By Cam Lucadou-Wells
A controversial roundabout project at the corner of Greaves Road and Berwick Springs Promenade has been given the all-clear by the state’s planning tribunal.
The $5.2 million project which would demolish the upmarket estate Berwick Springs’s two-tiered bluestone-wall gateway was granted a permit by the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal on 26 February.
The 40-metre, two-lane roundabout will be co-funded by VicRoads and developer Moremac, which is building Alira estate to the north of Greaves Road.
As part of the project, the demolished gateway and landscaping will be reconstructed albeit on a smaller tract of land and only a single-tier wall.
The application was opposed by 205 objecting residents, who fought to retain the original estate entrance.
The project was supported by Casey Council.
VCAT members Bill Sibonis and Ric Bland found that the gateway would be replicated “for all intents and purposes”.
“The outcome of the proposal will be that an acceptable entry will be provided.”
The expanded roundabout was integral to the development of a four-lane Greaves Road and links to employment precincts, the members stated.
They found the project minimised the impact on native vegetation lining the adjoining Hallam Valley Contour Drain.
It posed the “lowest potential risk of impact” to the vulnerable-listed Dwarf Galaxias fish in the drain, the members stated.
The hearing follows 15 months of protests, petitions and lobbying by residents, who say they were not consulted on the project.
Organiser Michael Ball led the resistance after hearing about the project from construction workers on the site in October 2016.
Casey Council confirmed the project could start as soon as weeks later.
