Luke Howarth (Petrie, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Community Housing, Homelessness and Community Services) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak about a very topical issue in my electorate of Petrie. That issue is the development of the North Lakes golf course. You only have to look at the map of the suburbs of North Lakes and Mango Hill in the western part of my electorate to notice the large green space in which these suburbs not only are situated but also based around. Many families have told me that their choice to purchase a home in North Lakes or Mango Hill was largely influenced by the 68 hectares of beautiful green golf course space which is available for families to enjoy in their own backyards. It's not just the golf course and the trees that grow there but the kangaroos, the koalas, the reptiles and amphibians that live on the golf course—the swans on Lake Eden.

Sadly, part of this is at risk because this golf course, whilst at the moment the lungs of North Lakes, is at risk of being developed. This was brought to my attention in 2018 and has very quickly become a huge issue for locals. More than 200 residents turned out to peacefully protest the development of this land in July last year and, since then, residents have continued to express their disgust at the thought of overdevelopment and congestion within their community if this project goes ahead.

The village retirement group is proposing to build a three-storey retirement home on roughly 11 hectares of the land in the middle of this green space, and this isn't just a few houses on a golf course. The footprint of this development is equal to the size of Westfield North Lakes. If locals looked at the recently distributed North Lakes Common propaganda brochure and thought it looked too good to be true, that's because it probably is. The promise of parks, sporting fields and a fitness precinct on the remainder of the land comes at a price. Whether you're renting as a resident in North Lakes or buying your own home, this will have an effect on your family's lifestyle due to the cost of wildlife displacement, the cost of overdevelopment and much more traffic on the roads, which are already experiencing high congestion from people in North Lakes.

I want to be clear that I'm for development and progress, but it needs to be done in line with the needs of the community—and this project is not. This propaganda brochure recently put out made no mention of who is going to pay for the new fitness and community precinct. The people of North Lakes already pay a levy, and we want to make sure that council don't increase it. So I say to the Moreton Bay regional councillors: listen to the people of Petrie, listen to the people of North Lakes and do not allow this golf course to be developed.

See this speech in context