Hilton plans

By Kath Gannaway
PLANS for a major tourist accommodation development in Yarra Glen will come before Yarra Ranges Council on Tuesday (12 October).
Revised plans for the Hilton Hotel site at 866 Healesville/Yarra Glen Road involve two applications, one for secondary consent to the amended plans, and the other for an extension of time on the existing permit.
The original permit for a 150-room hotel was issued in 2001 after the then developers went to VCAT to resolve the matter with Yarra Ranges Council.
That permit was for a winery and cellar door, restaurant, hotel, business centre, health centre, ballroom/function centre and 142 guest rooms.
Under the permit the facility must be used in association with an agricultural purpose – in this case making wine.
New applicant Stockwell Holdings Pty Ltd now wish to build a mix of one and two-storey apartment units with hotel reception and other amenities in a separate smaller building.
They will argue that the scale of the changes is minor and allowable under secondary consent provisions in the original permit.
Nearby residents however say the changes are anything but minor and represent what will be a de-facto ‘village’ in one of the shire’s most scenic rural locations.
Ernst Fries lives opposite the Hilton site and says visitors to the valley would be shocked by the over-development.
“The proposed design puts 113 two-storey dwellings, effectively high density living, on a most prominent site in the middle of a low intensity agricultural landscape,” he said, adding that the plans are contrary to the spirit of the Green Wedge zoning of the site.
Mr Fries said the proposed vineyards were small and fragmented with the chemical spraying required presenting an unacceptable health risk to users of the units, and neighbouring properties.
Rosemary Simpson who lives nearby is also objecting to the development, saying it “will destroy the country atmosphere”.
“They will be building right around the ridge and it will desecrate the hill,” she said.