New High School in Bungendore

I fully support the highschool being developed in Bungendore and also at the chosen site.
My daughter went to the Public school in Bungendore and now travels for high school, sadly I don't think she will be able to attend once the new school is built as she is already 14. But I think it will be wonderful to see local kids stay in town and enjoy going to a local high school.
The fly over looks amazing, I would only hope that the design is kept as is and corners are not cut.

Dear Director, Social & Infrastructure Assessments Planning & Assessment

I wish to make the following submission objecting to the proposed new high school in Bungendore (2621) [Application: SSD-14394209].

• The proposal is to build a High School in Bungendore utilising the existing Council Chambers and including to utilise part of the existing Bungendore Park for the School site.
• The announcement of this project was made in September 2020 by the (then) Deputy Premier & Member for Monaro without and prior to any public consultation on the matter resulting in considerable concern at the lack of ‘due process’ in the decision-making.
o I understand that even the local Queanbeyan-Palerang Council was taken by surprise by this announcement.
• It appears that the administrative processes have been made to fit / compromised to fit the Deputy Premier’s announcement, and without any regard to the heritage value and the general integrity of the Park to the local community.
• The Bungendore Park is an integral part of Bungendore used by all Bungendore community at all time of the day and during the evening.
o Its use should not be compromised for the benefit of a very small number of people (eg high school students) at the expense of the local community.
o All communities and particularly regional and country towns have an historic local park which is the heart and core of the community.
• The site will be fenced off from the general public – who will be allowed to use Bungendore Park ‘outside school hours’ is completely unsatisfactory, is discriminatory on the use of the park by the general population. It is contrary to the community use of the heritage nature of the park.

Heritage values and ownership
• The whole of Bungendore Park was first gazetted in 1884 and dedicated for public recreation.
o The meaning of ‘public’ would be considered for all the public recreation and not for recreation by a limited element of the public (ie school students).
o The reference in the gazettal to ‘public recreation’ would not appear to mean and is a different concept to public ‘education’.
• The proposed fencing of Bungendore Park to as part of the Bungendore High School will exclude the use of the land for ‘public recreation’ resulting in significant and legally questionable exclusive access to the Park, which is contrary to the original purpose of the purpose of the land in the original dedication in 1884.
• The High School site also proposes to utilise parts of the Bungendore Common – which again has significant heritage value to Bungendore – and is listed as a heritage item in Schedule 5 of the Palerang Local Environment Plan.
• The Bungendore Common is for use by all Bungendore people – not just those associated with the High School. Again, closing access to the Common for the exclusive use by one section of the community is contrary to the intended purpose of the use and designation of the Common.
• The Bungendore Park and Common areas are Crown Land under the Crown Land and Management Act.
o The notion of Crown Land is that it belongs to the people – and requires particular processes for the use of this land to be exclusive use for one section of the community.
• Any proposed compulsory acquisition of the Bungendore Park area – is anathema to the proper processes for the purchase of Crown Land assets.
o Such action would really question the political motivation behind the decision making concerning this project.

Other issues
• In compromising the planning processes to make it meet the Deputy Premier’s announcement, a number of compromises have been identified at this early stage in the project:
o The site is almost 3 acres smaller than the Government’s own minimum standards for siting of new high schools.
o The site and the allocation of the number of students who will be able to fit into the site is immediately compromised.
o Bungendore is growing at such a rapid rate that the high school will be inadequate in terms of size and spacing requirements from Day 1.
• There are a number of very suitable alternative sites in the immediate vicinity of Bungendore, which I understand the Department was investigating, but which further investigation of was halted with the unexpected announcement by the Minister.
• The whole project will cause significant traffic problems.

I have not, and no associate of mine, has made any political donation to any person in the 2 years preceding this submission.

I support the Bungendore High School proposed location. The location is:
- central to the town and the primary school.
- encourages the students to walk and ride bikes to school instead of taking cars and buses.
- easy for high school students to go to after school jobs in the town centre.
- the high school is the right size, any bigger and the education experience goes away for the school kids. As the town grows, a second high school and primary school could be built in the locations of the new development areas. This would support growth of other ammenities such as grocery store, bakery, etc in these locations.
- in combination with the new sports hub and new playground, Bungendore is growing and it is welcoming to see support for the people living in Bungendore and not just those passing through the town.

I have been a resident of Bungendore for 7.5yrs and in that time I have had 2 children attend high school out of the area. This high school is essential for the youth of our community to make local connections, enjoy more down time after school to attend recreational activities and local jobs. It will be an asset to the town and the proposed design and location are spot on!

