Rallying call over 'facility' plans

Residents in Rothwell are rallying support to fight plans for a new 97-unit “retirement facility” on the former Frawleys tennis courts.

A mailbox drop, to around 600 homes, is urging householders to sign a petition against the proposed development in Coman Street South.

The public submission period to Moreton Bay City Council closes on Thursday (February 8).

In the letter “concerned Rothwell residents” say they “fear the impact” such a development will have on their “lives and neighbourhood”.

Concerns include the “noise, heavy vehicle and machinery movement” during construction and the proposed facility being next to a childcare centre.

“The area proposed for the development is already seriously impacted by traffic issues,” the letter says, adding cars and trucks are “rat running” through streets in peak hours.

“The current problem is bad enough but with the operation of a retirement facility we’ll be further smothered with traffic and traffic noise.”

“Coman Street South is a residential street and we are entitled to a reasonably quiet and safe neighbourhood.”

The development application (DA), for 56 Coman St South, shows three-story buildings around a landscaped courtyard on the 9825sqm site.

Of the 97 units, 63 will have two bedrooms, 21 three bedrooms and 13 one bedroom. There would also be 147 car parking spaces.

Frawleys Tennis Centre, just behind retail outlets on Deception Bay Rd, is reported to have been left unused since 2017.

There are currently six hard courts and one clay court though the site is not fully visible from the road.

The DA was lodged with Moreton Bay City Council on October 13 last year and is publicly available on Council’s DA Tracker website.