35 Sherwood Avenue Rosebud VIC 3939

Dear Mornington Peninsula Planning Department please urgently follow up on following information.

Refused planning application at VCAT reference: P626/2023 - 35 Sherwood - March 2024.

11 MP councillors voted unanimously against the proposed planning application at Council meeting in July 2023.

Both Melbourne Water & Mornington Peninsula Council took a major part in VCAT proceedings & were opposed to the planning application.
MP Council received 53 formal objections to the planning application from Sherwood Avenue, Plantation Ave & Mount Arthur Ave & Forshaw Court - most were against building in a flood zone as witnessed & video documented in floods November 2022.

See Planning alerts for previous planning application -
https://search.app/wZVJBtmK6QcBzAzTA

To Senior Planner MP Council fin VCAT - application for 35 Sherwood Avenue rejected by Senior Member - 33 pages - March 2024

file:///var/mobile/Library/SMS/Attachments/fb/11/ED50D7ED-9D70-47AB-A141-5CCF56D63F4E/P626-2023%20Moradi-Bossari%20v%20Mornington%20Peninsula%20SC%20(mb%20mb%20120324).pdf

Thank you for reading.

Attention Mornington Peninsula Council Planning Department. Please find link for VCAT decision on 35 Sherwood Avenue Rosebud - March 2024 - No Permit Granted.

SUBJECT LAND
35 Sherwood Avenue

ROSEBUD VIC 3939
HEARING TYPE
Hearing
DATES OF HEARING
4, 5 and 6 March 2024
DATE OF ORDER
12 March 2024
CITATION
Moradi-Bossari v Mornington Peninsula SC [2024] VCAT 215
ORDER

No permit granted

In application P626/2023 the decision of the responsible authority is affirmed.
In planning permit application P20/1937 no permit is granted.

Local Residents & MP Planning Department please find link below for 33 page VCAT - 3 days March 2024.

https://www8.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/vic/VCAT/2024/215.html

Dear Mornington Peninsula Planning Department - Senior Planners

Please find photo's of Sherwood Avenue Native Flora & Fauna. Also photo's of rain bomb event flooding Sherwood Avenue Reserve and flowing directly across road into 35 Sherwood Avenue. Safe flow of traffic was blocked at 2 points of Creek for hours flooding across road which turned into a fast flowing river - November 20222. Large amount of video footage, photo's & first hand accounts from residents impacted by the event. It was lucky the property at 35 Sherwood was vacant of residents at the time.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1L7qMeOIbienOz0_fPBknUv4qkU7K0x7IJSzrB072trU/edit?usp=sharing

Dear Senior Planner MPC,

Respectfully would you please forward photo's to MP Natural Systems Department/Biodiversity Officers who are on referral list for planning applications. Please find photo's of local Native Flora & Fauna at Sherwood Avenue Reserve and in local gardens/verges & along Riparian zone of 35 Sherwood Ave. We have multiple local Echidna's burrows in this pocket & nesting native parrots, finches, Boobook, Powerful Owl, Tawny Frogmouth. I believe with the last planning application for 35 Sherwood Ave Sherwood Avenue Reserve & surrounding neighborhood was not accessed correctly as being a high value Biolink/Diversity pocket.

https://1drv.ms/w/c/81c674ae1d269752/EVwTMW6-TEhGt6TDOxHKKRMBxjnsgrLN1_PfKC6E161Ufg?e=9x8IHv

https://1drv.ms/b/c/81c674ae1d269752/EbccMi8WS_hEmAOHtIr3y0wBirGIgi0pfKpHdK2Rdx5uUw?e=0HN586

Thank you again for reading & sharing with MP Natural Systems, Biodiversity Teams.

THE Mornington Peninsula is set to play a vital role in a new state-wide conservation push aimed at protecting some of Victoria’s most threatened native animals and habitats.
Please MP Council Planning take a closer look at what wonderful native Flora & Fauna that inhabits Sherwood Avenue Reserve & Murray Anderson Creek & it’s riparian zone abutting 35 Sherwood Avenue. It all needs protection & care.

