Residents told the Inner West Council (IWC) meeting on September 14 that the lack of consultation around its 鈥淥ur Place Inner West鈥 strategy was a serious misjudgement that they were not going to brook.
They packed the public gallery with signs reading 鈥淪ave Dully鈥 in reference to Dulwich Hill, 鈥淪ave our community鈥 and 鈥淲here was the community consultation?鈥
罢丑别听聽include high-rise additions near train stations and new plans for re-zoning and development in Marrickville, Dulwich Hill and North Ashfield.
Speakers聽made it clear that while they were not against new high rises, they were furious about the accidental nature of how they found out and the short time frame in which to respond to new rezoning proposals.
Residents from Marrickville and Dulwich Hill said IWC had released drafts, which , without any consultation, on August 22. They were given until September 25 to provide feedback.
Lisa Bonhole, one of the residents who came to the meeting, told 麻豆传媒 that she accidentally stumbled across the plan while searching for something else on council鈥檚 website.
She said she was shocked to find out the rezoning included her house. She and three others decided to letter box and speak to residents in the affected area between Ewart, Riverside, Balfour and Tennyson Streets.
鈥淲e letterboxed 250 people over a weekend and all bar one had not heard of it,鈥 Bonhole said. That person had a relative who worked for council.
鈥淲e asked [Greens councillor] Justine Langford and [Labor councillor] Jess d鈥橝rienzo to hear our concerns,鈥 Bonhole said.
鈥淲e have elderly neighbours who would not have known how to access the website, nor scan a QR code on a postcard that only some people were letter-boxed.鈥
Speakers at the IWC meeting made it clear their opposition was not based on 鈥淣IMBY-ism鈥. They know there is a housing crisis, Bonhole said, and are not against development per se.
A 迟辞濒诲听City Hub聽that residents are worried about proposed 8-storey buildings along Illawarra Road and聽Petersham Road, along with 鈥渟uggested pockets that accommodate up to 12 storeys鈥.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e destroying a community to put in another community,鈥 Dulwich Hill resident Jenny Whitmarsh told the Sydney Morning Herald the previous day.
IWC聽decided to scrap its 鈥淥ur Place Inner West鈥 strategy. A 鈥淢ayoral minute鈥, at the beginning of the meeting, asked council officers to seek independent advice on 鈥渉ow councillors should manage potential conflicts of interest鈥. This聽meant that a motion from Langford and another from聽d鈥橝rienzo were聽not put to the meeting.
The said councillors were not to blame because they 鈥渨ere not briefed on these studies prior to their publication鈥 and that 鈥渘o further work will be undertaken on these studies or the related consultation while Council is awaiting advice from the Office of Local Government鈥.聽
鈥淩esidents know the fight is not over yet,鈥 Bonhole said.
She hoped residents would be consulted to determine the amount and extent of higher-density development that permitted close to train stations at Marrickville, Dulwich Hill and North Ashfield.
[For more information, visit and 聽Facebook pages. 聽is hosting a community meeting on September 22 at 7pm at Marrickville Bowling Club.]