The residents of Double Bay have won the fight against property developer Ashington which had been seeking Labor Government approval to build fifteen story towers in Cross Street, Double Bay, on the site of the current Stamford Hotel.
 
The Planning Minister has finally rejected the high-rise proposal.
 
This refusal is a very welcome decision in favour of the community and a long overdue kick in the guts for a greedy developer. Ashington's proposal should have been rejected by the Government on day one and, in due course, I want to see an Inquiry into why the developers thought they could prostitute the planning system and get away with such a brazen betrayal of the community.
 
The decision to build the tower was never a popular one, with many demonstrations against the high-rise building over the past twelve months. If the Ashington tower had gone ahead then residents in Double Bay, Darling Point, Bellevue Hill and Woollahra would have all been staring at the high rise building.
 
I have kept pressure on the Minister for Planning and raised the issue in Parliament on several occasions. While the Double Bay decision was a win for the community, we need to ensure changes are made to prevent developers trying the same rort again.

The Ashington High Rise would only exacerbate an already overloaded transport system and if Labor approved the Double Bay project it would be evidence they would approve high-rise in any suburb of Sydney.