An article from this Weeks leader reads as follows:-
The Peninsula Centre could lose its status as Frankston's tallest building under newly gazetted planning controls from Frankston's central activities area.
Developer Asia Pacific Building Corporation wants the 47m-high structure, which it plans to convert to a hotel, to remain Frankston's highest building, but new official height limits give no guarantee.
Recently gazetted State Government planning controls have set flexible maximum heights for almost all of central Frankston.
The maximum height is 12m but developers will have opportunities to seek higher buildings. New developments near Frankston's train-bus interchange can rise up to 40m under the new overlay - 7m short of the Peninsula Centre - and possibly go higher.
The Government is encouraging housing developments for thousands of dwellers within the CAD of Frankston - a declared Transit City under the Melbourne 2025 planning blueprint.
The new design controls are in a recently gazetted planning overlay, into which Frankston Council had some input.
The overlay exempts developers from having to notify the public of certain new CAD works. It also gives discretion to allow or disallow third-party objections on a project-by-project basis.
Asia Pacific Building Corporation is behind the $80million Peninsula Centre hotel project and managing director Will Deague said it would soon seek its planning permit.
"From a selfish point of view, we'd like ours to always be the highest building," Mr. Deague said. We've expressed this to the Government, that the height limits should be at the discretion of the council.
"I'd like Frankston to have tall buildings and high (population) density.
"Frankston would stand out, be set apart from surrounding suburbs, but it has to be architecturally pleasing and done right," Mr. Deague said. Frankston state Labor MP Alistair Harkness said an applicatnt could seek to go above the new maximum in any CAD precinct, except Kananook Creek, but it needed to meet specified design requirements.
"The application would also be assesseed against state and local policy, as well as the design ojectives and decision guidelines of the zones and overlay controls," he said.
Toni