Carseldine Urban Village Campaign – An Update

Tuesday, 23rd October 2018 – By Michael Seabrook

As the deadline draws closer for final public submissions on Stage 1 of the Carseldine Urban Village, and with Stage S already approved, a local committee has come together to put a stop on the tracks for this development which they say will have a significant impact on the local community.

Established in 2016 after the project was announced, the Save Our Carseldine group has a large Facebook and word of mouth presence. They haven’t pulled punches and have been quite vocal about getting their message across the community and up to State Government by using social media networks and by featuring in the media.

A  quick look through the ‘Save Our Carseldine’ group’s Facebook presence reveals a large number of members have shared concerns about how the development will subtract from the greenspace and native trees in the area, which has often been an active outdoors space for locals both young and old alike. Other concerns include wildlife relocation and the removal of the existing dog park.

Set to be built on the former QUT Carseldine Campus, the proposed Carseldine Urban Village will bring an additional 900 homes for an estimated 2000 people to the 46 hectare site, as well as a new retail and commercial precinct. Some Carseldine residents argue that this will cause traffic to increase in the already tight area, as well as the additional residents and workers spilling out onto roads for parking, with 120 vehicle car parks allotted for the development.

Whilst the State Government has allocated a 22 hectare parcel of land for green space which includes a brand new 5 hectare sporting and recreation precinct, members of the Save Our Carseldine group say that the environmental impact could increase already existing localised flooding events and run off from the project may further damage Cabbage Tree Creek which the site backs on to.

As the project falls under a State Government legislated Priority Development Application which allows for the project to be fast tracked for economic purposes it presently doesn’t have to comply with the current Town Planning Act. This has further incensed some locals who feel they have no right to appeal any planning decisions.

A lack of collaboration between the Queensland State Government and the Federal Government on local roads, and the Queensland State Government and Brisbane City Council regarding nearby underdeveloped infrastructure has also been highlighted as an area of concern by an anonymous community development expert.

For further information on the Save Our Carseldine group they can be contacted at https://www.facebook.com/groups/SaveOurCarseldine/ otherwise feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments section below.

Stay tuned for a follow up article with more details.