“This is all about looking after developers. It’s at the expense of the community and open accountable processes.
No
council or community is safe from this minister or this Government and
the powers they have handed themselves to take over what they failed to
win by democratic elections.
Experts have set the building density for this site, but the Government wants more. It’s a formula for slums of the future.
It’s
the Cross City Tunnel up front payments all over again. The sole reason
for this intervention is so the State Government can get its hands on
at least $30million from this development in this blatant cash grab.
There’s
no reason to do this, through the state controlled CSPC the Government
has been involved, and by condemning the process they are condemning
themselves.
The Minister’s actions show a contempt for professional advice and the democratic process.
How
can the Minister claim to provide a balanced outcome for the community
and the future of the City, when he is ignoring expert advice and
advocating for an increase in the size of the development which will
see his Government reap a cash bonanza.
The owner and the City
were ready to sign off on a deal last month that would have seen public
benefits taken into consideration, this unnecessary intervention will
delay the project up to a year and put those benefits at risk.
The
Minister for Planning must come clean on just how much money the State
Government is planning to take from the CUB site, and to give
assurances about how this money will be spent and accounted for.
The
real issue here is transparency and public accountability, so the
community can judge whether the Minister’s actions are in the public
interest.
On the lower density proposed by the City and CSPC
(Central Sydney Planning Committee) for this site, the State Government
will be taking about $30Million. If the density goes up, as the
Minister has flagged, then this amount could increase substantially.
If
the Minister has nothing to hide then he needs to come clean. How much
money is he planning to take? How much higher does he want densities on
this site? How will the money be spent and publicly accounted for?
The
City has the fastest DA processing times of any Metropolitan Council in
Sydney. The Minister took eight months to direct the Sacred Heart DA to
the City which determined it within three.
Who’s holding up development? Not us.”