It’s Time for Change in Ku-ring-gai Council

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It’s time….for Change…. in Ku-ring-gai
Council has spent 9 years and $9 million on the Lindfield Village Hub and achieved Nothing, Zero, Zilch.
New Councillors are needed if we want a different result.

Contact Support Lindfield if you are interested in standing in the 2021 Council elections. We will support great candidates. info@supportlindfield.net

Here’s a reminder of the long journey….. 

In 2012, following an approach by Support Lindfield, the then Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian put on hold the planned multi-storey commuter carpark to allow time for a better project to be conceived. Our Community worked together to create a vision for the Lindfield Village Hub that included a new heart to our Village comprising, town square, library, other community facilities, café precinct, specialty retail and supermarket.

Over the years Woolworths have put forward several proposals to undertake the project, like those they delivered for three other Sydney Councils. They proposed to build the Hub with limited money coming from the sale of the existing library site, no additional Council/ratepayers money was required.

Council rejected this, instead pursuing an expensive consultant-led process and have spent $9 million of our money. Despite an exhaustive tender process and with only one development group left (effectively Woolworths) Council is still unable to commit to starting the project. No results are in sight despite spending $3300 per Lindfield household. Yes, your $3300 for no results.

Our community is understandably very frustrated and disillusioned by Ku-ring-gai Council’s lack of progress. Change is needed if we want a different result, and it is now within the power of the community to achieve this at the ballot box. Support Lindfield will be supporting candidates in all Ku-ring-gai Council wards who will commit to making the Hub happen. We welcome collaboration with other community groups in Ku-ring-gai who also see the need for change. Email us at info@supportlindfield.net

It’s time to vote in Councillors who will deliver for the community.

A win for the community

Last Tuesday evening Councillors bowed to community pressure and did not support building height of 10 and 14 storeys in the Lindfield Village Hub! What a victory for people power! That’s the good news.

The not-so-good news is that they also voted against the original 2015 seven storey option. They did, however vote in favour of a maximum of 9 storeys and building height no higher than the highest building in Lindfield, which is the Aqualand building in Lindfield Avenue, at 8 storeys. The resolution also nominated the minimum size of the park, plaza, library and community facility which are the same size as the original 2015 Council plan. A copy of the resolution is at this link: Council Resolution

We thank all of you who took the time to send messages to Councillors both before the July meeting and leading up to the August meeting. They obviously had an effect and some common sense and listening to the community has prevailed even though we couldn’t quite get to the sought-after elusive seven storeys.

Your Support Lindfield committee is currently planning our next steps to build on this win and keep the pressure on Council to deliver what the community wants. We will await the publishing of the timetable for the next stages of the project. Geoff Douglas, the head of Major Projects for Council, said at the meeting that the Request for Tender would now not be issued before Christmas as there is more work to be done as a result of the change from the published plan to the compromise solution. We think that that is taking too long as it is already overdue according to the timeline currently on the Council website.

Surely the revision can’t take 4 months!

Jonathan O’Dea’s Address in Parliament

As our local State MP, Jonathan has constantly provided valuable support for us at Support Lindfield and for sensible development in the Hub. On Tuesday, the day of the Council meeting, he addressed the Legislative Assembly on the subject of the Hub. He was very pleased with the response from the Minister for Planning, Rob Stokes. Please read the Jonathan's Address at this link. Thank you, Jonathan, for recognising the community’s needs.

We would be very interested to hear your reaction to Council’s decision and invite you to email us at info@supportlindfield.net We will be considering our next steps and how to keep you, the community, involved as the project moves to its next stage. Thank you again for your support for this larger-than-life project that will positively transform the mid North Shore…….. sometime in the future! Who knows when?

Regards,

The Support Lindfield Team

Council Resolution - August 2019

A. That Council endorse preparation and lodgement of a Planning Proposal, in accordance with Section 3.33 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, seeking to amend the Ku-ring-gai LEP (Local Centres) 2012 as it applies to the Lindfield Village Hub site as follows:

i. With a height control of no higher than the highest building in Lindfield being 23 – 41 Lindfield Avenue (known as the Aqualand building) which equates to no more than a 9 storey building on the Lindfield Village Hub site, including a provision at Clause 4.3 to allow for roof top plant, lift overruns and rooftop communal open space (and associated structures) to be located above the proposed maximum height limits, where appropriate.

ii. Amend the current additional permissible use provision at Clause 29 in Schedule 1 to allow development for the purpose of attached dwellings on the site, at the corner of Bent Street and Drovers Way, Lindfield.

B. That Council note the proposed amendment of Part 14E of the KDCP (LC) 2012 to reflect the Planning Proposal and the associated Urban Design Report and that this will remove reference to the current Lindfield Village Hub Masterplan.

C That Council note the requirement to retain Lot 3 of DP1226294 as part of the project site area. That Council endorse preparation and lodgement of a Planning Proposal, in accordance with Section 3.33 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, seeking to amend the Ku-ring-gai LEP (Local Centres) 2012 as it applies to the Lindfield Village Hub site as follows:

D. That Council note that the minimum areas (m2) to be provided for the following project components are as follows:

local park 3,000m2

plaza 900m2

library 1,250m2

community facility 1,200m2

E. That a funding strategy be developed to offset the anticipated reduction in revenue due to the reduction in proposed building heights.

F. That Council authorise the General Manager to finalise the Planning Proposal on its behalf as landowner, in accordance with recommendations A-E, and to submit the Planning Proposal to the relevant Planning Authority (Council).

For the Motion: The Mayor, Councillor Anderson, Councillors Ngai, Clarke, Greenfield, Szatow, Smith and Kay

Against the Motion: Councillors Pettett, Spencer and Kelly