This is a formal OBJECTION to SSDA 14394209 regards the current proposal to build a High School in Bungendore at location Part 6-14 Butmaroo Street (Mick Sherd Oval/Bungendore Park), 2, 4-6 & 10 Marjara Street, Butmaroo Street (Part Lot 701 DP 96240) and portion of Majara Street bewtwen Turallo Terrace and Gibraltar Street Bungendore. I OBJECT to a High School going in this small area of our town and taking over our park which is on crown land. I object to the rushed planning of this High School on this small area of land and the changes it will make to our village. I OBJECT to the way in which our community has been lied to and led to believe that this was the only site available when there was a far better already planned choice on Tarago Road. I OBJECT to the lack of consultation with the community prior to the announcement of a High School. I OBJECT to the way our community is being treated by the Department of Education who refuses to listen to the growing number of people who think this is the wrong place to build the high school and that the first choice out of town on Tarago Road is was and is the best choice for all concerned.
There is also the concern of the possible Indigenous grave near where the High School is going to go that no-one seems to care about. That John Barilaro and the Dept on EDU seem to think is just local folk law but I believe has not been properly investigated and it should be. I was unable to attach the information I have but can if you wish to see it.
Please take these comments as a FORMAL OBJECTION to the above SSDA”.
Regards, Sharon Rasker

I FORMALLY OBJECT TO SSDA 14394209 on the grounds that section 7.7.3 Archaeological Impacts has not been dealt with properly by either the QPRC or the Department of Education. The grave just down from the rotundra is not a myth and is known by some of the older local residents who used to play on it when they came out of school. It is not local folk-law and needs to be investigated further not just brushed under the carpet by certain ex-politicians. I have 4 documented I wish to submit, which you may have already seen but this site does not seem to allow me to attach them so I wills end them directly to Tahlia Alexander to attach to my application. QPRC have stated that they did a second GPR test and the second time round it proved to be tree roots. But there was a grave here, whether it be that of an aboriginal child, a bushranger or a chinaman (these are all possible) this grave site area needs to be investigated further. I am extremely disappointed that since I have found out about this story from the late Colin Daniel through an interview for the Scouts and me hounding council to do something about it that some 9 years on I am still having to ask fro something to be done. I had even asked Shane Mortimer, a Ngambri Elder to look into this for me and meet with him at the site, but as he already has so much he is working on for his people I can only assume he has not as yet had time to look into it further. Please look into this further.

I object to the current SSDA concerning the development of a high school in Bungendore on and adjacent to Bungendore Park.

That said, I am highly supportive of the NSW Government and the Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council engaging in genuine consultation with the community of Bungendore and region, with a view to developing and building a high school on an appropriate site in Bungendore, but definitely not the one envisaged in the present SSDA.

It has been a great disappointment to see how poorly the process has been conducted so far. Clearly there have been behind-the-scenes, closed-door, negotiation between some interested parties, with neither the NSW Government nor Council engaging in any genuine consultation with the community, concealing key pieces of information from the community, and making numerous mistakes in the design process.

It is my understanding that there are more than one excellent sites for a high school on the edges of Bungendore that are large enough to create a school with scope for expansion in the number of students as time goes on. Indeed, I understand that negotiations were at an advanced stage with a landowner on Tarago Road, to acquire land for the high school there, but these negotiations were cut off by the Government for no reason that has been made public.

I also wish to emphasise the fact that the proposed location, namely Bungendore Park, is not only inappropriate in terms of the amount of space available but, importantly, building a school there means destroying this key part of Bungendore. As you know, Bungendore Park was dedicated for community purposes during the colonial era. It forms the very heart of Bungendore. It is unimaginable that government authorities would destroy that wonderful resource when far better sites are available for the high school.

In conclusion, I congratulate the NSW Government for its commitment to build a high school for the Bungendore and region communities, but object in the strongest terms to doing so at the currently proposed Bungendore Park location.

- The site is extensively used by the community of all ages for active recreation and social inter-actions that contribute to the social fabric of the town. The proximity to local retail and service businesses is key to this function. There is no substitute site for these activities that is easily accessible by pedestrians close to the business area of the town and free from flooding. In contrast, there are other places where a high school could be located.
- The claim that other suitable sites are not available for a high school in Bungendore is false.
- The process for selecting this site is lacking transparency and does not appear to have been made with best value to the community in mind.
- The process of consulting with the community has been hugely inadequate and lacking good faith. The first community survey did not allow for any comment about the site location at all even though this was clearly a concern being voiced at the time. Reporting has also misrepresented comment received, for example by choosing to allocate responses as for or against the high school in ways that ignored the intent of the response.
- The site is small even for a high school for 450 students with limited options for expansion. The design has not taken into account the projected increase in population. The only options for expansion are to further encroach on the Bungendore Park and other community facilities nearby.
- Locating a high school on this site will disrupt current traffic flows in the Bungendore CBD and to Elmslea. The Traffic Study in the EIS is based on a survey of existing traffic on just one day and limited time periods. There is no consideration of the impacts of closing Majara Street. Even with the limited scope considered, the Traffic Study predicts considerably more congestion at the site. There doesn’t appear to be consideration of the impacts of this congestion on businesses, services and residents nearby. Given the constraints of the site and surrounding roads, there seems little scope to ameliorate traffic congestion issues if the problems turn out to be more significant than predicted.
The use of this site for a high school for Bungendore makes no sense. Bungendore is a small country town with limited community facilities often funded by the community not a big city where high schools sometimes need to be squeezed into small spaces.

