news, act-politics, Ginninderra Estate, Access Canberra, Andrew Barr, Mick Gentleman, Ginninderry, Stockdill substation, power lines and towers Holt
An ACT government bungle has left home buyers in the dark about massive electricity towers and lines erected outside their houses at one of Canberra’s newest estates. The error at government agency Access Canberra stopped people learning of the infrastructure project before they bought homes at Ginninderra Estate in Holt. Residents had owned the new homes for several months before they were told in 2019 that ACT government-approved, 50-metre high electricity towers and lines would be installed outside the back of their Lionel Rose Street properties. Chief Minister Andrew Barr and Planning Minister Mick Gentleman admitted an error at Access Canberra stopped the infrastructure project appearing during property checks for home buyers. ACT electricity network operators TransGrid last year erected the towers and lines, connecting them to a new power substation near the Ginninderry development in a project to protect Canberra’s electricity supply from disruption. Residents say the 330kV lines buzz in the day, make howling noises during wind and have obstructed views of trees and the Magpies Belconnen golf course that attracted them to the properties. Despite admitting to the government’s bungle, Mr Barr has rejected one resident’s request for compensation, saying the home buyer had not tried other remedies available, including legal action. While some residents concerned about possible health effects of the power lines have sold their houses and moved, others have been unable to leave and fear they won’t be able to sell their properties. When Renate Cameron and her daughter purchased a home together at Ginninderra Estate, in Canberra’s north-west, they dreamed of family barbecues and gatherings there for decades to come. Months after they moved into their new house on Lionel Rose Street, a steel tower and power lines were erected in the easement directly outside their property. Ms Cameron measures the distance between the back wall of her property to the centre of the tower at about 20 metres. “I just don’t want to be here,” she said. Out of concern for her health and her dogs, Ms Cameron has bought a new house in Casey, away from transmission lines. She will move to the Gungahlin suburb next year. Ms Cameron is still worried for her daughter and grandson, who will have to remain at the Lionel Rose Street house, and fears they won’t be able to sell with the eyesore out their back door. “They’ve taken our view away, we thought we’d be looking out at the golf course,” Ms Cameron said. “At night time you hear this buzzing noise and you think it’s mosquitoes but it’s the power lines. “It’s just horrible.” Ms Cameron’s daughter approached the ACT government about the towers, which did not appear in a conveyancing report completed by her lawyer when the family bought the land. She has also taken the matter to the ACT Ombudsman. The home owner also wrote to Mr Barr requesting compensation through an “act of grace payment”, which he can authorise as Treasurer in special circumstances. Ms Cameron said trying to understand the possible health effects of the electricity transmission lines and towers had been confusing, and her family had received no direct answers from government or Transgrid. “If there are health problems, they could come years down the track,” she said. The ACT government said the new power lines were located to keep exposure to electromagnetic fields within Australian standards. It said an environmental impact statement in 2018 found the project was not expected to change the existing electromagnetic field conditions for surrounding properties. “TransGrid has committed to addressing concerns directly with residents near the transmission line and will also provide formal advice to the technical regulator regarding those concerns,” a government spokesman said. The government said it approved the closest tower to be located 20 metres from the block boundary, and more than 25 metres from a residential block. All other towers were more than 30 metres away from block boundaries in Ginninderra Estate, a government spokesman said. A former resident, who did not want to be named, bought a house on Lionel Rose Street in February 2019 after being attracted by the estate’s tranquility, its views of the mountains and golf course, and its public playground for his children. It was also affordable for his young family. He had owned the house for six months when Transgrid told him the power lines and towers would be erected outside the back of his property. The former resident said he would not have bought the house had he known about the infrastructure project, which did not appear in a conveyancing report he received when purchasing. “How would you expect a prospective buyer to know of something like this unless the builder or their representative had disclosed this, or at the time of conveyancing, it shows up on the conveyancing report?,” he said. Once the lines were erected 30 metres away from his property in 2020, he could hear them buzzing and howling from inside his home. He decided to move, partly out of health concerns for his children. “It felt like we were living in a steel industrial jungle,” he said. “I’m sure any of [the government’s] ministers would not appreciate having something like that built in their backyard.” The resident also requested Mr Barr authorise an act of grace payment, however the Chief Minister wrote back in January saying it was a remedy of last resort. “While I find the situation to