Victorian government considers sale of Melbourne golf course but local council fears impact on wetlands

ABC NEWS (Australia)

A community is up in arms over plans to sell a golf course in Melbourne’s southeast. The Rossdale Golf Club says it doesn't want to sell, but needs to, as it grapples with growing debt. But that's frustrated the local council and members of the club, who say any development could impact the surrounding area and nearby wetlands.

Transcript

00:00These corridors of eucalyptus and pine are the perfect place for budding golfers to work

00:09on their swing at the Rossdale Golf Course in Aspendale.

00:14It's a course that has a community feel about it and they call it the friendly course for

00:18a reason.

00:19Greg McMahon has been a member on and off for many years.

00:22And unfortunately my wife told me that having kids and golf do not go together.

00:27On that point I rejoined as soon as I retired.

00:31But facing rising debt, which hit $1.2 million last year, the club's members voted to sell

00:37the course several years ago.

00:39No one wants to leave.

00:41We just need to leave because it's not sustainable and can't pay the debt back.

00:45An idea to build medium density housing has left some members frustrated.

00:50Absolutely there's nimby behaviour in the sense of we are locals.

00:55The council says it doesn't need the site to meet its housing targets and was surprised

01:00to learn about the proposal going to a government planning committee earlier this month.

01:05Council's really disappointed the fact that the state government have intervened and fast-tracked

01:09Rossdale.

01:10We were assured that we would be the decision maker on this particular site.

01:14The Victorian government rejects this, saying the proposal has not been fast-tracked and

01:19will be considered on its merits.

01:22The course lies near internationally recognised wetlands that provide a native habitat for

01:27Australian wildlife.

01:30Developing on flood-prone land, developing in areas that would not cope without significant

01:35infrastructure investment is simply not the right area for that development.

01:39The club says any profits from the sale will be used to relocate to another site.

01:43It's just sad for everybody and it's a bad situation that we tried to say but we couldn't.

01:49The government will open to the public to have their say, but some locals believe it's

01:53about more than just golf.

01:56This is about the wildlife corridor.

01:57You can't replace that if you suddenly make everything concrete.

02:01A fair way to go before any concrete decisions are made.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended