A PLANNING application for a two-storey, licensed restaurant with rooftop bar in Mount Martha has been refused amid concerns it could change the character of the popular tourist spot.
The proposal for a licensed restaurant and cafe at 3A-5 Bay Road, Mount Martha was supported by Mornington Peninsula Shire Council officers who recommended its approval with amendments, despite objections about potential noise, parking and the size and style of the building.
Officers’ amendments included acoustic screening in outdoor areas and “appropriate bicycle parking spaces in the footpath area adjacent to the site”.
Councillors at their 25 July public meeting determined that the proposal for the 9.4-metre-high development failed to provide the required car parking spaces and was “inconsistent” with zoning guidelines in that it did not “respond to streetscape and exceeds the preferred height of eight metres for ‘small township activity centres’”.
It also failed to address the “interface with the residential zone” and did not suitably protect the amenity of nearby residential properties.
Opponent David Mooney told the council he was particularly concerned about potential noise, given that the building was at the opposite end of the village’s main business area and within 50 metres “door to door” to homes.
He said the development was “completely inappropriate” and would forever change the special village character of Mount Martha.
Cr Debra Mar agreed, adding that developments of the style and nature of the proposal were a “quantum leap” from what existed in Mount Martha and belonged in a major activity centre, not a village.
Cr Anthony Marsh, who said car parking was already a major problem in Mount Martha village, moved an alternate motion to reject the proposal and undertake an urban design framework to determine the appropriate built form in the commercial area of Mount Martha.
Councillors against the proposal were Marsh, Mar, David Gill, Despi O’Connor, Lisa Dixon and Kate Roper. In favour of the rooftop bar and restaurant were Susan Bissinger, Sarah Race, Antonella Celi and Steve Holland.
First published in the Mornington News – 1st August 2023