New York. Sydney. London. Amsterdam. Singapore. And now, Curtin?
The Curtin Residents Association is concerned plans for horse paddocks in their suburb will produce a densely populated enclave, drive up traffic congestion, put increased pressure on local schools and become the city's most car-intensive suburb.
The paddocks will become denser than New York City, Singapore and London under a government development plan that would allow a mass of housing in search of a suburb, the association has warned.
The association said it welcomed new housing for the area but accused the ACT government of misleading the public by claiming the area would be a "medium density community".
With 1300 townhouses and apartments earmarked for the 13-hectare site, the association said it would be home to more than 3000 people and be as dense as the most populated parts of Sydney and Amsterdam.
The paddocks would become three times more dense than Singapore and five times as dense as the Canberra's most densely populated suburbs, Kingston and Braddon.
"It would be a very high-density community. Why is such a high density necessary? Where are the facilities commensurate with such a high density? Why is this missing from the material provided for public comment?" the association said.
The ACT government released plans for community feedback last week, touting the opportunity to develop high-quality housing near the future Woden light rail extension.
Planning Minister Chris Steel said the government was planning for a "a well-connected, sustainable, and resilient neighbourhood which provides a choice of housing types to cater for a range of residents' preferences and needs".
"With Canberra's population set to grow to 500,000 by 2030 and more than 780,000 people by 2060, the ACT government is supporting the supply of new homes particularly focused on areas close to transport and services, as well as investing in the infrastructure to support them," Mr Steel said.
A 2021 study of the broader light rail corridor area, between Parliament House and Woden Town Centre, found the area had the capacity for almost 30,000 dwellings, up from the current 13,100.
The Curtin Residents Association wants consultation halted until the government produces detailed plans that demonstrate how the new housing would link in with existing roads and services.
"The North Curtin development must be planned in a holistic way as a new suburb," the association said.
"Showing these plans is an essential prerequisite for input from the community about its impact on those people who would live there, on the residents of surrounding suburbs and on the many people from across Canberra who use roads bordering the area."
Mr Steel said a future subdivision plan will show roads, utilities, subdivisions of lots, and any other approved uses.
"The point of this consultation is to hear from the community at the earliest opportunity about the built form, urban design and landscape design and design quality before the North Curtin site is released and development occurs," he said.
The paddocks were part of a land swap with the Commonwealth government. The ACT gave over part of the paddocks for a future diplomatic estate to take control of Lake Burley Griffin's West Basin waterfront, where housing is also planned.
Consultation on future planning for north Curtin closes on June 11.
