A VILLAGE shopping centre, new sporting oval and mixed density housing are among the options on the table for a major redevelopment of land to the north of Eglinton.
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Bathurst Regional Council has placed the Duramana Road Master Plan on public exhibition for 28 days, calling for feedback on its blueprint for the development of a large lot of land at the intersection of Freemantle Road and Duramana Road.
It follows a community meeting held earlier this month where Eglinton residents were briefed on some of the options for the land.
But while there was strong support for a village shopping centre that would likely include a supermarket and other small businesses, a number of residents raised concerns over the possibility of residential lot sizes as small as 225 square metres in the development.
From all angles, the site at the intersection or Freemantle and Duramans roads ...
The subject land was previously owned by 2BS and stands on the opposite side of Freemantle Road to a private 221-home development behind Eglinton Public School.
The two developments will greatly change the look and feel of Eglinton, raising further concerns about the capacity of local schools and the roads into Bathurst.
But Councillor Ian North said the new homes would also mean new opportunities for young families.
"We all grow up and one of the things we want to achieve is to get married, have a house and have a family," Cr North said.
"When I got to that point 30 years we wanted to live in Eglinton, the area we're talking about, and because someone had subdivided an area of land we got our first house.
"People have to have hope moving forward and cities have to continue to develop. This is why it's going out to people to make comment."
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However, Cr North warned council that new subdivisions had to be developed "in a controlled manner" to give people a "really good country lifestyle".
But Cr Alex Christian was concerned medium-density and high-density housing would be an over-development of the site, robbing the area of its rural feel.
"People move from the over-congested streets of Sydney to come out and live the country lifestyle here in Bathurst," he said.
"I'm a little shocked with these minimum allotment sizes ... there are houses being built now, and a lot of them, without a backyard and that really concerns me.
"I don't want Eglinton or any other parts of this city in the next 20, 30, 40 years being filthy slums with people living on top of each other."
But Cr Monica Morse took umbrage at that comment, pointing out that smaller blocks would be attractive to older people looking to downsize their home.
"I think some of the smaller blocks described are in response to older people," she said.
"It's unfair to think that just because you have smaller blocks you are going to turn into a less-than-desirable community."
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