TOURIST COMPLEX – LAVIS LANE SUBDIVISION

LACK OF BOTH TRANSPARENCY AND GOOD PLANNING CONTINUES

This Development Application for a four lot subdivision and “tourist complex” was advertised in the Examiner on Thursday 20 December…….   yes…. That’s one day before Council closed for the Christmas/New Year break. The closing date for objections was 16 January 2013. The public (and TRRA) only became aware of this DA when the Examiner featured it as a headline on 8 January HERE

This development is clearly an opportunistic commercial bid for windfall profits on private land, with no regard to sound planning principles and even for the proper process of a rezoning application before any DA. Past approval of DAs for major commercial and other developments on rural land have set an unfortunate precedent, which need not and should not be followed in this case. The need for proper limits on rural land development has been recognized in the draft LEP 2012, and Council should apply this long overdue policy in this case.

TRRA Inc made a submission HERE

The main concerns expressed by TRRA Inc relate to:

• Inadequate consultation period
• Inappropriate use in a rural zoning
• Inconsistency with strategic planning framework
• Flooding and Drainage to the Hunter River
• Possible water contamination from sewerage
• Misleading title being listed as a Tourist Complex
• Traffic
• Landscaping Buffer Zones
• Aircraft noise

Another version of this development on this site was refused on numerous grounds by the Planning Department of NSW in 2004.