JDAP divided over $13m Broadway plan

The Development Assessment Panel has affirmed its decision to approve a $13 million mid-rise development in Perth’s western suburbs following a three-hour deliberation over the proposal that divided the panel, the council, the planning consultancy it engaged, and local residents.

The development application for a six-storey development on Broadway, which features an office tenancy and 36 apartments, returned to the Metro Inner-North Joint Development Assessment Panel (JDAP) after the proponent sought a minor amendment to one of the conditions.

Despite the JDAP having given the project the green light last September, the City of Nedlands council demanded tat the approval be reconsidered over concerns relating to the privacy of neighbouring residents, the impact of the development on the amenity and character of the area, and overshadowing of properties to the south.

The council also raised concerns about the fact the proposed development was over the permitted plot ratio, which the JDAP has the discretion to approve, and the impact it could have on traffic congestion.

The concerns listed echoed those of about 40 residents that objected to the proposal during the public consultation period.

But the request stood in stark contrast to the advice of planning consultancy Atlus Planning, which found the proposal to be consistent with the planning framework and the intended scale of future development in the area and recommended that the application be approved.

The conflicting views prompted a three-hour deliberation between members of the panel, city councillors, planning staff and stakeholders, who poured over the details of the proposal, the concerns raised by local residents, and workshopped conditions to mitigate those concerns.

Members Fergus Bennett and Kerry Ann Smyth had attempted to move the recommendation for refusal, standing by the council’s concerns and arguing that the design needed to be reviewed and better attention paid to privacy, traffic, and landscaping issues.

But that motion was lost, with the officer’s recommendation for approval being carried three votes to two.

The recommendation was only approved with the addition of new amendments requiring the inclusion of mature, fast-growing trees along the rear of the boundary and opaque glass balustrades for the apartment balconies to provide greater privacy to nearby residents.

Panel member John Sym praised the sophisticated approach to the high-quality development, saying that it could be used as a benchmark for other developments across Broadway.

The development is the latest in a suite of mid-rise apartments to be approved for the prominent Nedlands strip designed to increase density, developments the city’s Deputy Mayor Leo McManus said he wasn't convinced would change Nedlands for the better.