Mernda Town Centre Comprehensive Development Plan Planning
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Mernda Town Centre Comprehensive Development Plan Planning Scheme Amendment C45 Explanatory Report 1. What is Planning Scheme Amendment C45 Amendment C45 to the Whittlesea Planning Scheme has been prepared by the City of Whittlesea, which is also the Planning Authority for this amendment. The Amendment seeks to formally incorporate the Mernda Town Centre Comprehensive Development Plan (CDP) into the Whittlesea Planning Scheme to direct land use patterns and transport system design within the designated Town Centre site. Amendment C45 will impact, either directly or indirectly, on all land in the Mernda / Doreen section of the Plenty Valley Growth corridor. This is the same land that is affected by the exhibition version of the Mernda Strategy Plan (2002). It also corresponds to the residential growth area that was formalised with the approval of the Plenty Valley Strategic Plan in 1989. Figure 1 shows the subject area. Amendment C45 applies more specifically to the site of the Mernda Town Centre as proposed by the Mernda Strategy Plan – which was exhibited as Amendment C30 between 14 February and 12 April 2002. Amendment C30 proposes to rezone the subject land from Residential 1 Zone to Comprehensive Development Zone (CDZ). Approximately 58Ha (including sites for retarding basin and transport interchange) is proposed to be rezoned and would therefore come under the control of the Mernda Town Centre Comprehensive Development Plan. The subject land is concentrated around the intersection of Plenty Road and Bridge Inn Road. A copy of the rezoning plan for the Town Centre site, as proposed by Amendment C30, is provided as Figure 2(a-d). The Mernda Town Centre CDP will also apply to two parcels of land that extend beyond the area nominated for rezoning to CDZ in Amendment C30. The first of these land parcels, at 1360-1370 Plenty Road, adjoins the southern boundary of the proposed CDZ boundary in Amendment C30. The second parcel to be added to the Mernda Town Centre CDP area is described 620 Bridge Inn Road. This land is south Figure 1. Mernda Strategy Plan area in municipal context Figure 2 (a). Comprehensive Development Zone as proposed by Amendment C30 Figure 2 (b). Comprehensive Development Zone as proposed by Amendment C30 Figure 2 (c). Comprehensive Development Zone as proposed by Amendment C30 Figure 2 (d). Comprehensive Development Zone as proposed by Amendment C30 of Bridge Inn Road and east of the railway reservation. It is proposed that both of these land parcels be rezoned to Comprehensive Development Zone as part of a separate Planning Scheme Amendment following completion of the necessary ecological and archaeological assessments. The Mernda Town Centre CDP document clearly shows the proposed additions to the underlying Comprehensive Development Zone. With these rezonings, the Comprehensive Development Plan will apply to an area of approximately 74.5 hectares. More specifically, Amendment C45 will impact directly on the properties listed below: • 1435; 1455; 1460; 1470; 1464; 1450; 1446; 1444; 1438-1440; 1410; 1390; 1360- 1370; 1421-1425; 1415; 1405; and 1395 Plenty Road, Mernda. • 571; 575; 581; 595; 591; 601; 607 and 620 Bridge Inn Road, Mernda 2. What does Amendment C45 Do? The primary purpose of Amendment C45 is to incorporate the Mernda Town Centre Comprehensive Development Plan into the Whittlesea Planning Scheme. The Amendment C30 Explanatory Report foreshadowed Council’s intention to prepare a Comprehensive Development Plan for the land that is proposed for rezoning to CDZ. Amendment C45 carries out this action. The Mernda Town Centre Comprehensive Development Plan will become an incorporated document referred to in Schedule 1 to the Comprehensive Development Zone. It will be included in the list of Incorporated Documents that forms the schedule to Clause 81 of the Whittlesea Planning Scheme. This will mean that all future subdivision and development on the subject land will need to be generally in accordance with the Mernda Town Centre CDP. The Mernda Town Centre CDP will facilitate the staged establishment of a mixed-use activity centre with capacity for at least 25,000m2 of retail floorspace and up to 77,450m2 of non-retail commercial floorspace. These allocations are generally in line with the recommendations of background reports prepared by Essential Economics (2000) and Charter Keck Cramer (2001). Activity centres are an integral part of human settlements and can be drivers of economic activity and community cohesion. In order to create a vital social and economic environment in the Mernda Town Centre, it is necessary to provide for an appropriate combination of retail/commercial, employment, residential and community land uses. It