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The Cambria Estate is a very large parcel of land – almost 3100 hectares in its entirety.
It was purchased some years ago and the farm is currently being managed locally. Because the area of land is large, a masterplan vision has been developed for the entire site.
We believe that Cambria Estate could become a tourism and event icon for the East Coast of Tasmania, for Tasmanians and for visitors from interstate and overseas.
The masterplan has been prepared to take in to account detailed expert research into the Cambria’s heritage values, including Aboriginal and European built and landscape heritage, its natural values, including ecology, coastal vulnerability, agricultural capabilities and landscape values.
Cambria Green’s vision is based around the fact that despite booming tourism numbers across Tasmania, the East Coast of Tasmania and Swansea in particular, could do with sustainable, sensible development to attract more visitors to stay and contribute to the overall regional economy.
The Federal government has specifically identified the East Coast of Tasmania as a target tourism destination, with strategies focused on growing demand for distinctive and authentic experiences.
Cambria Estate offers the opportunity to capture increased tourism numbers on the East Coast with a destination that embodies the assets of local quality agriculture, natural and heritage values, and lessens the area’s reliance on day trips from Hobart.
Cambria Green is seeking the planning scheme amendment through the legislated process under the state’s resource management and planning system, with an extended public notification period to allow submissions in accordance with the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993. The process does not discriminate on the basis of land ownership.
Cambria Green’s Specific Area Plan’s purpose includes:
- Provide for use and development of the site that utilises the agricultural, natural, and historic heritage assets as the basis for regionally significant economic tourism development;
- Identify precincts that recognise the specific land characteristics, and manages use and development that is appropriate to the features of the landscape;
- Reinstate and protect the importance of the Cambria Homestead as a historic focal point for the community and visitors; and
- Protect the most productive agricultural land and ensure that adjoining land uses conflicts are minimised or integrated with agricultural activities.
The Planning Scheme amendments, therefore, propose a specific area plan to provide a set of detailed provisions, within the planning scheme, to control and guide future development.
The potential building footprint, that the specific area plan precincts would establish, is actually envisaged to be less than 0.2 per cent of the whole property.
While the amendment does not propose to rezone most of Cambria, it does propose rezoning of two titles to environmental management to reinforce existing protection of high-value conservation areas. The specific area plan also results in increased protection for the nesting sites of white-bellied sea eagles.
To date, we have proposed no specific development. Any future development proposals will go through a regular development application process in accordance with the planning scheme, once the outcome of the current amendment process is known and subsequently, detailed designs are undertaken.
We are seeking no special processes or legislation – all future use and development will be subject to all required approvals in relation to relevant Aboriginal Heritage and Historic Cultural Heritage legislation.
Our first stage of development will include:
- Restoration of the historic Cambria Homestead and its English-style gardens as the centrepiece to wedding and conference events;
- Accommodation of about 120 rooms in units and villas;
- Continuation of agricultural activities in identified areas;
- Links style 18 and 9-hole golf courses; and
- Rehabilitation and revegetation of land areas of limited agricultural potential.
Following a variety of community engagements and discussions, including the Cambria open day, a number of aspects have been clarified and some changes and further controls have been suggested to council for inclusions in the specific area plan.
The overall amendment and any changes will be subject to review by the Tasmanian Planning Commission when it reaches that stage in the assessment process.
Some of the outcomes from communications with the local community are:
- We have committed not to compete with the local township with respect to commercial activities, but rather to provide employment that would support a more permanent population, and potentially improved services;
- Construction of the development and future staffing at Cambria will be reliant on staff being located within Swansea and the surrounding region to assist in improved employment prospects and greater spending within the township;
- The availability of water resource is going through ongoing investigations separate to the Land Use Planning process. We have found there is a high level of water security for the anticipated activities on the Cambria land; and
- Any further use or development of the existing airstrip would be subject to a discretionary application at the time of making a development application. The application would need to demonstrate that the operation of flights did not result in unreasonable impact on the adjoining residential areas.
Any future development would be in excess of 50 metres from boundaries of properties that have been used for residences. Our desire is to work with the community over the next decade and beyond to enhance the values of the place and the local community and improve the visitor capacity through sustainable development of Cambria Green.
- Ronald Hu, CEO, Cambria Green Agriculture & Tourism Management Pty Ltd