Mitchell Shire Council planners have made significant changes to the draft Broadford Structure Plan following community consultation.
The proposed draft structure plan will be put forward to councillors at a council meeting for further discussion.
Broadford Pine Plantation, originally earmarked for housing development, has had a reprieve after strong community opposition with more than 1000 people signing a petition against any housing being put in the four hectare unreserved Crown land at the south end of Gavan Street.
The structure plan’s new draft now shows the area as ‘open space’ with no development considerations at this time.
Council does not own or manage the land. The Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning manages the land but has advised the council the land is not needed.
Council planners have also made changes to the details about proposed development in the Mount Piper – Jeffreys Lane area.
The number of residential lots has been reduced to 320 lots, on property sizes of 4000 square metres – previously they were set for as small as 750 square metres.
Planners made the changes after strong feedback from the community to keep the rural character of the town.
Details on the Broadford Town Centre have also been altered, abandoning plans for the full closure of Powlett Street.
Key commercial development sites closer to the railway station have been added to the plan, located at 19 and 25 High Street; 29 and 31 Pinniger Street; 43-45 High Street and 47-49 High Street.
Council officers also identified the council office in High Street as a key site for community use, which signals the intent for this to remain community infrastructure but with a specific use yet determined.
Mitchell Shire chief executive Brett Luxford said consultation for the Broadford Structure Plan had been widespread.
“We have received over 70 individual submissions and had 11 people present at our last community questions and hearings committee meeting,” he said.
“We heard some terrific feedback by many people in our community and they gave us an indication of just how they would like Broadford to look in the future.
“We’re working hard to create healthy, connected and sustainable communities through all the life stages and part of this is to balance community needs with a strategic approach to our future.
“With this in mind, we’ve worked with our community to strike a good balance between maintaining the Broadford we all know and love and unlocking its potential for the future.”
