Eurobodalla Shire Council has so far spent $337,000 on technical studies. Photos: Supplied.
Without the Batemans Bay Masterplan (BBMP), landowners and developers will not have the certainty to build desperately needed housing, Eurobodalla residents have been told.
Eurobodalla Shire Council will also struggle to supply affordable and diverse housing without a plan in place and council’s planning decisions risk going on an ad hoc path.
Residents at the public councillors workshop with council staff were also told having a BBMP based on what council and the community want also protects against the NSW Government coming in to dictate what housing should be built.
The first talking point for the meeting was “Why a BBMP?”. Discussing that fundamental question took a substantial portion of the 2.5-hour workshop.
The workshop was held following a council resolution on 10 March that required council staff to outline the proposed work program for the BBMP and demonstrate how the recommendations and findings of the BBMP Probity Report will be addressed, plus outline the governance structure, timing, staging, funding and community and stakeholder engagement.
Members of the public could observe but not participate in the workshop.
Councillor Rob Pollock OAM said council had created “tremendous uncertainty”. He was concerned that property owners and developers would leave for other shires that have certainty.
“There won’t be affordable housing unless people have certainty,” he said.
Council’s director planning and environment Gary Bruce said that in 2024 council had lots of development “but that has slowed since we started the BBMP process”.
“We all understand we need more housing and different types of housing,” he said. “The market isn’t providing that, so it is the role of planning and council to intervene in the market and one of the levers is the BBMP.”
He said 75 per cent of the shire’s population lived in villages and 25 per cent lived in the townships of Batemans Bay, Moruya and Narooma. “So it is critical to revitalise those areas. Our growth is lagging behind the state average.”
Councillor Phil Constable said he had seconded the motion at the 10 March meeting to continue with the BBMP “to avoid going on an ad hoc basis which seemed to be the direction we were going. I see the BBMP as a logical step”.
In the public access session Dr Brett Stevenson, co-convenor of A Better Eurobodalla, questioned why the BBMP was going ahead at the same time when phase one actions of council’s Eurobodalla Housing Strategy were due for completion by the end of 2026 with phase two activities beginning in 2027.
Additionally council has a statutory obligation to prepare a revised shire-wide Local Strategic Planning Statement (LSPS) by 1 July 2027.
Dr Stevenson said focusing on the Housing Strategy and renewed LSPS would help deliver a better informed, coherent and feasible BBMP in the near future.
In response to a question about what council’s priorities should be he said it should be housing.
“There is no evidence for the urgent need for the BBMP,” he said. “Council needs to work things through systematically.”
Council has allocated a further $458,000 for technical studies.
During the workshop, Councillor Anthony Mayne asked if the BBMP would hold back the development of other housing. Council staff responded: “We can walk and chew gum at the same time. BBMP is just one of many projects.”
Councillor Sharon Winslade summarised a critique of the BBMP by an eminent expert in the field who lives in Tuross. Council staff agreed it was a fair summation and said it would be good to include local experts like him in stakeholder workshops planned for June.
Mr Bruce provided scenarios for population growth and housing demand across the shire between 2021 and 2046. These included projections for 6000 to 15,000 more people over 25 years, and demand for an extra 3000 to 7000 dwellings.
Councillor Amber Schutz said the nature of development meant what councils planned did not eventuate.
“If we want 3000 dwellings we have to aim for 6000 because 50 per cent may not be developed for 20 or 50 years,” she said. “That is why we are in this housing shortage position.”
Cr Mayne asked if there was a role for the Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee in the governance process.
Cr Winslade requested exception-based reporting so that councillors knew where the problems were, a risk management plan, a detailed budget, a more detailed work program because the BBMP project was “much more complex and iterative than a spreadsheet” and a detailed stakeholder plan of who council needed to talk to, how and when.
Council will resolve on the project plan on 26 May.
