The lives of more than 200 residents of Yamba’s Hometown Australia owned Grevillea Waters, whose average age is in their mid-70s, are at significant risk if a proposed 16 townhouse development adjacent to the village is approved by Clarence Valley Council.
That was the strong message the Grevillea Waters Residents Committee Focus Group GWRCFG delivered to the Member for Clarence, Richie Williamson, and the CV Independent when we were invited to tour the village and hear the flood experiences of residents last Friday.
The DA2023/0776 lodged on behalf of Enhance Urban Planning on February 15, 2024, proposes a two-lot subdivision of flood prone land at 30 Golding Street, Yamba, and a multi dwelling housing development of 16 townhouses on lot two, within metres of established Grevillea Waters residences. The proposal seeks to divide the 10,145 square metres sqm of land into two Torrens Title lots, lot 1 a 1,279 sqm area of land with a 6-metre-wide driveway, and lot 2, 8,866sqm of land featuring 16 townhouses attached in pairs split by the driveway, with six townhouses on the northern side of the driveway and 10 on the southern side.
The three-storey townhouses will be built to the 9-metre height limit, satisfying council’s Development Control Plan, with the lower garage level designed to limit the impact of flooding on the site that council’s flood planning map indicates is 93.13 percent flood prone.
Residents of the 145 homes at Grevillea Waters said during the 2022 flood they were completely isolated for four days, unable to access medication or medical treatment, then, for the next few days they could only leave the village during low tide.
This caused significant stress and concern as a number of the village’s residents are disabled, they don’t drive, and were unable to attend medical appointments, daily health related visits were impossible, and residents couldn’t get their meals on wheels deliveries.
Exacerbating the flooding impacts at Grevillea Waters is the tidal saltwater lagoon that borders the village, which residents say desperately needs clearing.
In a comprehensive submission to council, the GWRCFG state they are opposed to the proposed development “due to the very negative impact it will impose on the health, welfare, and safety of over 200 local Yamba residents whose average age is in their mid-70’s.”
The submission states Grevillea Waters homes haven’t been damaged by floods in more than 30 years, but since 2022 they are very likely to suffer flood inundation due to the catchment basin being filled and land on the northern boundary of the village being raised.
On a tour of the village, as we were shown photos of the 2022 flood, residents explained the impact of previous floods, with one man indicating the water reached his floorboards in 2022, the highest flood he had experienced in 20 years living there.
During a visit to a home that backs onto the proposed development site, the home’s owner said the blocks where the townhouses are proposed was 900mm deep in water in the 2022 flood.
The developer plans to put one metre of fill on the site, leaving residents extremely fearful their low set homes will be flooded and the village will be inundated, as the water has nowhere else to go.
To combat these concerns, the developer plans to install underground stormwater retention tanks, but residents are worried they won’t have the capacity to cope during heavy rain.
The GWRCFG have invited Clarence Valley Council’s General Manager, Directors, and Councillors to visit the village a see their concerns firsthand.
Public submissions for the DA closed on March 25 and will be assessed by council planning staff before the proposal is voted on by councillors at a future meeting.
This article appeared in the Clarence Valley Independent, 10 April 2024.
