Minister sticks with Birralee after offer of Rocherlea

by Sharon Webb

A LAUNCESTON man says Corrections Minister Elise Archer is flouting her own stated rules in rejecting his offer of land at Rocherlea as an alternative prison site.

Andrew Nowakowski and his two siblings offered 100 hectares at 278 Lilydale Rd, but it was after the due date for expressions of interest and Ms Archer told Mr Nowakowski that he was too late.

‘In reply, her letter to me said no places were being considered outside the expressions of interest process

‘Then, lo and behold, she moved the prison site from 135 Birralee Road to the Brushy Rivulet site further down Birralee Road, which was definitely a site outside the expressions of interest process’, he said.

‘I reoffered my site, thinking that they might look at it again, but no.

‘I believe that even if the government doesn’t take our site seriously they should open up the expressions of interest process again’, he said

The government is still carrying out due diligence research on the 70 ha Birralee Road site on the Brushy Rivulet Crown Reserve, including statutory and master planning, assessment of environmental impacts, heritage, service infrastructure, traffic impacts and access provisions.

Senior public servants have told the site’s neighbours they are encountering problems with steep rocky terrain and don’t envisage completing due diligence until late December. This would throw out the government’s schedule of making a planning application to Meander Valley Council by December

But a spokesperson said, ‘The government has commenced work on the planning application process as per the schedule, which continues to be informed by the further investigations being undertaken.

A Launceston small business owner, Mr Nowakowski said Launceston’s Planning Scheme access rules mean his family can’t build a house on his property.

Bounded on three sides by forestry operations, the land is 3kms outside Lilydale. The nearest house is 1.5kms away.

‘It’s close to Launceston but in a valley so you can’t see it from the road’, he said.

The State Government’s expressions of interest process ran from 20 September 2018 to 22 November 2018.

A government spokesman said it was ‘a targeted expressions of interest process to all north and north west local councils and stakeholders that did not include press advertising’

But he said the process ‘was publicly announced’ through media releases to ensure anyone wanting to submit a property could.