Blogawler

The Gawler East development is  in many people’s mind  now only an exercise in spin over substance. At the start of the process the developer was more than happy to talk to community groups to ‘understand’ what the community wanted and to form a ’shared vision’ for the site. Over time this relationship has gone a little cold and now the developer  seems only concerned about the approval process, not talking to the community.

A good example of this ‘converstion’ can be seen in a letter printed in  the  16th of  September edition of the  Bunyip   from Dr Helen Wimore. 

Helen asked questions the community wants to know answers for but received few answers at all.

What has happened to the shared vision, or is the pursuit of profit the only thing in focus here.

More questions for Delfin

MADAM – Scott Fraser’s letter (The Bunyip, September 9) highlighted the secrecy surrounding Delfin’s commitment to provide external infrastructure to accommodate the proposed Gawler East development.

I have found a similar level of secrecy regarding what Delfin plans to do within the development site itself. 

I spoke to Delfin’s Gawler East project director, Anthony Jansen, at the Delfin stand at the Gawler Show.  I was hoping he could give me an indication as to what the company plans to do with the site, and perhaps allay my fears that the development is likely to be inappropriate and unsustainable for Gawler. 

However, I found the same lack of information that Scott Fraser has written about.

Mr Jansen was unable to tell me even in general terms what lot sizes were planned for Gawler East, referring me only to “typical” lot sizes as used in other Delfin developments.  He said there were no plans drawn up as to what Delfin might do with the site or where roads and houses might go. 

In December last year, Delfin was reported to be considering four different layouts for the “village centre”, which included schools, a community oval, offices, restaurants and possibly a hotel (The Bunyip, December 10, 2008).  None of these layouts were shown to the public or open to community consultation.  Moreover, when I questioned Mr Jansen recently as to what Delfin now plans to put in this area, he was unable to give me any information whatsoever.

Mr Jansen couldn’t tell me what buffer Delfin planned to have between residential development and the neighbouring Para Woodlands.  An adequate buffer would be important to protect houses against bushfire risk and also to protect the Para Woodlands, a unique area reserved for investigating revegetation with native plant species.

I particularly wanted to know where the proposed waste water treatment plant would be located.  This plant would recycle water from the development and return it for use on gardens and in toilets.  Mr Jansen said Delfin is still looking into the best location for the plant and that it could be within the development itself.  Simple calculations show that the 1 hectare plant surrounded by a 300m setback, as per EPA minimum requirements, would occupy at least 40 hectares.  As the Delfin-controlled land amounts to 219 hectares in total, I find it hard to imagine them setting aside such a massive chunk for a waste water treatment plant.

Mr Jansen also suggested the plant could be located at Bolivar.  This hardly seems a sustainable option, requiring transportation of the water to Bolivar for treatment and then back again.  There is also the issue of providing the infrastructure for this transportation, given that a significant portion of the Gawler sewerage scheme is already acting at or above capacity.

In addition, there could be a problem with continual use of salt-laden reclaimed water on gardens, which can detrimentally affect soil structure.  As far as the public are aware, there has been no hydrology study of the area to assess its suitability for using reclaimed water in this way. 

A lack of the necessary infrastructure within the development itself could prove very costly to Gawler’s residents as it puts further strain on the town’s existing infrastructure and our Council’s limited financial resources.

It seems incredible that this land is in the final process of being rezoned for urban development without such issues being resolved and there being no “master plan” for the area. 

Dr Helen Wilmore, Gawler East