This submission is an addition to my previous one. If possible, it would be great if there was a way to include an outdoor space for playgroup as part of the community centre. It doesn't have to be big but I do see outdoor play and time as important to not just the wellbeing of children but their parents. It may be that they have access to a shared space with the school or alternatively that they use the Scout Hall instead but at no additional cost to the group.

There is widespread deeply held concerns regarding the use of the Park for the High School. This land was set aside by the Bungendore forefathers for community use not to be whittled away and diminished by another project. Using up limited green space in the heritage area of the village is totally unreasonable and unnecessary. Especially when there is so much green field land around Bungendore. Added to this, the size of the high school does not meet the current NSW Department of Education regulations for a high school of this size. Another complicating issue is the use of the Common as the high school's agriculture land, given that this area floods on regular occasions.
I have deeply held concerns for the mental health of the young people who will be attending the high school. If the high school is co-located with the primary school they will not feel a sense of moving on and growing with their lives and the degree of physical constraint in this cramped site is extremely limiting.
There is such a magnificent opportunity to create a specialist high school in Bungendore. This region has the highest horse ownership in Australia. The high school would be able to have equine classes, horticulture, farming techniques, solar and wind power. There are so many amazing options for our young people but the bigger adolescent bodies need substantially more space. What a terrible and short sighted plan this is.
The community really needs a high school but NOT at any price.

I support the need and concept a high school in Bungendore. I do object to the proposed location and the flow on affects it creates.
Th e foot print this proposed high school will take up in a small village is considerable. This proposal has already stopped the popular housing project for disadvantaged elderly.
To remove the park from the centre of this village is also of concern and would be of great loss. The economic benefit this community parks brings to Bungendore is significant. People travelling through Bungendore use this as a place of rest (driver reviver concept). On my travels around Australia I see many parks either directly in or within a comfortable and safe walking distance of the towns centre, many people use these places. There is no primary or high school on that central spot. I bring you attention to country town parks such as Goulburn, Braidwood, Queanbeyan, Wangareta, Holbrook, Tallem Bend, Wagga and the list continues. A park in the central location of a rural town is extremely important. Then if NSW policy about surrounding schools with fences is also adopted on this proposed project it will destroy the ambiance on this village and provide negative images. As noted in the beginning the High School Proposal is agreed - however the location needs to be reconsidered, and no argument has really been provided about why not the previous proposed location. The economic and community disruption this proposal, as is creates does not add up to any win win situation. thank you for your time and consideration.

Dear Sir or Madam,
I refer to the above state-significant development application. I object to the proposal for the following reasons:
The proposed site is just not suitable for a High School, it is directly in the centre of a heritage village and is too small to adhere to the Department of Educations own rules of the size of a High School. The traffic implications on surrounding residential homes would be not only be detrimental to the privacy of many homes but also to the safety of young children and elderly residents occupying these homes. These home owners would also lose a significant amount of capital in their lifelong investments in their homes - some to the extent of hundreds of thousands of dollars! The traffic study was not carried out with sufficient clarity as to how much traffic would increase. An arterial road would be closed and would further impact traffic around the area. Many public ameneties are to be removed including the public pool, the public fitness equipment, the public cricket nets, a large section of off leash dog area and limited access to the public oval will be put in place. The fact that a perfectly suitable site was approved and had room to expand in the future but was 'very suddenly' rejected is paramount to my objection as I see this as an underhanded, secretly carried out approval to simply off load the now defunct Council Chambers to the Education Department.
The Community of Bungendore will greatly suffer in the long term if this High School was built directly in the Centre of the Village. It is not fit for purpose or legally planned and has no scope for growth already happening in and around the region.
I have not and no associate of mine have made any political donation to any person in the 2 years preceding this submission.
Yours faithfully,
Edwina Webster

My objection is to the proposed location for the high school.

I am concerned and disturbed by the impact that a large, new, project in the centre of the town will have on the heritage and community values.

Bungendore has grown considerably in the past years, and much of the development has resulted from the purchase and bulldozing of older residential properties and replacing them with unsympathetic structures. The centre of the town is the only area that retains any heritage value, has publicly accessibly open space and the War memorial. A high school there would remove community access to the open space, ruin the heritage value and appearance of the town and not allow appropriate access to the war memorial. There is little room for growth, other than to purchase residential properties nearby and to use the remaining areas of the park.

