Council to say 'go' in $35M Phillip Island street scheme race

THIS Wednesday, August 16, the race will be on for young and old .

For the opponents of the $35 million Surf Beach Sunderland Bay Special Charge Scheme, they’ll have 28 days, after the registered letters go out from the Bass Coast Shire Council, to get upwards of 521 people to make their opposition known to council.

And after allegations of harassment over the journey, which they've vehemently rejected, they'll need to be on their best behaviour.

For those who are sick of the dust, they'll have to stand up and be counted as well.

But the members of the ‘Say No to the Sunderland Bay Surf Beach Special Charge Scheme’ may not even need that many signatures to defeat the much-anticipated road and drainage upgrade project, serving 1041 residential properties, along the spectacular ocean-side foreshore of Phillip Island.

The sticking point for the council, and potentially the saving grace for the ‘Say No’ group, is what the council said in its “Newsletter Issue 5” to ratepayers in January 2023:

“The amount of property owners that do not respond to community consultation and do not support or oppose the proposed project and associated special charge scheme, if it is considered at a future Council, are not counted as yes or no votes.”

That is, the Say No group may only have to get one more person to say no than council gets to support the scheme.

One of the representatives of the opposition group, Maxine Sando, isn’t confident the council will be as good as its word.

“Will they count non-responders? I couldn’t say. There have been plenty of occasions when the council has said one thing and done another.”

Ms Sando said her group was ready to mobilise as soon as the offer letters go out, with all of the details about how much the scheme will cost property owners, between as little as $5170.21 and as much as $77,857.32, and all the rest.

However, while the Say No group has been active for almost two years, the challenge is there, for those who want the new footpaths, drains and intersections, not to mention seeing their dusty roads elevated above third-world levels, to get active as well.

Who wins, who knows, but the council has already invested a lot of money to get it to this stage, almost $1 million in fact ($947,225).

And in details to be provided to council this week, they’re ready to commit $8,383,983 of the shire’s own money, general rate revenue, to the massive project.

It’s seen as a huge opportunity by some and costly impost by others.

Ms Sando claims the Say No group has already identified upwards of 51 per cent of the 1041 property owners against, but will they sign on the dotted line?

“We’ve already been speaking to residents and we’re likely to hold a meeting at the end of August or early September,” she said.

A Say No proforma letter of opposition will be available, or other approved documents.

According to the council, the project is its highest priority:

“As per Council’s Urban Road and Drainage Improvement Policy, the Surf Beach and Sunderland Bay estates are the highest priority areas for possible infrastructure upgrades to be undertaken within the Shire.

“This priority was further confirmed through community engagement where residents and ratepayers in the area identified a number of significant infrastructure issues that are most appropriately resolved through a road and drainage upgrade project. These issues include concerns with drainage, dust generated from unsealed roads, traffic safety issues and a need for safe pedestrian passage through the estate.

“It is recommended that Council proceed to commence the formal statutory scheme process by resolving to issue a public notice of its intention to declare a special charge scheme for the purpose of improving road and drainage infrastructure within the Surf Beach and Sunderland Bay area.

The council will be asked to support this course of action on Wednesday, and the, let the games begin!