Former Save Perth Hills chair Paige McNeil at the Save Perth Hills rally at Sculpture Park. Picture: Zac Williams/ZW Photography

Concerns raised about North Stoneville

SPECIAL REPORT
July 12, 2023
Anita McInnes
Published Echo News February 10, 2023
A FORMER WA fire and emergency chief has added his voice to the community campaign against the proposed North Stoneville development.
In a statement released by Save Perth Hills Wayne Gregson said his experience caused him to be concerned about the risks of another ‘unprecedented’ bushfire catastrophe involving North Stoneville.
One of the speakers at a Save Perth Hills rally on Sunday Mr Gregson was the state’s first Department of Fire and Emergency Services commissioner.
“Development proposals like the one that’s brought us here today, are testing whether we as a society and our government, at all levels, are listening to our experience, learning lessons and most of all – whether we’re applying lessons learned, mitigating future risk and authentically trying to prevent history repeating itself,” he said.
Satterley Property Group, which is developing 555ha of urban-zoned land north of the existing Stoneville townsite for the Perth Diocesan Trustees submitted an amended proposal to the Western Australian Planning Commission (WAPC) in January.
Once the amended plan is advertised residents will have 42 days to comment on the proposal.
Shire of Mundaring chief executive officer Jonathan Throssell said in relation to SP34, the shire had obtained advice from the State Solicitor’s Office as to its role in the process.
Mr Throssell said the shire had been advised that the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage (DPLH), on behalf of the WAPC, would be responsible for publicly advertising the revised North Stoneville local structure plan.
“Advertising is likely to occur in the first quarter of 2023, following receipt of the applicant’s amended structure plan in late January 2023,’’ he said.
“DPLH will carry out all public advertising processes, including compiling public submissions and responding to day-to-day queries.

 “As part of this process, DPLH will also invite submissions/recommendations from the Shire of Mundaring and other government agencies, including DFES.’’
Satterley’s promotion for the proposed development says concentrating growth in and around townsites has been the preferred means of residential development by both state and local governments for a multitude of reasons, including creating environmental benefits like irrigation of public open spaces using wastewater recycling, rehabilitation of creek lines and balancing clearing of vegetation with bushfire risk management.

But the proposal was not approved by the WAPC in July 2020 and the following month Satterley took the decision to the State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) and since then there have been nine mediation sessions.
Former Save Perth Hills chair Paige McNeil said the North Stoneville plan was rejected by the WAPC because it did not comply with four state planning policies.
“The collective wisdom of our community should’ve been sought, because the people know first-hand the increasing challenges we face in the Perth Hills,” she said.
Ms McNeil said Save Perth HiIls and the Shire of Mundaring had applied to rezone the North Stoneville land back to rural.
“This would allow for an environmentally and culturally respectful development to be built, and the state government has the power to approve this rural rezone.”
On January 24 a spokeswoman for Satterley said there was nothing they could say while they were going through the SAT process.
Australian environmentalist Bob Brown was among the other speakers at the rally, which was held on Sunday.

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