Ocean Reef Marina
Ocean Reef Marina is a development project in Ocean Reef, Western Australia to construct a new marina with commercial and residential areas at the existing Ocean Reef Boat Harbour. The site is being developed by DevelopmentWA; construction of its two breakwaters started in April 2021, with the whole project. A marina in the area of Mullaloo and Ocean Reef had been proposed in 1973.
History
1970s
A plan for a marina at Ocean Reef was first proposed in early 1973 when Urban Systems Corporation commissioned a report for Kaiser Aetna Australia called the Marina Development in Perth: A Market Survey Analysis. The report investigated and established that there was a need for alternative marina and recreational facilities in Perth as the boating pens on the Swan River had become congested. Though the Ocean Reef Marina concept was the idea of a developer it was incorporated into a Government of Western Australia Metropolitan Report Planning Authority document in April 1973 as a Concept Plan.By April 1974, developers Kaiser Aetna Australia and AVJennings had commissioned another report from the Urban Systems Corporation called the Ocean Reef Marina at Mullaloo - Report No 2 . The Ocean Reef area at that time consisted of in the Shire of Wanneroo and consisted of sand plains, dunes and limestone outcrops and a proposed suburb with a future population of 31,000. Land was owned as crown land by the Shire of Wanneroo while land below the high water mark was owned by the Public Works Department. Under section 116 of the Lands Act 1933, waterfront property could only be leased for twenty-one years while the developers would have needed a longer lease of 50 years if the project was to proceed. Three types of marinas were proposed, to be located at the north end of the West Coast Highway in Mullaloo, close to where it ended just after its intersection with Korella Street.
The first 1974 proposal was for a marina of and 500 vessels or more costing $1.8 million. A second proposal for a harbour of and 450 boats costing $1,452,700 and lastly for a protected boat launching area for $292,000. The second proposal was chosen as the preferred option with the report outlying a plan for a harbour, a residential community, shops, and tourist and recreational facilities. Early environmental issues identified were possible seasonal sand accumulation in harbour and constraints as to how much limestone rock for the breakwater could come from the land around the harbour site. Other problems identified included rising land elevations and the location of the reef offshore.
The chosen proposal outlined a marina of 450 boat pens that would include launching ramps for the public, commercial facilities related to boating and maintenance such as fuel, boat repairs, chandlers and showrooms with the marina becoming the community centre for the future Ocean Reef suburb with shops, taverns, a theatre and meeting hall. A tourist centre was also proposed with a hotel and restaurant and a residential area with ninety high to medium homes.
Between mid-1974 and mid-1975, the Shire of Wanneroo joined with Kaiser, to share the costs needed to investigate the ocean and beach environments around the proposed marina site, publishing an interim report in October 1974. A final report was presented to the council in June 1977 after further investigations were conducted from December 1976 co-ordinating previous work while further oceanographic and biological studies were conducted. The Environmental Protection Agency then requested that two Environmental Review and Management Programme be developed before granting approval.
The Public Works Department investigated three possible marina sites at the Pinnaroo Point, the Ocean Reef Private Marina site and the North Mullaloo Outfall Site as part of their Ocean Reef Boat Launching - Environmental Review and Management Programme. The Pinnaroo Point site at Whitfords was excluded due to the cost of littoral drift passing, limited land at the Whitford Nodes and beaches that were more suitable for recreational beach activities. The Ocean Reef Private Marina site, on the Mullaloo / Ocean Reef border, from a 1974 proposal by developer Kaiser, was discounted after concern over the accumulation of sand at Mullaloo Beach by littoral drift that would be caused by the proposed breakwater and could cause sand to be blown across the new suburbs. There was also a concern that a downdrift at northern beaches such as Burns Beach would cause sand there to be lost due to the breakwater. The last site, North Mullaloo Outfall Site was the location of the Water Corporation's sewerage outfall site for its future Beenyup wastewater treatment plant near Beldon, was very close to proposed Ocean Reef Private Marina site. This became the preferred site for a number of reasons including groynes that had already been built for the outfall site and land cleared for that development, additional land around the site and the Mullaloo and proposed Ocean Reef land developments nearby. Due to the existing groynes and the rocky coast made the management of the littoral drift at the site less costly.
These two ERMP's were presented to the EPA in February 1978, one from the Public Works Department concerning the marine and nearshore environments and the other from the Shire concerning the onshore development. The development was subject to a 30-day public review in March 1978 before the EPA granted permission for a Stage 1 development on 20 April 1978 subject to a development management plan by the Shire concerning cliffs, caves, coves, heath and limestone pinnacles. Any further developments would require a further submission assessing Stage 1 and another management plan. Stage one consisted of a breakwater, four launching sites with piers, parking for two hundred cars and trailers, toilets and changerooms, roads, drains and earthworks. The Shire of Wanneroo purchased Lot 1029 Ocean Reef from Kaiser Aetna for land required to service the marina. The price paid was $525,000.
