103 Beach Street (Foodstore site) Update

The City of Port Phillip (CoPP) decided on proposed plans by Carr architects on behalf of Luxcon for this site at its Planning Committee meeting on Thursday 28 July.

CoPP officers recommended that the proposed plans for a five-storey building be approved subject to a number of amendments. These included:

• Increasing the setbacks of the fourth and fifth storeys of the building to be a minimum 5m from the eastern and western boundaries.
• Adding an entrance to the supermarket from Waterfront Place in addition to the entrance from Beach St.

Gateway Ward Councillors (Heather Cunsolo, Marcus Pearl, and Peter Martin) supported the redevelopment and the CoPP officers' recommended amendments, but added additional amendments that would further reduce the bulk of the building, ensuring it is perceived as a five-storey building not a six-storey building, and reduce overshadowing of the public realm. Councillor approved amendments included:

• Deleting rooftop terraces and associated structures and stair access from top level units, deleting a central stair to the roof, minimising the lift overrun, and reducing the building height by 2.4m so that the highest parapet is reduced to RL 22.5 around the central lift overrun.
• Having the main entrance to the apartments on Beach St to match the address of 103 Beach St.

The BCNA is keen to see the site redeveloped and considers it vital that it includes a supermarket on the ground floor. Our concerns have been about height and overshadowing of the public realm including the cycling paths and Bay Trail to the south; that there was no entrance to the supermarket from the south side; and the importance of sufficient car parking in the northern car park.

The impact of CoPP's changes is to reduce the height and bulk of the building and overshadowing of the public realm. It will also make the supermarket more accessible to visitors on the southern side of the building.

The permit applicant has 60 days to appeal CoPP's decision to VCAT.

The Future of Station Pier

Transport Victoria has released a strategy to improve the efficiency of Victoria’s ports (summary version here). The purpose of the strategy is to protect and enhance the commercial ports’ land and seaside connections; reserve and plan for the land and seaside connections for a second container port; and ensure long term policy settings are in place. 

Of particular interest to Beacon Cove residents is the discussion on Station Pier. The summary states

"..the Government will lead further work to determine the most suitable option for continuing cruise shipping at Station Pier. This must balance local precinct and visitor experience outcomes with the complexity and cost of maintaining the aged heritage pier. The work will be complemented by a statewide cruise shipping strategy developed with stakeholders to maximise the economic and social benefits of cruise shipping services across regional Victoria and metropolitan Melbourne." (Page 29, summary)

The BCNA welcomes the announcement regarding Station Pier. We have long advocated for Victorian Government leadership of a project which would overcome the shortcomings of the area which we have explained in discussions with candidates standing for Council, Victorian Government and Federal elections.

Extra Bus Services in Fishermans Bend

On 25 July the state government announced an increase in frequencies on the 235 and 237 bus services to Fishermans Bend. No changes to the services covering Beacon Cove (the 234 and 236) or new services have been announced.

Beacon Cove residents are likely to be well aware of the considerable building activity in Fishermans Bend with at least seven residential towers having been completed and occupied in recent times. These developments have brought thousands of new residents and their cars to the area. Little action has occurred to streamline traffic or increase capacity, and the two access points to the Westgate freeway have become increasingly congested with lengthy delays often occurring during rush hour and extending through the business day.

Whilst the BCNA welcomes the government announcement, it does mean more buses on existing roads rather than services that reduce pressure on existing roads. The BCNA is urging greater government proactivity to establish services such as tram and train before significant further residential growth occurs.