Mount Alexander Shire Council has denied an application for a truck depot at Ellerys Road Faraday. The application was submitted to the council in January 2021 for the inclusion of a depot to store trucks and trailers associated with the family’s freight business.
Council officers recommended issuing a notice of refusal due to concerns regarding traffic issues not being adequately addressed in the applicant’s revised Traffic Management Plan provided to the council in August.
During last week’s council meeting, Cr Gary McClure said he was “conflicted”.
“There are conditions that need to be applied in order for approval to be given,” he said.
“I have spoken to the neighbours about the dust, loss of amenities and noise. I don’t think the applicant did enough to address these issues.”
Cr Stephen Gardner said he didn’t support the refusal easily.
“Unlike most applications, this rejection affects the livelihood of the people, which I take very seriously,” he said.
“The recommendation is primarily around the road not being able to take B-doubles, subject to upgrades of bitumen or widening of the road.”
The officers’ report indicated that the proposed use of land for a depot, within the farming zone and affected by an environmental overlay, was inappropriately located and would negatively impact agricultural uses on adjoining land. Councillors Rosie Annear, Tony Cordy, Stephen Gardner, Gary McClure and Bill Maltby voted to adopt the recommendation.
Cr Matthew Driscol opposed the motion but said he didn’t support the application as it stood.
“It would be good if we could defer the decision to a future meeting for officers to recommend an alternative,” he said.
Also in opposition to the motion, Cr Christine Henderson said that on first viewing, it was not a place to operate a business like this. “But if not here then where? It’s a small family operation with one truck in and one out in a day,” she said.