On 2 December 1979, the Ocean Reef Boat Harbour in Ocean Reef, was officially opened by Premier Charles Court. It was a joint project of the State Government and the Shire of Wanneroo and cost $1.6 million. It consisted of a harbour surrounded by a limestone breakwater and had four ramps capable of 200 boat launches.
1980s
In February 1984, it was proposed to the shire that there was an opportunity to involve the facilities in the shire, in a future event to be held of Fremantle, the 1987 America's Cup. Proposals included facilities for spectator boats and back-up facilities. At the time, there was a concept plan before council for a boat harbour south of the current Ocean Reef boat harbour as well as expansion of the site around the latter, while the former would become the future Hillarys Boat Harbour in 1988.During April 1984 the results Wanneroo Coastal Study Report was presented to Wanneroo Shire Council and it outlined the opportunities and constraints along the coast that it managed and identified areas for management development and conservation. In May 1984, Local Coastal Management Plan, part of the above study, was presented to council and was the basis for the development of a future Foreshore Management Plan. In June 1984, council decided that a Management Plan for the Ocean Reef Foreshore be commissioned and this would be one of the requirements needed by the EPA for approval for any future development of the site. The Ocean Reef - Foreshore Management Plan was presented to the Wanneroo Shire Council by Peter J Woods and Associates in August 1985. In October 1985, the council called for tender submissions to develop Lot 1029 at the Ocean Reef boat harbour with three submissions received and reviewed by council in February 1986 but all three failed. In December 1986, the city wrote to selected companies for submission for the site, but again in May 1987 these submission failed.
A private submission was made by the Ocean Reef Consortium to the City of Wanneroo in March 1987 for the purchase and development of part or all of Lot 1029 Ocean Reef. The city would be responsible for the rezoning and the development approvals, sought from the Western Australian government. The offer made was $1,050,000 for the land or $945,000 if the City of Wanneroo built the roads to the site. The area sought in the proposal consisted of land west of the existing boat harbour, sea sports club and sea rescue group.
The Ocean Reef Consortium's concept was for a residential concept consisting of a caravan park, holiday village and retirement village in the northwestern portion of the site. On the western side of the lot, the commercial side of the proposal consisted of a shopping centre, with supermarket, retail shops, offices fast foods, and medical centre plus a service centre and boat storage all opposite an Ocean Reef Road extension. The proposed hotel with motel units, would be on a high point close to the sea.
The retirement village would have 85 units and a community centre, a holiday village of 50 chalets, a caravan park of 185 bays with tennis courts, pool, and hall. A restaurant would be on the seaside and cater for 150 people. A lower leftover portion could be used in the future to be used as bowling and tennis clubs.
The proposed project was said to take seven years, two years for a new extension to Ocean Reef Road and an extension of Hodges Drive to the new Ocean Reef Road, stage 1 of the caravan park, a service station, boat storage, stage 1 of the chalets and retirement village. Within five years, completion of the shopping centre, retirement village, caravan and chalets area was expected with the hotel started. They also considered setting aside land for the city to erect a library.
The submission was not accepted up by the City of Wanneroo. In 1988, the council of City of Wanneroo requested a report to develop the site at the boat harbour.
The Draft: Report on a concept plan for an ocean reef recreation and tourist complex was developed in August 1988 by the City of Wanneroo's town planning department for the use of land around the current boat harbour and included land it did not own itself. For Lot 1029, owned by the City of Wanneroo, it proposed a hotel-convention of three stories, luxury holiday chalets or units, a cinema complex of 2 to 3 screens. Other things included for the site were six tennis and four squash courts, boat harbour support facilities such as chandlers, sales and fishing and sports equipment. The tourist and commercial facilities were to include small shops catering for tourists, fast food stores and offices. A public recreation and amphitheatre were to be included with an ornamental lake with grassed picnic area, botanic golf, with several restaurants but close to the sea. Lastly car and trailer parking, cycleways plus and extension to existing harbour with the possibility of two new launch ramps.
For Lot 1000, north of Lot 1029 and owned by the State Planning Commission, it was proposed that the land be used for a caravan park and another restaurant close to the sea. While Lot 1032 owned by the City of Wanneroo would be included in the proposal. Lot 1033, south of Lot 1029, and owned by the Water Authority of WA, after the completion of a second 2 km outfall pipe in 1991, it was proposed that the land above the pipelines be used for a private recreation centre with three tennis courts and swimming pool, an indoor sports stadium and health club plus car parks and another commercial tourist centre.
The last piece of land, Lot 4, owned by the State Planning Commission, as were the proposed marina be constructed south of the existing boat harbour. The proposal included a time-share resort there too.