be unfortunate, I consider that other avenues of remedy available to you, such as legal recourse, have not been exhausted,” Mr Barr wrote. The former resident believes the Chief Minister has only “kicked the can down the road” and should take responsibility for the government’s error by providing compensation. He said the error continued to create financial and psychological stress for him and his family, which had incurred costs during the disruption. READ MORE: The former resident estimates the financial and psychological cost of the error totals hundreds of thousands of dollars, based on the expenses of selling, moving, and having to buy a new home with a larger mortgage in a different area. Moving homes will add an extra 40 minutes to the route needed to drop off his children at school. The ACT government said the proponent for Ginninderra Estate, Woodhaven Investments, had also been aware of the proposed electricity lines and towers, and was in a position to communicate the details to buyers. Planning Minister Mick Gentleman in February last year told MLAs the company sold blocks to homeowners in 2018. However, Woodhaven Investments director David O’Keeffe told The Canberra Times it sold the Lionel Rose Street blocks by December 2015. Government ministers say an ” administrative error” at Access Canberra separated the Ginninderra Estate blocks from the proposal for transmission towers and lines in its system. It stopped the development proposal from appearing in property conveyancing reports for home buyers. The ACT government said Access Canberra had made changes to prevent the error reoccurring. Acting Planning Minister Chris Steel in April last year told the Legislative Assembly the error affected 29 properties in the Ginninderra Estate development. A government spokesman said it informed the public about the power supply project in 2018 through development applications, the environmental impact statement and letters to then-surrounding lessees. It erected signs at the estate however residents said they did not see any when they looked at the properties. The spokesman said the 90 metre-wide easement next to Ginninderra Estate was created in 1970 in anticipation of Canberra requiring additional transmission lines. Planning Minister Mick Gentleman approved the electricity supply project in 2018 using his call-in powers, which authorise him to decide on developments that raise a major policy issue or provide a substantial benefit to the public. The new transmission lines and towers connect an existing electricity substation in Canberra’s north-west with a new substation on Stockdill Drive, near the Ginninderry development at Strathnairn. Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
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An ACT government bungle has left home buyers in the dark about massive electricity towers and lines erected outside their houses at one of Canberra’s newest estates.
The error at government agency Access Canberra stopped people learning of the infrastructure project before they bought homes at Ginninderra Estate in Holt.
Residents had owned the new homes for several months before they were told in 2019 that ACT government-approved, 50-metre high electricity towers and lines would be installed outside the back of their Lionel Rose Street properties.
Chief Minister Andrew Barr and Planning Minister Mick Gentleman admitted an error at Access Canberra stopped the infrastructure project appearing during property checks for home buyers.
A playground near the power lines on Lionel Rose Street in Ginninderra Estate, Holt. Picture: Keegan Carroll.
ACT electricity network operators TransGrid last year erected the towers and lines, connecting them to a new power substation near the Ginninderry development in a project to protect Canberra’s electricity supply from disruption.
Residents say the 330kV lines buzz in the day, make howling noises during wind and have obstructed views of trees and the Magpies Belconnen golf course that attracted them to the properties.
Despite admitting to the government’s bungle, Mr Barr has rejected one resident’s request for compensation, saying the home buyer had not tried other remedies available, including legal action.
While some residents concerned about possible health effects of the power lines have sold their houses and moved, others have been unable to leave and fear they won’t be able to sell their properties.
‘I don’t want to be here’
When Renate Cameron and her daughter purchased a home together at Ginninderra Estate, in Canberra’s north-west, they dreamed of family barbecues and gatherings there for decades to come.
Months after they moved into their new house on Lionel Rose Street, a steel tower and power lines were erected in the easement directly outside their property. Ms Cameron measures the distance between the back wall of her property to the centre of the tower at about 20 metres.
“I just don’t want to be here,” she said.
Out of concern for her health and her dogs, Ms Cameron has bought a new house in Casey, away from transmission lines. She will move to the Gungahlin suburb next year.
Renate Cameron, who bought a house with her daughter at Ginninderra Estate. Picture: Dion Georgopoulos
Ms Cameron is still worried for her daughter and grandson, who will have to remain at the Lionel Rose Street house, and fears they won’t be able to sell with the eyesore out their back door.
“They’ve taken our view away, we thought we’d be looking out at the golf course,” Ms Cameron said.
“At night time you hear this buzzing noise and you think it’s mosquitoes but it’s the power lines.
