Keneally joins Ashmore backlash

Labor MP and former NSW Premier, Kristina Keneally, has joined the fight against overdevelopment of the Ashmore Estate in Erskineville.

In a speech before parliament on February 22, Ms Keneally said the Ashmore dilemma spanned beyond the realms of local council.

“Many of the issues in relation to the Ashmore development site are the responsibility of the City of Sydney council. However, there are State implications,” she said.

The controversial proposal will take two decades to complete and will see 40 buildings and at least 3,200 new units added to the area.

City of Sydney Greens Councillor Chris Harris has welcomed the support of Ms Keneally, but said her intervention is overdue and by blaming the City, hypocritical.

According to Mr Harris, it was while Ms Keneally was premier that her then Planning Minister, Tony Kelly, instructed the Council to increase the building heights from 35 metres to 60 metres and the floor space ratio from 1.75:1 to 2.75:1.

“We knew the traffic and transport impacts would be totally unacceptable and that schools and other facilities in the area didn’t have the capacity to accommodate the 6000 new residents that the upsized plans would introduce. But we had to follow the instructions of Keneally’s government,” Mr Harris said.

Goodman Group purchased the site in 1989 from the NSW State Authorities Superannuation Board in for $19.2 million.

“It should also be noted that the Goodman property group donated several thousand dollars to Ms Keneally between 2003-2007, as well as donating to the general coffers of the NSW ALP,” Mr Harris said.

“A change in the planning controls as advocated by the former Keneally government would deliver a massive windfall to the Goodman Property group.”

Mr Harris said the matter was now in the hands of Planning Minister Brad Hazzard, who has the final say on which planning controls should apply.

“If the overdevelopment of Ashmore Estate goes ahead the blame will be shared between both the former Keneally Government which increased the City’s planning controls, and the current
Liberal Government, for agreeing to them,” Mr Harris said.

Two hundred residents gathered at Erskineville Town Hall on February 22, at a meeting convened by the Friends of Erskineville (FOE) Residents’ Association.

The City of Sydney Draft Control Plan for the Ashmore Estate was discussed.

Residents unanimously authorised the President of FOE to communicate the Resolutions and resident
concerns to Premier O’Farrell, Minister Hazzard, Lord Mayor Moore and all Councillors.