for the redevelopment of Frankston’s city centre – which includes building highrises near the beach – because it does not acknowledge flood risk or coastal inundation caused by rising sea levels.
“It appears the Frankston Metropolitan Activity Centre Structure Plan makes no reference to flooding, coastal inundation or the special building overlay/land subject to inundation overlay ,” the water authority says in its submission.“While you might not expect it to fully address flood issues, the fact that there is no mention at all is concerning, particularly given ongoing impacts of climate change and sea level rise.
“Proposals which also increase density and impervious surfaces in the Frankston Metropolitan Activity Centre Structure Plan are likely to exacerbate flooding to the immediate downstream catchment as well as within the activity centre pondage area, and as such would not beFrankston council would also have to prove the health of Kananook Creek would not be compromised by overshadowing new residential buildings before Melbourne Water would endorse the plan, the submission says.
The water authority recommended Frankston council defer the plan until the results of the new flood modelling are known. “Change will keep coming, and I’m not convinced that we’ve laid down appropriate principles for navigating the complex terrain of climate risk, the very real potential of associated liability for future losses, and these could be extraordinary,” she said.
Both were submitted to the council under the current structure plan, which has a preferred height limit of 32 metres, or about eight storeys.