THE Property Council of Australia says the state government’s development plan for Hope Valley’s Latitude 32 industrial zone is a good first step to alleviating long-term industrial land shortages, but falls short in addressing short-term needs.
Planning Minister John Day released the draft Latitude 32 district structure plan and revised master plan for public comment last week.
The plans will guide development of 1,269 hectares of industrial land at Hope Valley and Wattleup, adding to the 157ha Flinders Precinct, the only area of Latitude 32 currently being developed.
Mr Day said in a statement released last week that, over 30 years, Latitude 32 would deliver 14 commercial and industrial precincts for general industry, transport, commercial and business parks as well as resource recovery, parks and recreation zones.
At full development, the area is expected to provide up to 10,000 jobs, and the Western Australian Planning Commission recently nominated Latitude 32 as the preferred location for the proposed Kwinana Freight Terminal.
Property Council WA executive director Joe Lenzo told WA Business News the structure plan was a significant first step that ensured a good long-term supply of industrial land, but noted the land would be delivered in stages over 30 years.
Mr Lenzo said the Property Council had examined the state’s industrial land strategy, and recommended in the short term, over one to three years, that industry needed 200ha of development-ready land delivered at Latitude 32.
“If this period of response and refinement takes another 12-18 months, then this announcement misses the point when it comes to the short-term requirement of industrial land,” Mr Lenzo said.
“In the long term, in having a bank of industrial land, it’s a good thing they have done, but in the short term, unless they nail these approvals and make it development ready, there is an issue.
“It is complex and you have to now move fairly quickly to make the land development ready. It’s got lots of issues with buffer zones, it’s got issues regarding community acceptance, and it’s got issues regarding environmental approvals.
“At the moment, all of those things haven’t been tied up, so the initial press release and acknowledgement that it’s gone out and there is a structure plan is good, but now comes the hard work.
“We’re saying it’s a good response, but if you’re going to get the first couple of hundred hectares ready for the short term, you better start cracking the whip now.”
