ROCKDALE Council has approved a two-storey child-care centre at Monterey despite strong resident opposition.
At the June 17 council meeting councillors passed a motion that would approve the Colson Crescent project as a deferred commencement, as long as three additional conditions were met.
These include design plans for an outside shade area and proposed basement roller door, and the submission of an acid sulphate soils management plan.
The approval was given despite 25 submissions and a petition with 44 signatures on it.
Councillors Shane O'Brien, James Macdonald, Ron Bezic, Bill Saravinovski, Petros Kalligas, Michael Nagi and Nicholas Mickovski voted for the motion.
Councillors Liz Barlow, Mark Hanna, Andrew Tsounis and Peter Poulos decided to vote against it.
Affected neighbours Michael Bartlett and Zhen Hua Yang spoke against the motion at the meeting.
"Although they're going to put underground parking in, there's no way in the world that a road as narrow as Colson Crescent can handle the traffic when only one car can get up and down a time," Mr Bartlett said.
"The second thing is that there's no lighting anywhere near that building, and with people getting road rage I can guarantee you that there is going to be a kid either maimed or killed.
"The road can't handle the traffic that you're trying to push onto it."
Mr Yang echoed those concerns.
"A childcare centre is important for the area," he said.
"But at the moment you can only have one car pass at a time."
Applicant Amal Atteya dismissed those claims.
"I used to live in that street for five years and I assure you there's no traffic going in or out at that time," she said.
"I have been in the industry for a good 23 years, I have background experience running a couple of child-care centres.
"Even on busy roads in all those years nothing has happened.
"Do you think that we are so silly as to put children at risk?
"There's no way we would put children at risk or in danger."
Do you approve of the childcare centre?
