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August 30, 2024
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Fun at your local library Libraries are terrific places to escape the hustle and bustle of the outside world. And Greater Geelong has some of the best libraries around. Geelong Regional Libraries regularly holds fun mornings for toddlers and preschoolers. You can dance, sing and read along with your child at an action-packed Toddler Time program or discover the joys of reading at a Preschool Story Time session. Pictured is Judith Parsons and granddaughter Neve at Geelong West Library’s Preschool Story Time on Wednesday. It was certainly a place to take refuge from Wednesday’s high winds and horrible weather conditions. Independent photographer also went to Belmont Library for Toddler Time. (Ivan Kemp) 428152_01
For sessions, venues and times, see grlc.vic.gov.au and for more pictures, see page 13.
Precinct plan moves ahead By Matt Hewson Geelong council has supported a plan for the development of a new precinct in the City’s northwest that could house more than 10,000 people. The Creamery Road Precinct Structure Plan (PSP) will, with ministerial approval, go out for public exhibition some time in late 2024. The PSP is the first of several in the works for the Northern and Western Geelong Growth Areas, which will potentially accommodate 110,000 residents. The Creamery Road PSP will define the future locations of more than 3600 houses, as well as shops, infrastructure and community facilities across the precinct’s 344 hectares. Council also adopted a Development
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Contributions Plan, outlining the required financial contributions required from developers, and a Native Vegetation Precinct Plan. City Planning and Heritage portfolio chair Councillor Jim Mason said a draft PSP had already undergone agency consultation two years ago, as well as “numerous stakeholder consultations”, all of which had contributed to the plan’s current form. “The vision has always been to hold a high standard of liveability while minimising the effect on affordability,” Cr Mason said. “We don’t want large expanses of cheap housing found elsewhere in the state where there are limited facilities and access to transport with poor environmental criteria. “This PSP fosters climate resilient
communities (and) protects biodiversity with actions including an overarching biodiversity conservation strategy that includes conservation areas, tree canopy coverage targets and significant tree retention and tree planting. “Further, it ensures that areas retained for the protection of native vegetation are managed to conserve ecological values.” Deputy mayor Anthony Aitken said while he was “not opposed to the principle of what’s being presented” he had concerns with the affordability of future housing options in the precinct. He said it was the “dearest precinct structure plan that has ever been put forward before the council”. “I am concerned that the only housing stock
that a person with low affordability can get involved in, in these new developments, will be either apartment living or high density living,” Cr Aitken said. “What I encourage with this process is, yes, let’s put it out to exhibition, let’s actually ask the developer community, can they create affordable housing and diverse housing stock under this precinct model that we’re adopting or proposing to adopt in Geelong? “And if they can’t, I hope they come back and put very good submissions before the council to say how do we address that issue about diversity of housing stock and affordability. “It would be very sad if the only way a person on a low income can get into these new precinct areas… in the Western and Northern Growth Zone is through either apartment living or high-density living.”