A new link road to Point St at Bulli must be built as part of any development proposed by Anglicare, says a chorus of Wollongong City Council, Roads and Maritime Services, and the Thirroul Village Committee.
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The consequences for more than 2000 residents would otherwise be dangerous – only one narrow road in and out.
Anglicare wants to modify its plans for a retirement village on the old Cookson Pilbrico site between Thirroul and Bulli.
It wants to build 57 townhouses instead, on the hill with ocean views, followed by the retirement village, which will be about half the size earlier approved.
The original plan was for a 120-bed aged care home plus up to 250 seniors independent living apartments.
The revised concept shows a 68-bed aged care home and 130 seniors apartments, plus the new townhouses.
In 2011 Anglican Retirement Villages, as it was then know, shelved its plans, citing high infrastructure costs. Following this developer Stockland reneged on its plan to build an access road from the north to the south of the McCauleys Beach estate, which was newly built at the time.
Without this north-south road, there is only one way in and out – across a narrow bridge on Wrexham Rd.
Murray Jones from the Thirroul Village Committee said the road should be built before the development.
“One of [our] primary concerns is to ensure that a new link road though to Sandon Point be built first,” he said.
“This will ensure that the current residents of McCauley Beach Estate are not subject to heavy earth moving and construction equipment passing through their residential streets.
“Traffic is already badly congested in Thirroul and would be worsened by the new residences, if there was no second means of egress.”
The council’s submission to the Major Projects planning process says the North-South link road should include a road over Tramway Creek, built by Anglicare.
For its part, Anglicare’s traffic study says it plans to build the link road, and its maps show this clearly.
“The proposed road network will be suitable and appropriate, and will incorporate the extension of Geraghty St to link to Point St as required [by RMS and council],” the traffic report, from consultants Transport and Traffic Planning Associates, states.
RMS said it would not oppose the plan as long as the road is provided.
“Not providing the link would not only increase delays for all motorists on the arterial road network, but also increase delays for all residents within the precinct,” it said.