THE WA Planning Commission’s (WAPC) September decision to endorse the redevelopment of The Vines’ golf course in the Swan Valley stands as another planning decision that residents say will adversely impact Perth's Swan Valley region forever.

The Swan Valley has been facing severe flooding issues due to the nature of its subsoil clay without a master drainage plan as different developers handled their own projects without a unified vision as reported in Infiltration not a feasible strategy: SCEA vice chair.

The Swan Valley features the state’s oldest wine region and is in the top three most popular tourist destinations in the Perth area.

The recent WAPC approval enables foreign landowners to replace the existing Vines golf course driving range and practice areas with 91 houses.

The Vines Residents and Ratepayers Association (VRRA) said this was the first step towards the permanent demise of The Vines golf course as a public and tourist attraction, as other permitted changes will remove capacity and sustainability of the recreational amenity.

The VRRA and broader community have opposed destruction of The Vines for more than four years.

As reported in VRRA to continue opposing The Vines redevelopment, the community already spent more than $100,000 which was donated to stop the redevelopment plan.

The VRRA said the decision demonstrated the further dismantling of local council influence and community input into important planning decisions.

The City of Swan council unanimously rejected the redevelopment plan, unanimously, twice and the proposal was rejected by the Joint Development Assessment Panel in 2023.

Nearly 90 per cent of the community opposed the project via public submissions as reported in VRRA calls for rejection of Vines amendment.

“Environmental assessment and public consultation (were) ignored by City of Swan planners, Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage, and WAPC,” the VRRA said.

VRRA vice chair Dixon Lowe said the decision showed how the community’s concerns had been ignored, despite repeated appeals for due diligence and fair representation.

“City of Swan growth plans have identified areas around The Vines, now already under development, with further capacity for housing into the 2050s,” he said.

“This confirms the golf course land is not necessary for future development.”

The VRRA said the latest decision threatened the Swan Valley’s environmental, historic, tourism and recreational attributes.

The association said Dayton and Brabham residents had been “appalled by the WAPC’s failures to address flooding” and the rising water table problems exacerbated by residential development.

VRRA is also concerned as drainage problems were identified on the existing golf course land which is now earmarked for housing.

Water problems in the Swan Valley have been identified since 2017 by the government-supported Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cities with calls for technical guidance for planning and designing urban developments in high groundwater areas such as the Swan coastal plain.

Swan Community Environmental Alliance (SCEA) chair Rob Bradbury said despite these known problems, the WAPC continued to approve new developments in the increasingly vulnerable Swan Valley region.

“This undermines the intent of the Swan Valley Planning Act 2020, specifically designed in recognition of the urgent need to balance the protection of the region’s distinctive rural character, guide new tourism and hospitality opportunities, and protect long-term agricultural production in the region”, he said.

“These planning decisions are causing unsustainable and permanent losses for tourism, biodiversity, sporting and public amenity in Perth’s Swan Valley.”

The VRRA and SCEA are inviting community members to meet at the steps of Parliament House at 11.30am to 12.30pm on Wednesday, November 12 to rally against the WAPC endorsement of The Vines’ redevelopment.