Our CR&S Approach

CASE STUDY

Stockland Glenrose, Belrose, NSW

Our Glenrose shopping centre on Sydney's North Shore has been the focus of intense community interest since we first lodged a redevelopment proposal in 2006. Concerns have ranged from the size and scale of our proposed redevelopment to the plans to remediate contaminated soil and groundwater beneath the centre. Warringah Council requested that we resubmit plans with a smaller scheme.

Environmental investigations at the time of our proposal determined the presence of contaminated groundwater beneath the centre, and the Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC) was advised. The contamination originated prior to our ownership of the centre. A revised proposal was submitted to Warringah Council in September 2007 which incorporated plans for remediation of the contaminated groundwater. We engaged with council officers on the key issues, but our application was refused because of concerns from local residents about traffic issues, design elements and the scale of the redevelopment.

Further environmental testing conducted in January 2009 determined that the extent of the contamination in the groundwater was greater than originally thought, and we notified retailers and the community that the majority of the centre would need to be demolished to enable remediation works to take place.

Responding to stakeholder feedback

There were high levels of community distrust about our plans for the centre given the history of unsuccessful redevelopment applications. Many of our stakeholders questioned the need to demolish all shops located within the centre.

Retailers and the community had concerns about the proposed timetable and questioned our commitment to developing a new shopping centre on the site to continue to service the local area. Our intent was always to focus on public safety.

In response to this feedback, and in consultation with the mayor and the State MP who had been contacted by members of the community, we changed the timetable to allow additional time for retailers and customers to prepare for the remediation works. We also determined that a number of retailers would be able to continue trading during the remediation process, subject to ongoing environmental analysis to ensure safety.

We acknowledge that earlier consultation with our Glenrose stakeholders would have alleviated some of their concerns about the remediation programme and the plans for the site.

Working together on the plans for a new centre

In direct response to community feedback, the plans for a new shopping centre are anticipated to be smaller than the schemes previously proposed.

We now have a formal stakeholder working group, lead by our development and centre management team, which includes a Glenrose retailer, members of the local community action group and local residents and businesses. This group meets on a regular basis to discuss the remediation works and plans for a new centre. We report key issues and action items to the group, the Mayor and the local MP.

This process has ensured an open and consultative approach in the lead up to remediation and redevelopment works, and we have received positive feedback about these sessions.

We have learnt many lessons from this project and wish to maintain regular communication with our stakeholders, including through community newsletters, retailer briefings, website updates and briefings for the local newspaper.

Working together with our stakeholders and focusing on community priorities, we are designing a new shopping centre that will be a safe and vibrant place to shop.

CASE STUDY

Stockland Point Lonsdale, Victoria

We have considered a wide range of community issues over the past five years as we pursued plans for a residential development at Point Lonsdale on the Bellarine Peninsula in Victoria. Concerns have ranged from the potential environmental impacts of a development at a sensitive coastal location to the proposed scale of the project and the impact on the neighbouring community.

This project has been considered by all three levels of government, ensuring a stringent approval process that provides opportunities for stakeholders to have their say about the project.

After acquiring the 195 hectare site in 2002, we initially proposed a combined tourist and residential scheme, including a golf course. These plans were soon abandoned in response to community and regulatory feedback about their unsuitability for the township.

Since early 2004, we focused on planning a project that would be more in keeping with the site's coastal location. In 2006 we put forward a proposal for a primarily residential scheme, which included plans to upgrade the existing waterway system to provide better drainage at the site, mitigate flood risk and create a rejuvenated marine environment restoring native vegetation and habitats, which were key concerns raised by the local community.

Our proposal also called for some land to be rezoned from rural to residential. This plan was rejected by the state government, and after further consultation, we submitted a design that conformed to existing land uses.

Our application, along with the extensive Environment Effects Statement (EES) prepared for the project, was then referred to an independent planning panel which heard public submissions and expert statements. The panel found that the project could proceed subject to a number of planning conditions, including setting floor levels of dwellings to accommodate potential sea level rise predictions.

In February 2009 the Victorian State Minister for Planning adopted the Panel's findings and referred the application to the Federal Minister for the Environment for consideration under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.

We submitted detailed studies to ensure the project complied with the Act, including provisions for wetlands of international significance and for threatened species.

Throughout this process, we have maintained a high level of engagement with a range of stakeholders including local community organisations and authorities via regular briefings, newsletters, site tours and maintaining a visitor information centre near the site for more than three years.

In FY10 we will continue to consult with representatives from various stakeholder groups to ensure the delivery of a world-class, environmentally-sensitive coastal village at Point Lonsdale.