Read more: https://www.mpnews.com.au/2025/07/18/new-sanctuaries-to-help-endangered-species/

I stand by my original objection below which I made 5 years ago to seemingly the same development application. I support the Council rejecting the application in 2022 and VCAT rejecting it in 2024.

"My family have lived in Sherwood Avenue for many years and over that time we have been most fortunate to observe many wonderful native species of wildlife in the local area. Glorious flocks of yellow tailed black cockatoos, a breeding pair of tawny frogmouth owls, southern boobook owl, straw-necked and Australian ibis, galahs, lorikeets, rosella, kookaburras, honeyeaters, wattle birds, superb fairy wrens, scrub-wrens, wood ducks and rare Powerful Owl. Given the proximity to plenty of water and wetlands, frog species such as eastern banjo frogs, brown tree frogs and common froglets abound.

Given the proximity to a waterway on Bunurong country, has a Cultural Heritage Assessment been done?

Melbourne Water have previously invested substantial time and funds in conservation works along Murray Anderson Creek. Have they been notified of this proposed development?

On page 29 of the Mornington Peninsula Shire Flood Emergency Plan, Sherwood Avenue, Forshaw Court and Bayview Avenue are noted by Council as prone to flooding.
The entire property, and part of the neighbouring properties, went underwater in the 2022 floods. It was scary to witness, and I would never wish anyone ever live here. It poses a serious risk to life and would be negligent to develop on it.

I respectfully request Council consider the environmental concerns of over development, as well as climate change which is predicted to lead to more extreme weather behaviour."

High density development does not seem at all appropriate for this quiet residential, family-friendly street. I am very concerned by the precedent this will set for the area, along with the environmental and social impacts. The property boundary is in the riparian zone of Murray Anderson Creek and this development will surely have adverse effects on the hydrology, drainage and environment. Being close to the national parks, this creek acts as a wildlife corridor. The subject block, reserve opposite, creek adjacent and footpath behind No.35 are prone to regular flooding.

The current (derelict) single dwelling is located on the eastern side of the property, away from the creek. In the 2022 floods, the entire house was flooded above floor level. Furniture was floating through the property and out into the creek! Sherwood Avenue was blocked off by floodwater and Murray Anderson Creek became a dangerous, fast flowing river – experiencing flash flooding with multiple properties inundated. Climate hazard and flood modelling predict more frequent flooding events.

How will Council ensure the safety of current and future residents in this flood zone?
How will Council ensure that the already fragile waterway is not under further pressure and the surrounding properties are not affected by changes in hydrology?

Does this development meet the principles of DEECA’s “Guidelines for Development in Flood Areas”?

Sherwood Avenue is a quiet street with many young children. I am further concerned about the increased traffic and parking pressures on nearby green space, as well as neighbourhood character.

As a property-owner in Sherwood Avenue, in close proximity to 35 Sherwood Ave I object to the application for Planning Permit Application no. P25/1023 lodged June 2025.

I was an objector to an original application for the development proposed by the applicant 20/10/2020 (along with 53 other local objectors) which was rejected by Melbourne Water, MP Council & ultimately the VCAT Senior member refused the application 12/03/2024. The original application was for 5 buildings being 3 double storey & 2 single but morphed into 5 double storey as we approached VCAT hearing.

The new proposal of 5+ buildings does not meet the key principles outlined in the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning Guidelines for Development in Flood Affected Areas (2019).
The existing flood risk has not been acceptably mitigated through design measures by the developer, MP Council or Melbourne Water. No upgrades to local drainage have been made in this pocket even after the major flood event October/November 2022.

Many local residents have video & photo’s showing the inundation to 35 Sherwood and its immediate area along the creek & at the rear of the address specifically during the hazardous weather rainfall events of October 2022 & November 2022. It is common sense that no mitigation measures would be able to make the development safe for future residents and surrounding properties of local residents especially with the current Melbourne Water & local government infrastructure along with ongoing natural and man-made climate change.

