For almost twenty years, STEP has been involved with the future and conservation of urban bushland at the  University of Technology Sydney campus at Lindfield.

In 2003, UTS announced its intention, in conjunction with CRI Australia, to build a residential development on the site, of approximately 560 buildings, and an application was lodged with council for appropriate rezoning.

STEP joined a committee, the Community Reference Group, which immediately expressed very serious concerns on numerous grounds.

The proposal

CRI summarises that the 'preferred scheme' would:

• have a mix of residential and dwelling structures,
• retain 'the bulk of the natural vegetation and bushland',
• be 'primarily constructed' on the already developed land,
• have the higher density concentrated centrally, and
• have the 'potential for continuing educational use or adaptive commercial use' if the existing buildings were retained.

STEP's position

In November 2007, STEP wrote this new submission to the Department of Planning.

STEP became interested in the site initially because of the bushland it contains, specifically:

• the many hectares of bushland on the UTS Lindfield site are contiguous with adjoining bush and adjacent to Lane Cove National Park. As a whole this is an important and substantial area.
• the College Creek area, at risk in 1990-91 from the university's access road proposal, is especially valuable.
• the bushland is continually threatened by clearing for development, increased water runoff, nutrients in runoff and clearing for bushfire hazard reduction. Calming words about retaining 'the bulk of the natural vegetation and bushland' are worthless unless these issues can be neutralised.

The bushland is still our prime concern but there are others:

• high-density housing so far from the railway line is inappropriate, especially in view of the government mandating that additional high-density developments be built along the rail corridor.
• traffic will be a serious problem as there is currently restricted access out of the site.
• building more houses above a known bushfire-prone, natural area is senseless.
• the need for universities as the population of Ku-ring-gai is expected to rise in execss of 20% over the next 20 years, and similar increases are expected throughout the northern and coastal suburbs.
• the threat of Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act in reducing community involvement and limiting any risk of delays to this and similar projects.