Bright housing plan recommended for approval, despite tree impact unknown

Alpine Shire councillors will consider the subdivision, known as Bright Valley Development, at their meeting on Tuesday, November 28.

The potential loss of trees in an avenue at the town's entrance has prompted strong community opposition over many months, with an online petition attracting more than 27,400 signatures.

The council agenda notes this petition does not meet the council's governance rules and has not been formally recognised.

However, Alpine Council received more than 200 submissions between February and October 2023, a petition with more than 4000 signatures and 700 signed proforma letters.

The permit application followed the approval of the development plan in July 2022.

Fourteen of the 110 recommended conditions relate to tree protection, stating the loss of trees must be minimised, with an anticipated loss of no more than two maturing trees.

"Any trees removed from the Great Alpine Road reserve must be relocated/replaced in an agreed location with the responsible authority," the council report said.

Director customer and community Helen Havercroft said the proposal would impact the gateway trees but the exact extent was not yet known.

"While it would be ideal to have an exact understanding of the tree impact prior to issuing a permit, the level of detail required to determine this exceeds the level of information generally required to support a permit application," she said.

"This is due to the true impact likely not being known until detailed design of the intersection is undertaken and when works on site commence which will determine where the existing root systems are located."

Sue Ronco, of Bright Gateway Protection Group, said residents felt let down by the potential loss of two heritage trees.

"They were likely planted after World War II and have become renowned throughout Victoria for their stunning visual display in autumn," Dr Ronco said.

"Locals feel that any tree loss will diminish the unique character of the town of Bright, and have a negative impact on its tourism industry."

The advocacy group remained hopeful the trees could be saved and was seeking advice from Heritage Victoria.

Bright Valley Development lot sizes would range from 200 to more than 700 square metres and the proposal included 1.43 hectares of public open space.

Ms Havercroft said other issues of concern for the community, including bushfire risk and soil contamination, had also been addressed in the proposed permit conditions.

"Overall, the proposal provides for a site responsive development outcome that will assist in meeting the housing needs for Bright in the future," she said.

Community members can submit questions in writing ahead of Tuesday's council meeting or ask questions from the floor during question time. Each person will be allocated two questions in total.