Hundreds of residents flock to town meeting with Basil Zempilas to slam APIL’s redevelopment of Floreat Forum

Hundreds of residents joined Liberal candidate for Churchlands, Basil Zempilas, and party leader Libby Mettam on Thursday night, to oppose plans for seven high-rise buildings at Floreat Forum. About 250 residents attended the meeting at Floreat Forum to provide comment over the contentious redevelopment. There are two visions competing to develop the area; one put forward by investment group APIL, the other by the Town of Cambridge. APIL’s plan proposes an 18 to 20-storey apartment complex and up to seven high-rise towers at the Floreat shopping centre. Residents have long opposed the height of APIL’s towers, arguing the project should redevelop the shopping centre to enhance Floreat’s “village” character and bring life to the area with facilities such as cafes and restaurants. The other plan, put forward by the town, proposes a residential tower up to eight storeys, another tower up to six storeys, a five to six-storey apartment building with a supermarket, and two to four-storey apartment buildings. The Town of Cambridge council unanimously adopted its own precinct structure plan for the area at a special council meeting on September 5. “This plan represents one possible outcome for the future of the precinct — and there are many — but it is a plan that seeks to balance the needs of community, place and environment, with commercial outcomes,” the precinct structure plan reads. The town’s plan will be advertised for comment until November 4; the day after the comment period for APIL’s proposal closes. “There is a risk of causing confusion in the community with two PSPs for the Floreat Activity Centre being advertised for comment,” a council report said. “A further risk is the uncertainty of how the DPLH (Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage) will deal with the town-led PSP once it is submitted given APIL’s PSP is currently being advertised.” Mr Zempilas said the redevelopment needed to have “density in keeping with the character and amenity of the local area”. “It needs to be density that respects the very broad period of community consultation that happened between 2017 and 2019. “What you’re being asked to consider and what perhaps our local area is being asked to entertain, are heights double or more than we were originally consulted on . . . to me as a local, that doesn’t sound fair. “That does not mean that we don’t want uniform density on this side, it does not mean that we don’t want to reach the dwelling targets on this side, but what we object to is it being done in such a way that will change the character and community. “The system banks on you (residents) losing interest . . . but it takes hard work, you just have to keep going if you want to bring about change.” Ms Mettam said high-density developments had to be built on “appropriate locations”. “We are not against density, but we recognise that density has to take place on appropriate locations and at a level . . . that is consistent,” she said. Floreat First Action Group’s Melanie Foley said she was concerned the towers would cause “unacceptable” issues like overshadowing and wanted “certainty”, “good governance” and a “sensible development”. “To be clear, our group is not against developments,” she said. “We want the Floreat Forum site redeveloped, but we want it developed in a manner consistent with the standard Cambridge local planning strategy and the State Government’s planning policies (which) both have building heights for this centre at six to eight storeys. “We’re concerned that our community is going to pay twice; first as taxpayers (and in) funding the resources and time for APIL’s plan.” Planning Minister John Carey acknowledged there was genuine community concern but blamed the Town of Cambridge. “The council failed to do a structured plan,” he said. He urged locals to be sceptical about the Liberal Party’s position accusing Libby Mettam of double-speak. “She will say anything to any group,” he said. “She stood in the Parliament and voted for all our planning reforms.” Hansard records show that Ms Mettam supported the Planning and Development Amendment Bill in November last year. “The opposition alliance supports good strategic planning and efficient urban and regional planning that involves the community at the earliest stages of their design,” she said at the time. On Thursday she denied her position had changed. “John Carey’s clutching at straws,” she said. “He has ignored the community of Western Australia, he is the minister for the housing crisis and he has sidelined communities right across this State.”