is also important to integrate the Town Centre with the private and public transport systems and to create a quality public realm. To achieve these outcomes, the Mernda Town Centre Comprehensive Development Plan proposes a pedestrian-oriented design which has a traditional ‘Main-Street’ as its centrepiece. The plan should enable the Mernda Town Centre to achieve the following: • Form the social and economic heart of the community; • Remove the need to use a car for many local trips; • Support public transport services; • Generate local economic activity and employment. To realise the type of town centre that is envisaged by the Mernda Strategy Plan, five sets of ‘Urban Design Principles’ have been identified to guide the future development of land affected by the Mernda Town Centre CDP. These are set out under the following headings: • Land-use Integration and Density • Access and Connectivity • Diversity and Adaptability • Local Identity and Legibility • Ecological Responsiveness Adhering to these principles, the Mernda Town Centre CDP provides for a core mixed-use area on the south-east corner of Plenty Road and Bridge Inn Road. A new east-west ‘Main Street’ will be created between Plenty Road and the proposed rail station site on the existing rail reservation, south of Bridge Inn Road. The Main Street will be intersected by a ‘Second Street’ to create four super-blocks. At full development, these are likely to contain two supermarkets, a discount department store, and community buildings. The large-format retail buildings will be sleeved with fine-grain specialty shops to activate street frontages and create a pedestrian-friendly environment. Numerous sites for highway-type retailing will be made available along Plenty Road and Bridge Inn Road, within the confines of the Comprehensive Development Plan area. At the eastern end of Main Street there will be a transport hub, which may ultimately comprise a rail station and bus terminal. This will be part of the Main Street fabric and will be supported by medium density housing. The design of the transport hub will be sufficiently flexible for it to provide for either heavy rail or road-based public transport options. The Mernda Town Centre will be characterised by its integration with the supporting neighbourhood precincts. There will be multiple access options to the Town Centre from the surrounding residential land. This will distribute traffic across the road network and improve the efficiency of the primary arterials – Plenty Road and Bridge Inn Road. The proposed road network around the Town Centre will result in a number of cross-intersections on Plenty Road and Bridge Inn Road. These will help to disperse traffic and facilitate appropriate traffic volumes on the Town’s Main Street. The synchronisation of traffic signals at the intersections on Plenty Road will prevent any serious impediment to traffic flow, but will however serve to calm traffic speed as it passes through the Town Centre precinct. This has benefits for pedestrians and cyclists and will enhance public amenity. The Town Centre design is sensitive to the site’s natural and cultural heritage, with key elements being incorporated into the urban fabric. The medium density housing in the Town Centre will be orientated to have direct frontage to the Plenty Gorge Parklands. At the southern end of the plan area, approximately 7.7 hectares of land has been designated to support a variety of employment-generating land-uses. This employment park could accommodate an array of commercial, light-industrial and trade-based retail development that is compatible with surrounding residential areas. 3. Background to Amendment C45 The Mernda Strategy Plan was prepared by Council during 2001 and placed on public exhibition, as Amendment C30, during February/April 2002. A detailed background to this amendment is provided in the Amendment C30 Explanatory Report. The Mernda Strategy Plan essentially provides for a series of residential neighbourhoods that support a mixed-use town centre of sub-regional status. Amendment C45 originates from Amendment C30 and represents a logical advancement in the planning process. It provides a more detailed plan that prescribes land uses and transport routes for the Town Centre site. The preparatory work associated with the Mernda Strategy Plan revealed that a substantial town centre would be required to meet the needs of the emerging new communities. Council recognised that the creation of sustainable communities is dependent upon the establishment of an exemplary Town Centre. To this end, Council commissioned the following consultant reports to inform preparation of the exhibited Mernda Strategy Plan: • Essential Economics Pty Ltd (2000). Mernda Retail Analysis. City of Whittlesea • Charter Keck Cramer Pty Ltd (2001) Mernda Employment