Why is Council considering selling this property?
In late 2014 Japara Community House moved to a new, purpose built community building at Durham Road, Kilsyth. With bigger and more modern facilities allowing for an expanded and more diverse range of programs, Japara is thriving in its new home.
With all of Japara’s programs having been transferred to the new facility, their former facility at 13 Leith Road has remained vacant since that time.
The new Japara House building is an example of Council’s strategic approach to community facilities and the creation of central ‘hub’ style buildings that provide a range of community activities and services in a central location under the one roof. This approach also provides opportunities to investigate the sale of older vacant or redundant properties, whereby sale proceeds can be reinvested into other capital works projects to meet current and future community requirements.
What has been done to prepare the property for sale?
The property at 13 Leith Road originally comprised a number of small allotments of irregular shape. To rectify this, a subdivision process was undertaken which has consolidated the land into two distinct areas; those being:
- The land containing the former Japara House building (outlined on the plan in bold)
- The car parking areas, both formed and unformed, to the rear and side of the building (now designated as ‘road reserve’ and labelled on the plan as ‘Car Park’).
A separate Planning Scheme Amendment was also undertaken to rezonethe land shown in bold line for Commercial use. The car park area was not affected by the amendment process and retains its Public Use zoning.
With planning procedures complete, Council has now commenced formal public consultation processes pursuant to requirements of the Local Government Act.
Why create a road reserve?
Council’s primary objective for the carpark area is that the public and adjacent shop owners retain undisputed legal rights over the land for the purpose of access and parking.
Council’s designation of this area as ‘road reserve’ ensures the land can continue to be accessed by the public for use as a car park into the future.
Will the car park be sold?
No, the car park is not being considered for sale and will be retained in Council ownership.
Can I have a say on the proposed sale?
Yes. Council has now given formal Public Notice of its intention to sell the property and has invited public submissions on the matter. Details on how to make a public submission are provided on the Public Notice, which is availablefor viewing on Council’s website.
All public submissions must be received by Council by Wednesday 22nd February 2017.
Council will consider all submissions prior to making a decision on the sale of the land at a future Council meeting.
How would the property be sold?
It is proposed that property be sold through an Expression of Interest (EOI) process which will allow Council to set and evaluate a variety of submission criteria.
What would happen to the property if it is sold?
With its commercial zoning, it is likely that a purchaser would use the property for some type of commercial activity. Any applications for future development of the site would be subject to relevant planning controls, just like any planning application.
A copy of the Public Notice and further information about the proposal can be obtained from Council’s website at