A PLAN to build a $47.7 million sports facility on the Mornington Peninsula complete with skate parks and wakeboard lakes has outraged residents who fear it will “ruin what we have left” of the region’s cherished green wedge.
Mornington Peninsula Shire councillors endorsed the massive development at their 9 September meeting which would see an existing 200-acre adventure park called The Ranch expanded at 810 Boneo Rd, Boneo.
The green wedge site, which currently has horseback riding, archery, tennis courts, rock climbing and more, would feature a new indoor and outdoor skateboarding facility, mountain biking trails and BMX tracks, dry-ski snowboarding slopes, and two wakeboard lakes under the plans.
According to the application, the “world class” facility would increase “youth engagement and participation and provide a pathway of progression to professional athletes”. The plans also propose to expand the site’s camping and caravan park sites from 60 to 105 and build a new function centre and restaurant and build new on-site accommodation for staff. Alcohol would also be served at the kiosk and restaurant, but it would not be allowed in any of the action sport zones.
But for the massive development to occur, vegetation would be removed, a wastewater dam expanded, access to Boneo Rd altered, a new 402-space car park built, and advertising signage installed.
Councillors approved the proposal despite the planning application attracting 107 objections most of which cited environmental and green wedge zone concerns, as well as visual bulk and landscape impacts and amenity impacts, and increased traffic. Residents also said Boneo Rd was dangerous enough with potholes and a “desperate need of road works”, with the speed limit having been dropped from 100kph to 80kph in recent months.
Third-generation farmer Simon Stuart, who runs a beef cattle farm near the proposed facility, argued it would be a “blight” on the area’s natural beauty and market gardens. “It’s just a huge change to the nature of the area,” he told The News. “It’s going to be replaced with views of steel towers and cables running through the air, with a massive wakeboarding dam. “Once you lose (the green wedge) you never get it back.”
Red Hill Ward councillor David Gill moved a motion to defer the application until an environmental impact statement was sought but this was voted down 6-2 by councillors to avoid a risk of the application going before the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Cr Gill told The News that while the proposal would have positive economic outcomes and allow young people to get involved in sport, he questioned whether the facility was “too big” and “you need to balance that when you make a judgment”. “We are affecting people who are in business, we are affecting the people who want to use it, and we are also affecting people’s amenity in the area and the land itself,” he said.
A council report acknowledged that while the facility was large, “it will not occupy a significant percentage of the overall area with the entire rear half of the site free from development”. “It is therefore not removing any land from primary production, is diversifying an existing commercial/tourist enterprise and has been well-sited to occupy a location which will have minimal impact on the sustainable management of the land and environmental values,” it stated.
During the meeting, several locals voiced their frustrations to council, particularly that the development would disrupt the character of the neighbourhood. “The extensive range of proposed developments will drastically alter the landscape, compromising its ecological integrity and scenic value,” one resident told councillors. Cape Schanck resident Sally Baillieu urged the council to defer the application, saying it had been “rushed through” and their “decision is going to have very long-term effects”.
The Ranch owner Jodi Neary said the project would be a draw card for visitors with the sports facility to provide a “fun, inclusive, safe and inspiring environment for people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds”. “The action sport community is thriving with significant interest sparked by the Tokyo and more recently Paris Olympics, however Australia lacks adequate facilities to meet this growing demand,” she said. “Our project aims to fill this gap, especially in the Mornington Peninsula, an area facing socio-economic challenges and youth disengagement.” Ms Neary noted the existing park had been a staple of the adventure community for more than 40 years “and our expansion has been thoroughly and carefully thought-out to complement the natural environment”.
Deputy mayor Cr Antonella Celi supported the proposal, which had 38 letters of support from community members, but emphasised not all “decisions are easy to make” when dealing with the green wedge zone and understood the community’s concerns.
“This application lends itself to lawful application for expansion under the Mornington Peninsula localised planning statement objectives that recognise, protect and support the recreational role of the Mornington Peninsula and makes provision for appropriate support for tourism-based use in a rural green wedge area,” she said.
First published in the Mornington News – 17 September 2024
