Earlier this week I received a copy of a letter sent out to 10,000 Kalamunda Shire residents by ex-councilor John Giardina. His letter titled ‘An important request’ outlines the fact that there is a serious shortage of aged care accommodation within the Kalamunda Shire and urges residents to strongly support the rezoning and development proposal of 32 Gavour and Welshpool Roads.

Attached to Mr Giardina’s letter were a series of dot points to help residents write comments on their submission forms. I found it disturbing that many of the dot points were contradictory and simply not true.

• “The Wattle Grove site is large and very flat, it is close to facilities and it is on a bus route, it is an excellent site”

The site is at least 6 – 7 kilometres away from shops and support services (e.g. health and medical centres). Residents would be placed in a remote location, isolated from their community.

There is a bus route however in order to access it residents need to cross 4 lane ways of fast moving traffic (speed limit 80km/hr).

• “The site has a wonderful rural outlook and is private”

Yes, this person is spot on – Wattle Grove is a beautiful rural area but unfortunately, dense urban developments like this will change that.

• “We all know that we should have this facility; why is it taking so long to get approved?”

This proposal has been rejected twice before, in 2004 and 2007. The reason for it being rejected was because the area is zoned special rural and not appropriate for such an urban dense development. We don’t dispute the fact that there is a need for aged care facilities, but do have a problem with them being inappropriately located.

Perhaps we should all be asking “Why has the shire failed to conduct proper research into more appropriate sites for aged care facilities?” and “Why have they chosen such a poor location?”

It saddens me that the elderly have been drawn into this issue and led to believe that this development is about them and ‘aged care facilities’. If you read the detailed documentation (available at the Shire of Kalamunda office) regarding this proposal it becomes quite clear that there is more to this development than meets the eye.

The Principal Solicitor at the Environmental Defender’s Office recently informed me about the following regarding the rezoning and development of 32 Gavour and Welshpool Roads:

“The fairly detailed documentation submitted with the rezoning application gives the impression that Council is being asked to approve a specific proposal.  In fact the legal effect of approving the rezoning application would be that the land ceases to be zoned rural, and acquires the ‘Special Uses – Aged Care’ zoning.  Under the new zoning, the only constraint affecting residential development would be the requirement for development approval, and that dwellings must be occupied by at least one person over 55″

The developer has no obligation to make these properties available to the elderly within the shire of Kalamunda. Effectively, he would be able to sell them to whoever he likes as long as one person occupying the house is over 55.

Let’s not fool ourselves, this isn’t about aged care and helping the elderly in the Shire of Kalamunda. This is about making money (lots of money) at the expense of an entire communities well-being and environment.