A PREDICTED rise in sea levels has led Moyne Shire Council to propose increasing the maximum height for buildings from five metres to seven metres in Port Fairy’s west.
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The proposal is part of the Port Fairy West Structure Plan that the council is likely to incorporate into a planning scheme amendment for the Port Fairy West area.
The council is preparing the amendment for the Port Fairy West area to respond to forecast rises in sea levels as well as preserve the area’s low density, rural character and coastal landscape.
A report to the council said lifting the maximum height for buildings to seven metres would allow homes in areas subject to inundation to be built with a floor level that would minimise the risk to life and property.
The 2014 Port Fairy West Structure Plan has identified land in Port Fairy West likely to experience coastal inundation if sea levels rise by the .8 metre forecast to occur by 2080, based on the Port Fairy Local Coastal Hazard Assessment.
The structure plan also seeks to reduce the minimum lot size in the Rural Living area in Port Fairy West from four hectares to one hectare.
The proposed reduction in lot size aims to allow “some development potential without detriment to the existing rural living character”.
The council’s strategic planner Sally Hetzel told its May meeting that the proposed amendment aimed to avoid intensification of tourism accommodation and commercial development in the area and deter development in areas identified as being at risk from coastal inundation and erosion.
Protecting the coastline and dune systems from inappropriate development was another goal, Ms Hetzel said.
She said most of the land covered by the 2014 Port Fairy West Structure Plan is zoned Rural Living Zone, which did not prohibit land uses the council might like to avoid in the area.
However, the proposed planning amendment would present a clear vision for the Port Fairy West area that confirmed community aspirations and gave the council strategic justification to make informed decisions about appropriate land uses, Ms Hetzel said.
The council’s sustainable development director Oliver Moles said the Port Fairy Structure Plan had been well supported by Port Fairy West landowners.
“I have not had any submissions against it,” Mr Moles said.
