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| WHY
IS THE YRA REQUIRED
Yarralumla
is one of the older suburbs in Canberra, with elements of the Burley Griffin plan
still in evidence. It contains a wide variety of housing ranging from substantial
houses on large blocks near the embassy belt and large houses on smaller blocks
fronting the lake to wooden houses on modest blocks, some of which were built
for workers at the brickworks.
A particular feature of the suburb is
the amount of greenery it has. Members have previously identified the tree cover
as one of the most attractive features of Yarralumla.
Yarralumla is going
through an increasingly rapid turnover of its housing stock. Blocks are being
purchased for knockdown, and development guidelines have allowed single buildings
to occupy up to 80% of the block. With driveways and paths not included, this
leaves very little of a block for trees. While this may or may not be significant
for newly developed areas where there is little existing treescape, it is of concern
in leafier suburbs such as Yarralumla. In effect, purchasers are buying in partly
on the greenness of the suburb, but are detracting from it through developments
of large single premises. The Association believes there is a strong case for
specific treatment of suburbs, rather than ‘one size fits all’.
Another pressure on Yarralumla is through dual occupancies. While these are
required, nominally, to occupy only 70% of a block collectively, driveway requirements
can take up much of what is not built on. The particular concern with dual occupancies
is that numbers in a small area significantly change the nature of that area,
arguably for the worse.
Home businesses appear to be proliferating in
Yarralumla and elsewhere. While YRA has no difficulties with genuine home businesses,
there is a strong potential for these businesses to impact adversely on local
residents if, for example, there are doubts about aspects of the extent of the
business or of whether off street parking would be sufficient.
In the
nearby brickworks, Yarralumla faces issues relating to a derelict factory site
and adjacent unfenced woodland and scrub and the income and revenue attractions
which would arise from the development of both. The
Yarralumla Residents Association seeks to represent the views of residents regarding
issues such as these, to the ACT Government. |
