More than a dozen Jamberoo residents showed their concern about overdevelopment in the area by attending a court hearing on the $13.3 million development planned for the property across the road from Jamberoo Action Park.
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On Friday at 10.30am a Land and Environment Court commissioner heard four presentations from nominated speakers.
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A small crowd of 30 people gathered on the gravel pathway for the half-hour public meeting including Commissioner Joanne Gray, a Land and Environment Court staff member, the developer, local residents, Kiama Council staff, the developer’s engineer and architect and local journalists.
Commissioner Joanne Gray listened to concerns of Jamberoo Valley Residents and Ratepayers Association chair Rob McKinnon, JVRRA secretary Graham Pike, Croom resident Gina Cash and Croom primary producers Jamberoo Aquaculture owners Carmel and Alan Pemberton.
Commissioner Gray appeared interested, with her fingers clasped over paperwork, nodding and concentrating while local residents spoke, and asking relevant presenters to show her the location of their properties.
A Tang family member also listened intently. His expression furrowed at times, particularly through Mr Pike’s presentation.
When the hearing finished, the developer, his staff, council staff and Land and Environment Office staff met privately on the Tang property.
If the developers and objectors reach an agreement, the decision rests with the commissioner.
If there is no agreement reached, the matter will be adjourned while plans are reworked or terminated.
Next-door neighbours ‘happy to coexist within reason’
On the northern side of the Tang property lies the Cash property, and the Pemberton property.
The Cash property is situated at the bottom of the hill.
Gina Cash told the commissioner she had been in negotiations with the Tangs since the development plans were released, and they had come to an agreement.
Due to her husband’s chronic and serious heart condition, Mrs Cash’s primary concern was the impact of the road planned to run within metres of their property. She’s worried tourists peering into their yard and home, and headlights from cars could trigger stress and anxiety for her husband.
“The road (to the education centre) runs past our bedrooms,” Mrs Cash said.
“My husband has a chronic heart disorder, he has had seven surgeries. He’s 51, and not allowed to work. We need our home to be quiet.”
Mrs Cash later told Fairfax Media they would happily coexist with the Tangs, on the proviso the developer scraps plans to run a road near to their property.
The Cash and Tang families have been in negotiations which have been largely respectful according to Mrs Cash.
“If they address my concerns, then everything will be good, we’ll be able to live in harmony then,” she said.
“I haven’t had any issues, they’ve been nice, approachable, they said they’d fix the concerns I had, if they keep to their word I’ll be happy.”
Aquaculture farmers: Development poses water contamination threat
The Pembertons, who run a successful local business, Jamberoo Aquaculture, also share a fence-line with the Tangs.
There are a number of dams on their Croome Vale Road property, situated at the bottom of the hill, which take in runoff from pastures on Tang-owned land.
Carmel and Alan Pemberton told the commissioner they were concerned the water, which runs into their dams, could become contaminated in the construction process, and from vehicle movements after roads are built.
“We run a fish farm,” Mrs Pemberton said.
“Obviously we’re very concerned about this development and the impact it could have on our fish and our business.
“We cannot afford to have any contamination on our property.”
Pemberton’s qualms with the access road and education centre
“When we get a lot of rain, that’s like a river coming through there,” Mrs Pemberton said.
“I don’t know how they propose to get a road through there without impacting on all of the neighbouring properties.
“That area (land picked for the education centre) is very wet when we’ve had any rain.
“We’re all going to lose all that runoff, or we’re going to get contaminated runoff with the road, if it goes in. It’s proposed to go in by the dam there. If it would even fit there, it would compromise the integrity of the dam wall.
“Then the proposal is to have all the roads going up the hill into the mansion and the five houses, which would really fragment the land and impact on all of us.
“With 41 proposed traffic movements, there will be headlights shining in all our houses, it would have a severe impact on us.
“I don’t know anyone who would want to come and learn how to run a few cows on a paddock, that’s pretty self-explanatory.
“It’s not really a viable farm production business to start with.”
Pemberton’s qualms with the farmstays
“They’re fragmenting the land, they want to put the farmstays right up against the boundaries, which will impact on everybody else,” Mrs Pemberton told the court.
“One of the reasons was to have separate effluent areas. Why would you want to have five separate effluent areas for five one-bedroom farmstays if an 11 bedroom house only needs one?
“Obviously it’s just another excuse to chop up the land.”
More to come