We can look at the local example of the disastrous position for McCrae residents of the ongoing McCrae Landslide Enquiry and that approving P25/1023 would constitute risk acceptance by Mornington Peninsula Council. Council rejecting the planning proposal would be consistent with risk avoidance, a mitigation that would be protecting my neighborhood and my home from foreseeable hazards.

Environmental Significance Overlay ESP specifically ES017 streamlines with regards to Murray Anderson Creek. The proposal could not meet the six environmental objectives to be achieved under this overlay. Environmental objective to be achieved 1. To maintain environmental flows and the quality of water within streams and watercourses. 2. To maintain the capacity of streams and watercourses to carry natural flows. 3. To prevent erosion of banks, stream beds and adjoining land and the siltation of watercourses, drains and other features. 4. To protect and conserve flora and fauna habitats (including those of fish and invertebrates) within and along streams and watercourses. 5. To ensure that development does not occur on land liable to flooding. 6. To ensure that subdivision and development is compatible with the environmental values of streams and watercourses.

I believe the previous owners of another local property at 59-61 Sherwood Avenue applied for a subdivision approximately 10+ years ago. This was rejected by the Mornington Peninsula Shire Council on the basis of the land being part of the floodplain. The flood-prone nature of the land in this section of Sherwood Avenue has not changed and can only get worse by natural and man made climate change. The problems particularly associated with high rainfalls have been recently graphically illustrated, with high flooding across the road and seeping into surrounding properties. This proposal, sited on the creek, is no different to that proposal rejected by the Mornington Peninsula Shire 10+ years ago.
Many long term residents believe historically 35 Sherwood was not allowed to be subdivided due to the location abutting Murray Anderson Creek & directly opposite the Sherwood Avenue Drainage/wetlands Reserve.

There were previously 53 formal objections to the last application from concerned local residents. Overlays that are not addressed satisfactorily by the developer proposal include:
- Vegetation Protection Overlay VPO. The proposed development has & will involve removal of significant remnant & non remnant trees and vegetation, affecting the important quiet rural “feel” of the neighborhood. The proposed development has & will involve removal of remnant & non remnant trees and vegetation which are natural habitats for the present variety of native Fauna.

- Bushfire Prone Overlay.

Designated Flood Prone area. Large areas in this neighborhood are classified as ‘Flood Plain”. The proposed development, so close to the Murray Anderson Creek and its surrounds, is an inappropriate and dangerous use of the land for any new residents of the proposed build and existing local residents surrounding this property downstream and upstream.

Designated Area of Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Sensitivity - Aboriginal Heritage Regulations 2018 , 3 or more lots considered high impact activity requiring cultural heritage plan - Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006. The Cultural Heritage Management Plan #15489 conducted for previous application highlights many concerns. The team conducting the report notes/ highlights that the former owner of the property had experienced a significant flood event. ‘Kevin also recounted to the team that approximately 10 years ago, the Murray Anderson Creek to the west flooded heavily and washed over the property of up to depths of over two feet’ (K.Rickard pers. Comm. 1 February 2018). A new ACH report cannot ignore the previous investigation concerns and the unhealthy items found in the previous dig sites on this property. I am happy to forward the highlighted concerns if required.

Accessible Living Design Legislation May 2024. - Building on this flood zone which regularly floods will make it impossible to meet 3 of the standards being: Dwelling access – getting to the entrance from the allotment boundary. Dwelling entrance – ease of access through a step-free entrance Internal doors and corridors – ease of movement within the dwelling. (internal garage flood levels will not allow entry to house through an internal garage doors). Step-free access path, car parking space incorporated into step-free access path. The continuous step-free access path must be provided from: the pedestrian entry at the allotment boundary, or an appurtenant Class 10a garage or carport, or a car parking space provided for the exclusive use by dwelling occupants.

- DD01 There would be loss of light & overshadowing on neighboring properties, loss of privacy to neighbors, loss of public visual amenity, lack of car parking, increased risks to road safety & road convenience, increased traffic generation, noise generation causing significant loss of amenity, loss of vegetation.

