The seaside village’s community association held its AGM on Wednesday night, followed by a passionate discussion on the future of the cokeworks property.

The meeting resolved to support existing zoning over the site, and the escarpment management plan as the guiding regime.

Coalcliff Community Association president Pat Goodchild said the vote, unanimous among the 36 association members in attendance, was that the Wollongong Local Environment Plan should be respected.

He said the community association’s membership was 85 per cent of the village’s population, and in an email survey of residents more than 90 per cent wanted the zoning to remain as it was under the LEP.

He said the residents agreed any rezoning should be assessed holistically, by “re-assessing the escarpment lands as a whole rather than on a piecemeal basis”.

While the vote was ostensibly about the zoning – which so far prevents housing in this escarpment area – the elephant in the room was the growing proposal from the Illawarra Coke Company to develop the site.

The land is a mixture of zoning – E2 Environmental Conservation and RU1 Primary Production.

Illawarra Coke Company director Kate Strahorn said the area zoned RU1 would “never all be all housing”.

“Of the total area zoned RU1, less than 30 per cent is being considered for a number of uses including housing, tourism facilities, community facilities and related open space,” she said.

Mr Goodchild said even that 30 per cent figure would be double the size of Coalcliff today.

“You can fit Coalcliff into that RU1 six times,” he said.

“There’s a real presumption that this is happening – but due process must be followed.”