Neighbours of a proposed $40 million residential and commercial complex in George Town have urged the Central Planning Authority to reject the developer’s application, saying it would be out of place in the predominantly residential neighbourhood.
International Mall Ltd. has applied for permission to erect three two-storey commercial buildings and seven two- and three-storey townhouse buildings on 4.36 acres of land on the southwest corner of Walkers Road and Ellery Merren Drive.
The developer behind the project has previously built City Plaza on Crewe Road and City Walk on Maple Road in George Town.
Consultant Jess Peacey, representing the developer, told the planning board at a meeting on Wednesday, 11 Sept., that following those two developments, residents and small businesses had shown much interest in similar projects, to the point where expressions of interest had already been shown in 50% of the proposed units.
The site is zoned neighbourhood commercial and low density residential.
In its application, the developer noted that the planning regulations allow for apartments in suitable locations, and that the area is currently a mix of houses, duplexes, apartments and commercial uses.
However, owners of adjoining properties and local residents argue that the majority of homes in the locality are single-family houses, and that the commercial properties are mostly schools and businesses that are closed in the evenings.
Carla Reid, representing herself and a number of other neighbours, told the planning board that several of the properties which the application had listed as multi-family properties were, in fact, single-family homes, and that the scale of the proposed development was starkly out of place in this neighbourhood.
She said, with the exception of Burger King, Rubis gas station and Shopright, “every commercial-use property along that road closes before 6pm”, and were “low-impact” in terms of road usage.
The developer had noted that there would be two restaurants at the site. Reid said there were concerns that lights from the car park, and noises from regular early-morning garbage collections, would be disruptive for neighbours living on Ellery Merren Drive.
‘Monstrosity’
Another resident, Sharon Roulstone, who also spoke on behalf of some of her neighbours, described the proposed development as a “monstrosity” that would ruin the look and feel of the locality.
She said her family had owned the land bordering the development site for generations, and, if the application goes ahead, there would be no buffer between it and the new complex.
Much of the land on the development site is primary habitat, consisting largely of dry forest and dry shrubland, according to the Department of Environment, which noted, “These habitats are often very old, existing long before humans and may consist of many endemic and ecologically important species. Primary habitat is in severe decline, particularly in George Town, and becoming a scarce and highly threatened resource as a result of land conversion for human activities island wide.”
Roulstone said she and her neighbours accepted that the land would be developed by its owners, but urged the developer and the Central Planning Authority to consider building something that was more in keeping with the neighbourhood’s traditions and aesthetics, rather than taking a “scorched earth approach” to maximise profits.
The objectors had also raised concerns about an increase in traffic in the area if the proposed development goes ahead, but the National Roads Authority in its analysis described the impact of a potential increase in traffic as “minimal”.
The Central Planning Authority’s decision on the application will be publicised in the minutes of the meeting at a later date.
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I suppose it will all depend on who is behind International Mall Ltd, as stated before it should be a requirement that this information is made public for any proposed major development in a sensitive area.