The Incredible Bulk returns

Eight months on from the meeting which axed the Tigers development, it’s back, bigger than ever – and residents are far from happy.

A Part 3A application has been submitted by Rozelle Village to construct a new $200m development on the old Tigers site on Victoria Road, with the developers moving to have their application accepted by Planning Minister Tony Kelly before the State Government goes into ‘caretaker mode’ on March 4.

The original application, referred to a Joint Regional Planning Panel, was rejected last July after a spirited community campaign, with the panel accepting Council’s reservations about the floor-space ratio, height and design of the apartment buildings, and traffic generation and management concerns.

But the details of the new proposal flout every area of concern raised by the panel, proposing greater height, more bulk and more traffic.

According to a consultant for the developer, the changes from the previous DA include a rise in floor space ratio from 3.9:1 to 6.0:1, along with significant increases in height – by 20 metres at the top of the site and 35 metres at the lower end.

These will be accompanied by a near-doubling in the number of car parking spaces, from 520 to approximately 1,000, and a considerable increase in retail space, including a mainline supermarket and specialty shops.

The total land area of the development is also projected to expand by 15 per cent, with Rozelle Village having acquired additional property on the boundaries of the previous site.

“We don’t really know where they’re coming from – we can only assume it’s an ambit claim, so that they can then work backwards to a ‘reasonable’ outcome,” said Felicia Finlayson, a spokesperson for Rozelle Residents Action Group, who strongly opposed the previous incarnation of the development.

She said that although the state Coalition have committed to abolishing Part 3A, it was her understanding that any applications approved prior to the election had to be considered under existing legislation.

Although Leichhardt Council approved the previous LEP for the site in 2008, it was not done without reservations amongst councillors about the scale of the project. Councillors of all stripes have said that approval for the site was granted in large part due to the importance of Tigers Leagues Club for many in the community.

The new proposal, however, no longer contains any direct financial links to Tigers. It is proposed that the development contain an area for Tigers to retain a presence, but this would be leased from the property owners.

Rozelle Village failed to respond to requests for comment by the time the Independent went to print.