Cummins, Eyre Peninsula
A CUMMINS farmer who was willing to work with the Lower Eyre Peninsula District Council to make more land available for residential development is disappointed with the council's communication and reliance on a report prepared by an outsider.
Dean Jericho already had the interest of a developer for 30 new, 1000 to 1500 square metre blocks on the northern side of Cummins.
But his general farming land needed to be rezoned as residential as part of the town's Development Plan Amendment (DPA) for it to go ahead.
Mr Jericho's land was available and would have had houses being built on it in a year, but he said the council "squashed it after no negotiating or communication".
The DPA includes an expanded residential zone east of the town and new land zoned residential south, and northeast of the town between Warrow Road and Bratten Way.
But Mr Jericho believes it will be years before people can buy any blocks.
He said he was disappointed with the council's reasons for rejecting the rezoning, as it took on information from a report on the Cummins Airstrip "someone in Adelaide" did, rather the airstrip operators about impacts from aircraft activity.
The council's chief executive officer Rod Pearson said the council investigated land being rezoned northeast of the town, including the Jericho's land, but decided to remove it from being rezoned, partially because of the report's findings.
Adelaide-based Aerodrome Design analysed development impact on the airstrip and it identified land within a 75 decibel noise contour and areas that needed to be protected from building heights because of aircraft activity.
The report found land between Bratten Way and the Todd Highway did have a noise decibel level in excess of 75 dB.
But Mr Pearson said depending on flight frequency this land could be considered for residential development providing houses had noise reduction measures like double glazed windows and noise attenuation insulation.
Mr Jericho said the council did not contact the business operating at the airstrip, but he did and learned there were 350 to 400 landings per year, and 95 per cent of the take offs went away from town.
Mr Pearson said the council "considered long and hard whether to retain the land in the rezoning proposal."
"However, in the interests of sound planning decisions, and given the alternative land, which is or will be zoned residential (the) council opted to remove the land from the DPA," Mr Pearson said.
He said it was paramount to protect the aerodrome to ensure the business operating from it was not impacted in the future.
The DPA is with the Planning Minister for approval.
Mr Jericho said the back flip to not include the land in the DPA meant the community would miss out and it would be years before more land was developed and put up for sale.
"I love Cummins and I think it's a great, can do community, but the council is a cannot or will not council," Mr Jericho said.