Dear Beagle Editor It has recently come to our attention that the shire has acquired a parcel of community land at the corner The Boulevard and Beach Street at Tuross Head, which it intends to sell as a prime, waterfront building block. We wish to express our concern, dismay and anger at this misguided and cynical decision. Obviously, it has been made to supplement shire revenue but we believe that it is both short sighted and morally wrong.
If the proposal goes ahead, it is feasible and highly likely that a monolithic residence of huge proportions, up to three stories will be constructed on the site. At the moment, this piece of land is visually an intrinsic part of the waterfront landscape of Tuross. It provides a buffer to interrupt the monotony of residential building along The Boulevard and its existence enhances the visual amenity of the place. The sort of thing that sets Tuross apart from other over developed towns. Once it is gone there is no going back and the whole atmosphere and character of this part of Tuross will be detrimentally changed forever.
It must also be acknowledged that any revenue generated from the sale will be directly sponsored by nearby property owners who will surely have their properties dramatically devalued. In this case, surely the shire has a moral obligation to fairly compensate people who have bought in good faith, in the belief that as a reserve, the land could never be built on. If this proposal goes ahead, any other land owner in the vicinity of a reserve should be on notice that they could be next to suffer the same fate.
It appears the whole matter has been in the pipeline for some considerable time, generating uncertainty and considerable stress for the people who will be directly effected. Their letters to council have been fundamentally ignored with either no reply or bland, stone walling responses that fail to address genuine and legitimate concerns.
Eurobodalla Shire must reverse their decision to develop this land as it will not only decimate the unspoilt nature of Tuross but it will also dramatically effect the lives of a number of residents for a few shekels that will disappear into the abyss of consolidated revenue.
Robert and Alexis Knight
Above: According to Council's Reclassification and rezoning of Council owned community land report 2011 : "The land is within the ownership of Eurobodalla Shire Council and is identified as being underutilised and surplus to Council’s needs" Source
