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Splits have appeared in a campaign to halt a big development at Smiths Beach near Yallingup in the South-West. While the Smiths Beach Action Group, formed to fight an initial proposal five years ago, said this week it was just as strongly opposed to the revised plan, two surfing groups gave it support. Canal Rocks Pty Ltd wants to turn the area into the South-West's Rottnest with 114 homes, 272 holiday units, a 100-bed hotel, 60 tent sites and a 60-bed backpacker's lodge. Action group spokesman Kevin Merifield said while the design and aesthetics of the new plan were a marked improvement on the initial proposal, it was still too big. The first proposal four years ago was for a combined total of 690 residential lots, tourist units and hotel rooms plus 1000sq m of retail space. The new plan is for 606 homes and tourist units with 2000sq m of retail space. Mr Merifield questioned whether the development fitted guidelines laid down for the area. He warned it would harm the visual amenity and landscape values of one of the most beautiful parts of the South-West. "The community feeling is as strong as ever and the community is expecting the action group to do all it can to keep the development down to an appropriate size," Mr Merifield said. But the Indian Ocean Longboard Club and the Yallingup Boardriders Association said the proposal had merit, especially given it could be accompanied by much needed community facilities. Longboard spokesman Bob Monkman said most surfers would prefer no development along WA's South-West coast but some development was inevitable and the Canal Rocks revised plan appeared acceptable. Boardriders spokesman and Yallingup Surf School owner Sam Hanson said hundreds of people were already drawn to Smiths Beach on a summer's day and any increase in those numbers had to be suitably managed. Mr Hanson and Mr Monkman both welcomed the developer's willingness to consider establishing clubrooms and first aid and rescue equipment, given rescues were already a daily occurrence at the beach in summer. The proposal is before the Busselton Shire Council. © Copyright 2005 by West Australian Newspapers Ltd. This report is for information only. No charge for such use is made and the material is not being used for commercial purposes. The text has not been modified from the original report. |