[Greens-Media] (Hale MLC) Housing project in the wrong place

[Colin Hesse]

Media Release

>From Sylvia Hale, Greens MP and spokesperson for Housing

26 May 2010    - For immediate use   
            
Housing project in the wrong place

Following a meeting with residents of Tingira Heights in Lake
Macquarie, Greens MP and Housing Spokesperson Sylvia Hale has called on
the State Government not to proceed with the planned public housing
project at James Street, Tingira Heights because of the site's
unsuitability.

“Local residents say that the Government bought the land, a partially
filled gully, sight unseen. This claim warrants serious investigation, "
said Ms Hale.

 “No construction should take place until there has been a thorough
review of the project, and it may be time for the Department of Housing
to cut its losses and find a more suitable location for the project.

“The site is far removed from public transport and getting to the
nearest shop requires a very lengthy uphill walk. There are no health,
social, or community facilities in the area. It is totally unsuitable
for elderly residents, who will find themselves isolated and cut off
from services.
 
“It is obvious to even the untrained eye that the gully on which the
unit buildings are to be built has been substantially filled with
dumped, uncompacted material, and residents are concerned that
contaminated waste may also have been dumped in the gully.
 
"The Environmental Impact Statement asserts there are 'no waterways in
close proximity to the site'. I'm not sure how the Statement's author
defines 'proximity', but it takes only a casual glance to see that the
gully is the headwaters of South Creek, which flows into Warners Bay in
Lake Macquarie. When I was there yesterday, water was running down the
gully and into the Creek.
 
"Excavation of fill, strengthening of retaining walls, and construction
of deep piers will add significantly to the project's cost as well as
impacting on South Creek and the Tingira Heights Nature Reserve.

“The Reserve, which was gazetted under the National Parks and
Wildlife Act, is nearby, and is the site of significant fossil bed
outcrops and hosts a number of threatened species such as the squirrel
glider. It provides a haven for other endangered fauna such as the
little bentwing bat, powerful owl, masked owl, swift parrot, barking
owl, sooty owl, grey headed flying fox, eastern free-tail bat and
eastern bentwing bat.

“Lake Macquarie Council had refused the site's previous owner
permission to build on the land because of its unsuitability. For the
Department of Housing to purchase it indicates a reckless indifference
to the expenditure of public moneys, the welfare of future residents,
and environmental constraints.
 
"The purchase highlights the fundamental problems of centralising
planning powers and ignoring local knowledge and concerns.
 
“The Greens strongly support the provision of new social housing, and
encourage the Government to immediately investigate alternative sites
for public housing in the Lake Macquarie local government area," said Ms
Hale.

Contact: Colin Hesse on 02 9230 3030 or 0401 719 124