Public meeting Thursday 27 May, 5.15pm at Lee Point
- Darwin residents left the public meeting at Lee Point on Thursday outraged that the proposed housing development would harm nature and they were going to lose their enjoyment of Lee Point. Defence Housing Australia (DHA) has proposed to house thousands of people at Lee Point. Close to 100 Darwin residents attended the meeting.
- Nick Kirlew and Margaret Clinch from Planning Action Network Inc (a volunteer community group) said that community consultation had not been properly done and as such the proposal to house thousands of people at Lee Point had very little community support. Mr Nick Kirlew said over 1000 people had signed the on-line petition which calls on the NT Parliament to place a moratorium on the current development proposal for Lee Point until the NT Planning Commission has developed a comprehensive Area Plan for the whole of Lee Point.
- Ian Redmond from Friends of Lee Point (a volunteer community group) said that Lee Point is a part of Darwin that makes Darwin special, and that very few cities have a reserve like Lee Point on their doorstep. He believed that housing thousands of people at Lee Point was unnecessary, costly for the taxpayer and amounted to an urban sprawl. He also said that the DHA housing should be located near jobs and transport in line with the Australian Government’s Smart Cities Plan.
- David Percival (Friends of Lee Point) said that Lee Point was Darwin’s most important environmental asset and needed to be protected. He believed the impact of housing thousands of people at Lee Point would destroy the surrounding environment forever.
- Gavin O’Brien from BirdLife Top End said that the migratory shorebirds had already been partly affected by nearby housing development. He explained how the way that human and canine disturbance can impact the roost and said that these impacts could increase with further development.
- Martin Boland from Darwin Off Road Cyclists said that Lee Point was enjoyed by many cyclists because of its natural setting and had become particularly important during the time of COVID. He believed that cycling at Lee Point was good for mental health and that Lee Point should be conserved for public use.
- Robert Marchant (a long-term Darwin tour operator) said he did not support housing thousands of people at Lee Point and it would not promote tourism in Darwin. He believed there were much better places to locate housing in Darwin and did not want to see a pristine forest destroyed.
- Many people present at the meeting felt that most of Lee Point should become a conservation reserve and be used to help promote Darwin.
- The (100) people present at the meeting called on the NT Government to stop the bulldozers until there is a comprehensive Area Plan in place for the whole of Lee Point.
CONTACT: Nick Kirlew – Planning Action Network 0447 499 794, Ian Redmond – Friends of Lee Point 0427 796 470