A contentious Kyneton development with McDonalds, Bunnings and a 24-hour petrol station will be determined at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
The two-part commercial proposal for Edgecombe Street has attracted a combined 653 submissions airing concerns for traffic, safety, and impact to social, environment and local economy.
Objector Kaye Coulter said the development had the potential to change the face and future of Kyneton permanently.
“This type of development is not protecting and preserving our unique environment and does not promote the Macedon Ranges’ standing as a region that values and protects its natural attractions,” she said.
“I holds concerns for our small businesses because they are not economically in a position to be able to take on the economic strengths of large retailers such as Bunnings and McDonalds. I have concerns that the CBD and the economy will be dragged across to Edgecombe Road.”
New Kyneton local, Linsey Hart, compared the Ranges’ environmental importance to that of the Blue Mountains, which had staved off fast-food restaurant developments for decades.
“The community there is similar in many respects to here and is economically reliant on tourism to support their thriving food and creative culture just like us,” she said.
“Here, like in the mountains, a McDonalds or KFC would cheapen the uniqueness of what we have.”
Ms Hart spoke of three separate attempts McDonalds made to establish themselves in the mountains, dating back to the 1990s. She said the community had won every time.
“They’ve been knocked back time and time again because the community and the council have done the research. They know that fast food chains syphon money away from local cafes and restaurants and away from the circular local economy,” she said.
“The creative businesses that we have here: the food, the bush, all of this, attracts lots of tourism and why wouldn’t it? What we have here is enviable and it isn’t by accident.”
While the location has long been earmarked for commercial development, many fear the existing road layout is not equipped for the anticipated traffic increase.
Submitter Simon Buckley said the proposed development was located near one of the worst intersections in Kyneton.
“The intersections do not line up and people don’t know how to handle that. It’s certainly an accident waiting to happen. There’s no way that the roads there are equipped to handle this increase of traffic,” he said.
“I really do think that the development could go ahead. Kyneton has missed out on a lot in previous years. I’ve watched other towns in the shire progress at a much faster rate. I fear that this could be a loss and another missed opportunity.”
The developer says the plan will create 200 ongoing local jobs and represents an investment of more than $15 million in the local economy. The Bunnings store alone is expected to create 40 permanent jobs for local residents.
A further 290 jobs are expected to be created during the construction period.
The Developer, Goldfields Group, hired independent consultant JWS Research to conduct a survey of 399 Kyneton residents in March. The results found 77 per cent supported the Bunnings proposal, 76 per cent supported the proposed service centre and 66 per cent supported the proposed fast food restaurant.
Goldfields has proposed permanent protection of the riparian zone within Post Office Creek area. This land will be transferred back to the council as a public asset.
Goldfields Group development manager Belinda Kelly said traffic concerns would be considered as part of the VCAT application.
