MORE than 100 people attended a public meeting at Merrivale Recreation Reserve last night to express strong opposition to the Midfield Group’s plans to build a milk processing factory and cold store near its Warrnambool meatworks.
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The meeting was called by the Merrivale Community Association and appeared to galvanise dozens of residents into taking action against Midfield’s development plans, with many taking objection forms to send to Warrnambool City Council.
Association chairman Norm McAlley told the meeting that many people believed Midfield’s proposed developments would threaten the amicable co-existence of the industrial and residential zones in the Merrivale area.
He said having the proposed 34-metre high milk processing factory and 29-metre cold store “in the city was a travesty.”
“It should be in a more rural area,” Mr McAlley said.
Many people at the meeting expressed concern about the possibility of milk dust, noise, increased truck traffic and light pollution from the proposed developments.
Mr McAlley said it was estimated the milk processing factory would put 34 B-double tankers on the roads in the area every day with the plant operating 24 hours a day seven days a week.
He said many people were not sure about how they could object to the proposals and the meeting was called to help explain the process.
He advised people to give specific reasons for their objections and not just a general objection based on emotion.
Concerns were also expressed at the meeting that Warrnambool City Council appeared to open the way for the proposed developments by selling Midfield the land on which it hopes to build the milk processing factory.
Warrnambool mayor Michael Neoh spoke at the meeting and stressed he was not there to advocate Midfield’s case. He said the council had given Midfield no assurances about the future of its development proposals.
Midfield had previously been leasing some of the land it bought and could use it for transport purposes if the plan for the milk processing facility did not proceed, Cr Neoh said.
The council had asked the state government to decide on the planning issues involved, he said.
Both the milk processing factory and the cold store will require the rezoning of land.
Catherine Williams said the council was setting double standards by appearing to support a milk processing plant “in the middle of the city” when it wanted the saleyards to be located out of town.
Cr Neoh said Midfield was entitled to apply for the developments and the council could not tell it to relocate.
Concern was also expressed at the meeting about a developer’s proposal for an industrial park off Eccles Street, which runs off Merrivale Drive.
The land had previously been earmarked for residential development but the plan hit a hurdle because of a requirement for a 500-metre buffer area around the Midfield abattoir.
Residents were worried the proposed industrial park meant large sheds would be built close to their backyards.
Cr Neoh said if the council was unable to resolve the objections to the proposals, it would refer them to an independent panel.
One resident pointed out that people could object not only to the proposed developments but also to the proposed zoning changes.