CONTROVERSIAL plans to allow development of up to three storeys at Sorrento’s township entrance will go to a state government-appointed panel because of unresolved issues including heritage values and coastal character impacts.
The proposed changes by the Mornington Peninsula Shire would see new buildings have a two storey, nine metre building height limit fronting Point Nepean Rd, and a three-storey, 12-metre height limit for new development abutting Ocean Beach Rd. It also proposes that new development has a maximum of two storeys or nine metres at street frontage while any third storey would see a reduced setback from eight to four metres from the street frontage, excluding heritage sites. Additionally, the proposed building rules seek to increase new development heights from 11 metres to 12 metres abutting Morce Ave and side streets within the activity centre.
Seventy-three submissions were received in response to the planning scheme amendment after it was open to public feedback in 2022 with 80 per cent opposing the concept. One objector said there the “potential is there to destroy the entrance to the township and that should not be allowed” while another commented “It is of great importance for the character of Sorrento to be preserved, particularly the gateway to Sorrento – I believe it is important to retain a two storey limit to avoid an overdevelopment”.
Another submitter said the “large boundary-built form is not in line with the current foreshore streetscape and historical charm of Sorrento that many Victorians and visitors come to see”, noting it “will look out of place to have such a large box-built form surrounded by local historical buildings along the foreshore as an entry to Sorrento village”.
In response, the shire conducted an independent peer review of the amendment from both a planning and urban design perspective to “explore how submitter issues could potentially be resolved”. A revised amendment, adopted by council on 28 May last year, was then re-exhibited, prompting four new submissions including from Heritage Victoria which suggested changes including limiting new development to the height of the existing heritage buildings, as well as limiting the height of new development on sites adjacent to heritage sites.
But because all 77 community submissions cannot be resolved, councillors at their 25 February meeting unanimously approved a recommendation from shire officers that the submissions be referred to a planning panel appointed by Planning Minister Sonya Kilkenny. The panel will prepare a report for council with its findings and recommendations, which will be reviewed before the shire decides whether to adopt the amendment and send it to the Planning Minister for final approval.
Cr Andrea Allen, whose Nepean Ward includes Sorrento, said the proposed amendment would “ensure future development protects the low scale coastal and historical character of the township, including views of significant heritage buildings and coastal dunes while allowing reasonable growth to occur in line with the township’s broader role and function”. “This has been ongoing for several years with the most recent re-exhibition happening from July to September last year,” Allen added. “Today is a pretty straightforward decision to progress this to a planning panel to examine the 70-plus submissions and deal with the unresolved issues on those.”
The Nepean Ratepayers Association Inc spokesperson Christine Granger said they had “strongly objected” to the southeast precinct being included in the 11-metre/three storey height limit and restricted setback. She said Rusty’s Café Bar and Grill known as ‘Rusty’s Corner’ was “the gateway to Sorrento,” and “having a building on that corner (south/east) at more than two storeys would be a disaster”. “It must complement the build form on the Koonya Hotel corner. The view of the community is that you should be able to see both the Conti and Stringers [The Continental Sorrento and Stringers Sorrento] as you approach Ocean Beach Rd,” she said. “The most important aspect of the objection is that the height limit remains at two storeys at Rusty’s Corner and maximum of three storeys in the other precincts.”
Russell Norton-Old, owner of Rusty’s Café Bar located at the corner of Point Nepean Rd and the Esplanade, said he objected to the proposal, describing it as “planning madness” that would significantly impact the beauty and historic character of Sorrento’s township.
A council report revealed that current planning controls are due to expire on 4 July, which, should this occur, would leave the Ocean Beach Rd commercial precinct with no mandatory height, setback and design controls. Parts of the precinct would however remain covered by heritage overlay to protect heritage values. Councillors approved a 12-month extension request to the existing planning controls to allow time for the panel process and finalising the amendment. A directions hearing will take place later this month before a panel hearing begins on 5 May.
All up, the whole process is expected to cost ratepayers close to $110,000. This included a panel appointment (between $10,000 and $30,000), as well as legal representation at the panel ($30,000 to $40,000), while a presentation of urban design and planning expert evidence would be about $38,000.
The council would also have to pay an extra $1,061.50 to extend the expiry date of the existing planning controls.
First published in the Southern Peninsula News – 19 March 2025