Please don’t contribute to the further destruction of our town by placing a high school in the middle, rather than in a more suitable green fields site.

I believe this to be the wrong location for the high school due to the heritage nature of the surrounding streets, proximity to the railway line, size of the site is to small and its inability to manage traffic in the surrounding streets.

I am opposed to this proposal which appears to affect the appeal of Bungendore’s institutional precinct and public park. In addition, the demolition and loss of the swimming pool, the playing fields and creekside park which are immensely appreciated and enjoyed by the local population and close by residents would have a devastating effect. For nor real reasons. They are so many other land options to consider.

I understand that Bungendore is growing rapidly and this fact will affect the future size of the proposed school. This will not be able to be accommodated on the proposed site.
I have learned that the Department of Planning investigated the proposal to build a school on a Greenfields site, close to the town, and in particular close to the Elmslea Estate, the major part of new development.
I truly support this idea as it makes sense. It is easily accessible to children from all parts of town and its region. The site is vacant of buildings and would have had plenty of space for sport, recreation and carpark.

The development of a high school in Bungendore is incredibly important, but forcing a school on some unsuitable land in the heart of the village is not the way to go about it.
The proposed site will provide a sub-par outcome for the locality and the children. Children deserve a well designed, well organised and focused school. The population of Bungendore is expected to rise and this school will be too small in the very near future.
There is an issue of a portion of the land being crown land, and not QPRC land, therefore is not available for use as a school. It is important to follow due process with land acquisition.
Furthermore, splitting a school across a road is simply poor planning, with the AG Plot, there are more suitable sites for a consolidated, well connected school in close proximity to the council's proposal.
The requirements to close roads, and to realign them seems to show a blatant lack of good planning. The best option for a school is not to shoe horn it into the centre of a town, but to create a consolidated plot with enough space for the growing population.

The proposal should be re-evaluated and moved from it's current position. There should be a focus on good planning outcomes for the village, the children and the council in that order, not to re-purpose council assets in a poor manner.

I am supportive of a high school but not in the proposed location. The school will need room for growth in order to properly support Bungendore's growing population. The proposed location is not only too small but will rip the heart out of the village with the loss of recreation and green space amenities. Furthermore, it would seem that no thought has been given to traffic problems, not only accessing both schools and providing parking for teachers and senior students, but the effect it will have on surrounding streets and through traffic. I am also concerned about the loss of heritage and the appearance of the school being at odds with one of the oldest parts of the village.

I am not in favour of the proposed location for the new high school in Bungendore. There will be significant loss of public amenity to the residents of Bungendore and also visitors to our town. To purchase land when more suitable and larger parcels of land have been offered for no cost by developers is ludicrous. Is there no accountability for the public purse?

18 October 2021

Director - Social and Infrastructure Assessments
Planning and Assessment
Department of Planning, Industry and Environment
Locked Bag 5022
Parramatta NSW 2124
Dear Sir or Madam
NEW HIGH SCHOOL IN BUNGENDORE
APPLICATION NO. SSD-14394209

I refer to the above state-significant development application.

I strongly object to the proposal, for the following reasons:
• The planning process has been opaque and appears to have been improperly influenced by the outgoing Member for Monaro and Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council.
• There has been no meaningful community consultation. The community is strongly opposed to the proposed site.
• The council is proposing to use compulsory acquisition powers to subvert the policy and legislative requirements around the sale of Council and Crown Land assets.
• No assessment has been done of the non-heritage buildings and other artefacts in the area.
• Council has ignored recommendations prepared by heritage advisors they retained.
• Bungendore Park, also know as Mick Sherd Oval, belongs to the people of Bungendore. It can’t be sold off by the council. It is illegal under the Crown Land Management Act.
• The traffic situation on Gibraltar Street and Turallo Terrace will be chaotic and dangerous to pedestrians, drivers and local residents. It will also significantly impact on Bungendore Public School and Bungendore Preschool.
• The proposed road closure will deny access to residents. This is illegal under the Roads Act. This road is also frequently used by Bungendore emergency services (SES, RFS and ambulance) as the quickest and easiest access to McCusker Drive in the Elmslea estate.
• Lead has recently been found on the railway corridor near the new site. The earth in and around that rail corridor should not be touched until a proper investigation has been done.
• The proposed school will be too small and overcrowded within within 3 years (maximum) of opening. It hasn’t taken the proposed subdivisions and resulting population expansion into account.
• We will lose our swimming pool, with only a vague promise that it will be rebuilt somewhere else and no funding has been reserved to do this.
• The site is smaller than the minimum required under Department of Education guidelines.

I have not, and no associate of mine, has made any political donation to any person in the 2 years preceding this submission