Shire of Murray approves Aspen's 295-home Ravenswood village

The Shire of Murray council voted 7-2 in favour of Aspen Group’s 295-dwelling lifestyle village in Ravenswood at its October 22 meeting, clearing the way for an over-50s development on Lot 889 Rodoreda Crescent, PerthNow reported. For developers, the vote shows the shire will back a negotiated scheme that departs from its structure plan rather than lose it to the state.

Why it matters

The vote came despite opposition from residents, with one speaker telling council that about 220 dwellings appeared to have more support than 295.

The proposal departs from the shire’s own East Ravenswood structure plan, but a report to council found it “broadly consistent” with the plan’s objectives and said it would meet a need for additional housing choice. Shire president Douglas McLarty and Cr Nicole Willis backed the project partly out of concern that rejecting it would send Aspen to the WA Planning Commission instead, undoing changes the developer had already negotiated with the shire. Aspen Group head of development WA Justin Mansillas said the company could have bypassed the shire and gone straight to the state planning body but chose to work with council instead.

Acting director planning and sustainability Greg Delahunty said the shire’s assessment of the housing mix was based on demographic and housing data, with the development aimed at the over-50s market. The shire said it understood the majority of future residents would be over 65.

Crs Stewart Carter and Prue George supported the village partly on the basis that approval could strengthen the shire’s case for infrastructure funding, including traffic lights, a school and a shopping precinct. “It’s also important to note that this parcel of land has been identified for residential development since 2013” and remains consistent with the site’s approved residential coding, Cr Carter said.

The numbers

The village will deliver 295 dwellings on Lot 889 Rodoreda Crescent, land identified for residential use since 2013. Council backed the proposal 7-2 at its October 22 meeting. Mansillas said the development will open up and embellish 7ha of regional open space, along with Murray River frontage he said had not been used to date. As part of the negotiated changes, Aspen agreed to keep Rodoreda Crescent as a cul-de-sac in response to resident feedback on the road network.

What’s next

The approval avoids a referral to the WA Planning Commission, the alternative path Mansillas and councillors McLarty and Willis said risked undoing the changes already negotiated with the shire.

The Ravenswood approval adds to a national pipeline of over-50s lifestyle estates, a format also moving ahead in Queensland with new stages at Hervey Bay and Agnes Water.