Plan change could open door to aged care service near Denmark town centre

A new aged care service could be coming to Denmark, as councillors prepare to vote on a structure plan change that would allow a facility to be built near Horsley Road. Prepared for Amaroo Village Aged Care, the change would allow a centre to be developed at the corner of Horsley and Rockford roads. The lot is just over 1km north of Denmark’s town centre, with Amaroo Care Services identifying it as of adequate size, readily serviced and in a pleasant area. If the plan is endorsed, it will be a step towards a new aged care facility. However in a report to the council ahead of Tuesday’s meeting, Shire of Denmark officers stressed a structural plan amendment would not mean an aged care facility was locked in. “Deciding to amend the structure plan before the details of the eventual development are known can create a situation where the council, and the community, feel the subsequent development application is a ‘fait accompli’,” the report said. “The alternative is that the applicant is required to prepare detailed plans for the facility but then finds that council, or the WA Planning Commission, are unwilling to amend the structure plan to accommodate it. It needs to be clear that the current process is a proposal to amend the structure plan only. “The structure plan is the guiding document that serves to co-ordinate development across multiple landholdings and highlight issues for addressing at subsequent subdivision and development stages of the development process.”