Source : Perth Now news
State planners have approved the development of a $9 million Aldi supermarket and McDonald’s restaurant in Pinjarra.
The Metro Outer Development Assessment Panel approved the proposal on the southern side of Pinjarra Road between George and Murray streets by three votes to two at its May 12 meeting.
Shire of Murray representatives president Douglas McLarty and deputy president Ange Rogers voted against it.
The decision was reached after 18 amendments were proposed, some of which were carried along the same voting lines.
In January the panel put off making a decision on the development partly over traffic concerns.
The latest proposal included modifications to signage, landscaping, pedestrian movements and facade design.
The Aldi supermarket would be 1100sqm with a 55sqm liquor store, while the McDonald’s would have a drive-through and capacity for 46 people dining in.
The 10,029sqm site is mainly vacant except for an unused State heritage-listed Masonic hall.
Conditions of approval include a $25,000 contribution to the upgrade of pedestrian infrastructure at the Pinjarra Road-George Street intersection.
A condition that plans for the upgrade of Murray Street where it abuts the development be lodged before work can start was removed.
Drive-through facilities are prohibited in the Pinjarra town centre under the shire’s precinct structure plan but they are not mentioned in its planning scheme.
The majority of the DAP did not think a change to the shire’s scheme was imminent and a drive-through could be allowed under existing rules.
The Shire of Murray had supported the Aldi store but remained opposed to the McDonald’s proposal.
It said while there was “technical discretion” to approve a drive-through, it went against “orderly and proper planning”.
Shire planning and environment services manager Greg Delahunty said the shire’s planning rules were intended to protect Pinjarra’s character and were close to being finalised.
“(The McDonald’s development) fails to provide sufficient activation for George Street, provides excessive freestanding signage and it prioritises car-based development in the town centre with a drive-through facility,” he said.
Cr McLarty said he was not against takeaway in the town centre as it already had about eight takeaway outlets but was concerned about the vehicle-centric nature of the proposal.
“There are many, many other sites in Pinjarra on the outskirts that are much more appropriate sites for drive-through fast food,” he said.
“The road network currently is highly constrained and the impact of 1700 vehicle movements a day primarily exiting in that vicinity is of major concern to me.”
Cr Rogers said the McDonald’s would be directly opposite a primary school and 200m from another.
“One of the peak times for the McDonald’s would be in the morning, which also coincides with the peak time of the adjacent schools,” she said.
“I am not comfortable that the safety of pedestrians, especially children from the adjacent schools competing with the fast turnaround of vehicles using this drive-through, have been adequately addressed.”
Panel presiding member Karen Hyde said she did not support a part-approval and part-refusal and the drive-through was “clearly integral”.
“Some other similar operations for McDonald’s and other takeaway outlets in other town centres don’t always have a drive-through for various reasons,” she said.
“I’m very familiar with Pinjarra and this location is a centre that I find a lot if not most people do actually drive to.
“I think the proposal for a restaurant takeaway outlet is not necessarily out of character with what we have there already.”
Panel deputy presiding member Clayton Higham said the recommendation to not allow the McDonald’s was invalid and flawed.
He acknowledged it would bring more traffic but it would be about 600 more vehicles, not the 1700 claimed.
“I know Pinjarra pretty well. I’ve been there many times … it is a heavily trafficked location anyway,” Mr Higham said.
“I can’t see that this is going to make a huge difference in terms of the traffic to the town.
“It may introduce vehicles, but that is the nature of the business and I guess any other use on that site in the future would attract more vehicles anyway.”
Earlier in the meeting, Aldi property director Radu Popescu said the development integrated Aldi and McDonald’s and removing one would make the entire project unviable.
Todd Wood from McDonald’s said the drive-through was not needed for the development’s viability but was for customer service.
The proposal received 364 submissions when it was advertised for comment; 330 were in support of the Aldi and 272 backed the McDonald’s.
In 2015 the Shire of Murray approved a commercial development of four buildings on the site but this was not acted on.
An application for a drive-through liquor store in 2017 was refused.