Ms Cameron’s daughter approached the ACT government about the towers, which did not appear in a conveyancing report completed by her lawyer when the family bought the land. She has also taken the matter to the ACT Ombudsman.
The home owner also wrote to Mr Barr requesting compensation through an “act of grace payment”, which he can authorise as Treasurer in special circumstances.
Ms Cameron said trying to understand the possible health effects of the electricity transmission lines and towers had been confusing, and her family had received no direct answers from government or Transgrid.
“If there are health problems, they could come years down the track,” she said.
The ACT government said the new power lines were located to keep exposure to electromagnetic fields within Australian standards.
It felt like we were living in a steel industrial jungle.
Former resident
It said an environmental impact statement in 2018 found the project was not expected to change the existing electromagnetic field conditions for surrounding properties.
“TransGrid has committed to addressing concerns directly with residents near the transmission line and will also provide formal advice to the technical regulator regarding those concerns,” a government spokesman said.
The government said it approved the closest tower to be located 20 metres from the block boundary, and more than 25 metres from a residential block. All other towers were more than 30 metres away from block boundaries in Ginninderra Estate, a government spokesman said.
A former resident, who did not want to be named, bought a house on Lionel Rose Street in February 2019 after being attracted by the estate’s tranquility, its views of the mountains and golf course, and its public playground for his children. It was also affordable for his young family.
He had owned the house for six months when Transgrid told him the power lines and towers would be erected outside the back of his property.
The former resident said he would not have bought the house had he known about the infrastructure project, which did not appear in a conveyancing report he received when purchasing.
“How would you expect a prospective buyer to know of something like this unless the builder or their representative had disclosed this, or at the time of conveyancing, it shows up on the conveyancing report?,” he said.
Once the lines were erected 30 metres away from his property in 2020, he could hear them buzzing and howling from inside his home. He decided to move, partly out of health concerns for his children.
The power lines and towers run through the Magpies Belconnen golf course near Ginninderra Estate. Picture: Keegan Carroll.
“It felt like we were living in a steel industrial jungle,” he said.
“I’m sure any of [the government’s] ministers would not appreciate having something like that built in their backyard.”
The resident also requested Mr Barr authorise an act of grace payment, however the Chief Minister wrote back in January saying it was a remedy of last resort.
“While I find the situation to be unfortunate, I consider that other avenues of remedy available to you, such as legal recourse, have not been exhausted,” Mr Barr wrote.
The former resident believes the Chief Minister has only “kicked the can down the road” and should take responsibility for the government’s error by providing compensation.
He said the error continued to create financial and psychological stress for him and his family, which had incurred costs during the disruption.
The former resident estimates the financial and psychological cost of the error totals hundreds of thousands of dollars, based on the expenses of selling, moving, and having to buy a new home with a larger mortgage in a different area. Moving homes will add an extra 40 minutes to the route needed to drop off his children at school.
The ACT government said the proponent for Ginninderra Estate, Woodhaven Investments, had also been aware of the proposed electricity lines and towers, and was in a position to communicate the details to buyers.
Planning Minister Mick Gentleman in February last year told MLAs the company sold blocks to homeowners in 2018.
However, Woodhaven Investments director David O’Keeffe told The Canberra Times it sold the Lionel Rose Street blocks by December 2015.
Government ministers say an ” administrative error” at Access Canberra separated the Ginninderra Estate blocks from the proposal for transmission towers and lines in its system. It stopped the development proposal from appearing in property conveyancing reports for home buyers.
The ACT government said Access Canberra had made changes to prevent the error reoccurring.
Acting Planning Minister Chris Steel in April last year told the Legislative Assembly the error affected 29 properties in the Ginninderra Estate development.
A government spokesman said it informed the public about the power supply project in 2018 through development applications, the environmental impact statement and letters to then-surrounding lessees. It erected signs at the estate however residents said they did not see any when they looked at the properties.
The spokesman said the 90 metre-wide easement next to Ginninderra Estate was created in 1970 in anticipation of Canberra requiring additional transmission lines.
Planning Minister Mick Gentleman approved the electricity supply project in 2018 using his call-in powers, which authorise him to decide on developments that raise a major policy issue or provide a substantial benefit to the public.
The new transmission lines and towers connect an existing electricity substation in Canberra’s north-west with a new substation on Stockdill Drive, near the Ginninderry development at Strathnairn.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