The proposed development is totally inconsistent with the present amenity of the area. This is a quiet and low density neighborhood, with large blocks within a natural bushland environment. The average lot size of the proposed units is a very small 418 square metres (this is not allowing for driveways & shared areas thus actual lot size would be much smaller again), whereas the average lot size in the neighborhood is 850 - 2400 square metres. This makes the proposal with 5+ double storey buildings at odds with the present use and amenity. The proposed development would add 5 extra households to Sherwood Ave, a narrow and winding “rural”-type roadway. The safety and enjoyment of this street by its residents will be threatened by the increased traffic. I do not believe it is appropriate that 5 bulky extensive two-storey dwellings belong in this neighborhood, bearing in mind privacy issues of adjoining property owners and local residents enjoying the Sherwood Avenue Reserve directly opposite & along the Murray Anderson Creek. In addition to the high (overlooking) aspect of two-storey units, the ongoing removal of the current screening vegetation and trees will further impact privacy of both new & existing residents. The amended plans fail to respect existing neighborhood character. It therefore represents an unacceptable response.

For these reasons it is respectfully requested that the Mornington Peninsula Planning Department refuse this application. Thank you for reading & considering.

I concur with previous objectors.

Should this comment reach Council planners, I ask that you please ensure that the west side of Number 35-37 Sherwood Ave is actually safe to build on.
I believe the original owner built up this side of the block from the creek with debris from building sites and the Dandenong glass factory as it was so prone to regular flooding (pers. comms former owner). Evidence of this can be seen all along the creek (broken glass, old bricks etc coming from under the fence). It is also referenced in the 2019 Cultural Heritage Management Plan #15489. The site is a double block because, in the 1980s, planning approval was not granted for the land directly adjacent to the creek owing to flood risk, so it was sold to the owner of number 37.

I am a former resident of an adjoining property and am extremely concerned about the impact of clearing and paving the block, particularly regarding water runoff affecting neighbouring properties. My property, uphill of number 35-37 was very wet for much of the year and drainage in the area was difficult at the best of times.

To accommodate 5 dwellings on the site, there must be a near uninterrupted configuration of solid buildings along all boundaries. This will undoubtedly obstruct the flow of downstream floodwater, causing water to back up and be redirected onto surrounding properties. Furthermore, the natural overland flow from uphill properties on the east and west will be blocked as it tries to channel downhill to the creek.

Murray Anderson Creek converges with another upstream tributary opposite number 35-37, directing substantial water flow through the narrow area adjacent to the proposed development. This is a well-defined creek with considerable ecological significance and large water volumes, it is not an insignificant drainage line.
Over the past 5 years, the developer has already removed a significant amount of vegetation from the site, including a large remnant gum tree at the creek boundary.

Considerable ratepayer and taxpayer dollars have already been spent on this case. The community is increasingly concerned about dealing with the consequences of inappropriate development. We recognise the dire need for housing in the current crisis but it has to be safe, sustainable and appropriate. I strongly urge that no permit be granted on this unsuitable and hazardous site.
Thank you.

Councillors vote to develop ‘Climate Resilience Plan’

BY CAMERON MCCULLOUGHOCTOBER 7, 2025NO COMMENTS6 MINS READ
MORNINGTON Peninsula Shire councillors have voted for the shire’s CEO, Mark Stoermer, to prepare and present a “Climate Resilience Plan” to council.

Response from local resident Sherwood Avenue Rosebud living alongside Creek: Respected CEO please stop letting developers build on known unsafe historically flooding floodplain & on closely abutting highly eroding /collapsing creek banks would be great mitigation defence as an easy first step. It would be very appreciated by locals who are concerned for their properties & neighbourhood going under water as a flow on effect of the new structures altering waterways flows. Also please stop developers cutting/ destroying remnant vegetation & River Gums along our creeks. Many thanks.

As per last submission, I still feel 5 dwellings on a block of that size is unreasonable and not aligned to the character of the neighborhood. A 2-3 house sub-division on a block of this size seems reasonable.

Something also needs to be done by council to the creek alongside the house at the property border if anything at 35 Sherwood gets approved to deal with drainage, and to make the creek safer to walk through.