By Andrew Cantwell
Casey City’s ‘astronomical’ rate of growth means the municipality could run out of available residential and commercial land sometime around 2026, and not 2040 as previously expected.
Casey Council recently released preferred planning guidelines for four remaining undeveloped precincts in the city’s south and east – and urged the State’s Planning Authority to commence work on necessary Precinct Structure Plans.
The four precincts – totalling about 1800 hectares – are at Devon Meadows, Casey Fields South employment, Clyde South and “Croskell” at Cranbourne East. Their future development is expected to bring in an extra 37,000 people by 2041.
Cr Geoff Ablett, speaking on the urgency for action, said State planning for the new precincts could take four to six years.
If necessary planning wasn’t started soon, land will “run out” and the planning for new releases wouldn’t be finished in time, he said.
The fear was that people looking for land at that time would move on and choose another municipality to live or invest in.
Cr Sam Aziz was quick to support his colleague, saying Casey’s current growth rate was well beyond previous published figures of 120 people per week.
The city’s growth rate, he said, was “astronomical” – at 160 to 170 people per week.
“Growth shows no sign of abating for at least a decade,” Cr Aziz said.
Cr Aziz was also keen to see people of faith taken into account in the city’s ‘vision’ for the new precincts, asking that suitable locations for places of worship be identified early in planning activities.
The importance – or rather the lack – of a belief system or a faith was indicated by two appalling figures, he indicated – the rate of men’s suicide, and the “epidemic” of violent and fatal attacks on women.
The need to cater for places of worship, where people could find “someone to talk to” was more needed than ever, he indicated.
