Mornington MP David Morris has welcomed news that the Kaufland store planned for Mornington will not proceed. On Thursday the report of the committee appointed to consider the development was released and the Planning Minister indicated he had accepted their recommendation that planning approval should not be granted.
Regardless of the merits of the particular business, the sheer scale of the proposal would have had an enormous impact on the town of Mornington, and it would never have been the same again.
While I welcome the eventual decision, the process has caused unnecessary stress, and considerable expense both to the community and to the shire council. It was completely unnecessary for the Minister to set aside the Council’s planning powers and force consideration of this application.
The Committee confirmed in its report (page 64) that not only is a supermarket of this size prohibited on the site, but the proposal is, and was right from the start, inconsistent with both State and local planning policy. Despite the Minister’s claims to the contrary the committee has also confirmed that the proposal was a de-facto rezoning that would create “…a new, but unplanned activity centre for Mornington”.
The decision is a victory for every member of our community who stood up to be counted, and I extend my sincere congratulations to everyone involved. I am pleased to have been able to contribute in a small way to this fantastic outcome for our town.