Lake Macquarie City Council will tonight decide whether to approve an application for a 40-room boarding house on Mulbinga Street in Charlestown.
Over 150 submissions against the proposal were received by council, among them an objection from Lake Macquarie Police who are urging council to knock down the development application.
A report which will be read at tonight's council meeting says the plan should go ahead if certain conditions are met, and will have positive outcomes for residents due to its proximity to local services.
The report recommends council approve the application, subject to conditions including the requirement for 3-month minimum lodging periods, and a 24-7 on-call manager for the site.
Councillor Barney Langford says he hasn't fully made a decision on how he will vote, but will carefully look at the pros and cons of the application.
"The need for affordable housing is both a local issue, a regional issue, and across Australia and we need these kinds of facilities," he said.
"I guess the question is 'is this facility going in the most appropriate location?'".
The biggest concerns against the proposal was the type of tenants who would occupy the boarding house which would be situated near a childcare centre and a local swimming pool.
Council will be told in the report the conditions of approval for the application will address those concerns but local police still are not convinced, predicting a potential rise in crime in the area.
Cr Langford Council says will be reviewing community feedback as it considers the application.
"People are concerned given the fact that there are childcare centres in the area and it's very close to the swimming pool,
"I guess the residents' concerns are that they don't have control over what the clientele will be who will be using that facility," he said.
Council can either approve, reject, or refer the application to the assessing officer to address issues raised.
The meeting will commence at 6:30pm tonight, July 8.
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| A report to Council recommends the proposal for the Mulbinga Street facility be approved. |
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| The proposal will be decided by council at tonight's Development and Planning meeting. |
