Outline of Opening Presentation
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
PART B SUBMISSION – RAIL PROJECTS VICTORIA OUTLINE OF OPENING PRESENTATION Introduction 1 This outline has been prepared in respect of RPV’s opening presentation to the Advisory Committee. 2 It should be read in conjunction with RPV’s Part A Submission1 and adopts the defined terminology contained therein. RPV and its Role in Delivering the Project 3 RPV is an administrative office within the Department of Transport. 4 It is responsible for obtaining the applicable statutory approvals for the full Project and for the delivery of Stage 1. Arrangements for the delivery of Stage 2 are subject to Government decision-making. Upon the completion of the construction and commissioning of Stage 1, V/Line will become responsible for the ongoing operation and maintenance of the train services and infrastructure delivered by Stage 1. The Structure of RPV’s Case 5 It is the task of RPV to assist the Advisory Committee in preparing a report in response to its Terms of Reference and to provide such information as required. To this end the Advisory Committee has a substantial amount of information before it, including the Greater Geelong Planning Scheme, the exhibited material, and the material produced for the hearing. The Advisory Committee has also conducted an accompanied inspection of the subject land and the Maddingly facility as a useful comparison for Stage 1. It is not intended that all of this background will be reproduced or dealt with exhaustively for the opening presentation. 6 Rather, it is to be noted that RPV’s case before the Advisory Committee comprises the following parts: 1 Filed in accordance with the Advisory Committee’s directions on 28 January 2020. (a) The exhibited PSA and accompanying technical reports; (b) The Part A Submission filed on 28 January 2020, along with: (i) the Project Outline and Rationale memorandum (Annexure A); (ii) the ‘Day 1’ working draft of the Incorporated Document (Annexure B); (iii) the tabular response to submissions prepared by RPV in respect of the Amendment (Annexure C); (iv) the draft Noise Management Plan prepared in respect of the Project (Annexure D); and (v) the Site Investigation Summary Report (as filed in advance of the hearing); (c) The expert evidence filed by RPV with the Advisory Committee; (d) This opening presentation (Part B Submission) along with: (i) an updated working draft of the Incorporated Document and NMP (‘Day 2’ versions); and (e) RPV’s Reply which will be made at the conclusion of the hearing, the form and content of which will depend on the submissions and material produced by others during the hearing. 7 RPV will continue to update the proposed planning control in response to matters raised in submissions and in evidence. RPV is also willing to consider timely suggestions from other submitters in case they are supportable, or alternatively, require a specific response in reply. RPV anticipates consolidating further revisions in a third working draft of the proposed control to be tabled at the conclusion of the hearing. The Project 8 A description of the Project is contained in paragraphs [18] – [28] of RPV’s Part A Submission. A description of the Project in the context of the needs of the Regional Rail Network will be provided by Mr McKeown. 9 For present purposes it is pertinent to note that: (a) Stage 1 is designed to meet the immediate needs of the network in providing additional stabling capacity to the Geelong Line. It is anticipated that it will be delivered in the short term (by 2022) and that it will be comparable in scale and operation to the facility visited by the Advisory Committee on Day 1 of the hearing at Maddingly. (b) Stage 2 will introduce maintenance capacity to the Geelong Line as well as a substantial further increase in stabling capacity. It will complement (but is not dependent upon) the duplication of the Geelong Line between Geelong and Waurn Ponds and is broadly comparable in operation (if not in scale) to the stabling and maintenance facility operated by Metro Trains in Pakenham. The timing for the delivery of Stage 2 has not been determined and will be subject to further Government decision-making. (c) A distinction is drawn in the proposed planning controls between the Project Land2 and the Wider Project Land.3 Whereas the Project Land will accommodate the physical infrastructure that is directly associated with the Project, the Wider Project Land is designed to accommodate infrastructure that is incidental to the Project (principally in the nature of signage and signals). (d) The proposed planning control does not incorporate or refer to the concept design. This is appropriate in this case as the role of the concept design is to inform the preparation of the amendment and, in particular, the land area and mapping requirements of the amendment. The concept design is obviously not prepared to include the design and development detail that will accompany statutory approval. However, in combination with the exhibited material and expert assessments, the concept design provides a sound basis for assumptions to be made and, critically, to show how the facility will meet network need. The utilisation of a concept design is appropriate in this instance given the nature of the facility, the general uniformity of rail infrastructure assets, the operational and functional constraints that necessarily inform the design and operation of stabling and maintenance facilities, the conservative nature of the impact assessments, and the safeguards that are incorporated within the PSA. 2 Meaning the land required to accommodate the Facility, being the land 350 metres south of the rail corridor between Pettavel Road and Bogans Lane on the property situated at 255 Reservoir Road, Waurn Ponds. 3 Meaning all of the land required for the delivery of ancillary infrastructure and associated construction activity. Overarching Propositions 10 An overview of RPV’s position is contained in paragraphs [6] – [17] of its Part A Submission. 11 The following overarching propositions are noted for present purposes: Societal Need 12 In this presentation RPV describes the importance of both stages of the proposal to support the function and development of the Regional Rail Network in the short term and to support future generations. It is properly characterised as a component of a broader infrastructure, critical to the social and economic health of the State, and to meeting public need. 13 The societal need for a project is a touchstone in many planning decisions. It is recognised, in this respect, that: The concept of net community benefit is a manifestation of the traditional test of ‘need against detriment’ which has been consistently applied for many years. In broad terms, the proposition is that the absence of need does not justify the refusal of a permit, however, the presence of need may well justify the grant of a permit.’4 14 It is trite but important to recognise that, whilst societal need is regularly identified as a factor supporting the grant of planning permission (be it in the form of a planning scheme amendment or planning permit), not all projects that advance societal needs do so to the same degree. 15 Indeed, as the Tribunal recognised in Tulcany v Knox City Council:5 Need is a fundamental concept in town planning, because town planning is essentially concerned with shaping our physical environment to meet the social economic and environmental needs of the community. However in individual development applications the role of need is complex. At one end of the scale, there are ubiquitous land uses in relation to which the Tribunal has said that need is not a matter for the planning system, rather it is a matter for the competitive market place. On the other hand there are important community based uses where the Tribunal has found that the need for the use can outweigh other important, and ordinarily 4 Cabrini Property Association v Stonnington City Council and Others [2000] VCAT 483 (29 January 2000) at [80]. See also Shell Company of Australia Pty Ltd and Ors v City of Frankston and Anor 8 APAD 127 at 135. 5 [2003] VCAT 1627 at [11] – [15]. decisive, planning considerations. An often quoted example of this latter case is the helipad at the Alfred Hospital. Nevertheless, there is a middle ground in which need may not be a decisive factor in the case of an individual development application, but will be a factor which influences the balances to be struck between competing planning policy consideration. An example of this is the retirement village permitted by the Tribunal in Cotham Road Pty Ltd v Boroondara City Council [2003] VCAT 795... 6 16 For the reasons outlined below, there can be little doubt that the Project sits at the very upper end of the spectrum of need identified in Tulcany. This must count heavily in favour of the Project and inform the manner in which the Advisory Committee assesses and balances the competing interests at issue in this amendment. The Project has State-wide Significance 17 That the Regional Rail Network constitutes critical infrastructure of state significance is beyond contention. It performs both passenger and freight functions, playing a pivotal role in facilitating the movement of people and goods throughout the State. Its efficient and effective operation is vital to the realisation of many of the core strategic planning objectives that apply within Regional Victoria. 18 As the Project Outline and Rationale memorandum demonstrates, the proposed facility will constitute an important component of that network.