NEWCASTLE councillors have been asked to vote on changes to the city’s planning laws that would allow mixed use development, public recreation, educational and tourist uses on the rail corridor between Worth Place and Newcastle station.
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Council officers are recommending the council approve the proposal, although their report notes that the council resolved in July not to rezone the corridor until the state government developed a comprehensive public transport plan for the Lower Hunter.
The government agency UrbanGrowth and council officers briefed the councillors on the proposal in a confidential workshop last week, with UrbanGrowth saying the corridor was not needed for public transport.
Greens councillor Michael Osborne said the rezoning “should not have even been proposed, given it’s in conflict with the July resolution”. It had also been distributed very late to councillors, and was still not on public display on Sunday evening, breaching the required three days’ notice. The Hunter Concerned Citizens group is opposing the move.
