete 1960s mentality of “clear and build”, rather than one based on contemporary experience that small suburban green-spaces are critical in providing a modern high-quality living environment for residents, encouraging both healthy physical lifestyles and mental well-being.

Urunga is so lucky to already have this precious asset, which should be treasured for its value to our community; and not just for now, but as a gift that we can proudly pass on to future generations, when Urunga will be much more densely populated.

Council could be embracing this piece of land for the whole community, rather than letting it be used as a sub-standard housing development.

As there is already an application to build a 14-room affordable boarding house on the neighbouring block to Lot 1, it would mean that the whole northern side of Ferry Street, which is just a short street, would become a social-housing precinct, housing around 30-40 people, compared to presently being a quiet residential area of established family homes, featuring the calm and shady presence of Lot 1, much loved and appreciated every day by the many who live near, and the many who daily pass by on one of Urunga’s most popular recreational walks.

If this recommendation by Council proceeds, we believe it will be looked back on as the worst town-planning decision made in Urunga for decades, marking the moment when our town’s standing as a a modern, progressive, forward-looking place to live, was downgraded and captured by the short-term, housing-at-any-cost-anywhere lobby, which is so powerful at present. The provision of affordable housing is something which everyone supports, but we believe that it should not be used as an excuse for irreversibly bad policy.

There are better ways to address this issue.

To speak against, let alone vote against, this proposal takes some courage, as superficial popular sentiment construes this as a vote against affordable housing.

It is not.

It is a vote to support a dynamic and sustainable future for the town we love.

Yours Sincerely,
Peter DINGLE,
Urunga,
For the Friends of Ferry Street group.