Hi, I'd like to object to this proposal, this house is one of a few Californian Bungalow's left in Reservoir that is preserved almost in its original condition. It is an example of a quality of construction and design that is rapidly disappearing from the area, which is a detriment to many of us who aspire to rent or buy good quality homes. This house is an example of why the 'Oak Hill’ precinct is beloved, these period homes lift our neighbourhood up, lending a quality to the area that cannot easily be replicated once we've lost them. The house and those that are left like it, should be preserved with a heritage protection applied. The impact on the amenity of the street and on the environment caused by knocking it down will be severely negative.
In the garden on this property are a selection of old significant trees (adhering to the local planning laws of significance being 8m tall) including fruit and food trees that are a legacy of immigration into the area post WWII of greek and italian migrants. They include: several varieties of citrus such as lemon, almond, cherry, fig and loquat. In addition there are old magnolia trees and a host of plants that are vital habitat and food source for the pollinators and native wildlife such as possums and birds that are barely clinging onto life in our suburbs. It’s hard to countenance the removal of such a tree canopy in a time of climate crisis, food scarcity and environmental degradation.
There is no way that my friends in the area who are locked out of the housing market will be able to afford to rent or buy the dwellings proposed: 5 brand new townhouses will be expensive to rent or to buy. They will do nothing to improve housing security. Instead what is scarce, older detached dwellings, will become more scarce, pushing those homes further out of reach for renters and buyers who dream of living in them. Furthermore, townhouse builds on Thackeray Road are already resulting in an on-street parking issue, with both sides of the road taken up by surplus cars that can’t fit into the one-car garages these developers supply with the dense builds they undertake. It’s making the street dangerous to drive down and in this case will result in reduced visibility and access on two roads, both Thackeray Road and Centre Street.
I would like 64 Thackeray Road to be preserved, I would like the developer to work with us in the street so we can keep as many trees as possible and move those that can’t be kept to other backyards (I have three people on the street lined up who would love to rehome them in the area). Then it would be reasonable for the developer to build 1 or 2 houses on the back of this old home if they won’t agree to preserve the whole garden and garages.
Thank you for considering my objection.
