Nicholls and Billyard Pty Ltd v Port Stephens Council [2000] NSWLEC 221

Land and Environment Court of New South Wales

CITATION : Nicholls and Billyard Pty Ltd v Port Stephens Council [2000] NSWLEC 221 APPLICANT: Nicholls and Billyard Pty Ltd PARTIES : RESPONDENT: Port Stephens Council FILE NUMBER(S) : 10154 of 2000 CORAM: Bignold J KEY ISSUES: Practice & Procedure :- Class 1 consent orders in participation by local resident objector - Appropriate course to make consent orders granting development consent subject to conditions (enhanced to satisfy objector's concerns). LEGISLATION CITED: Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, s 97 CASES CITED: DATES OF HEARING: 20 July 2000 EX TEMPORE 07/20/2000 JUDGMENT DATE :

APPLICANT: Mr J Kildea, Barrister SOLICITORS

LEGAL REPRESENTATIVES: RESPONDENT: Mr D Gray, Solicitor SOLICITORS Sparke Helmore

JUDGMENT: IN THE LAND AND Matter No . 10154 of 2000 ENVIRONMENT COURT OF Coram : Bignold J. NEW SOUTH WALES 20 July 2000

NICHOLLS AND BILLYARD PTY LIMITED

Applicant

v

PORT STEPHENS COUNCIL

Respondent

JUDGMENT

Bignold J:

1. This is an appeal pursuant to section 97 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 against the decision of the Council refusing a subdivision proposal on land known as lot 111 Deposited Plan 592368 situate at 285 Gan Gan Road, Anna Bay.

2. The Council's determination as notified to the Applicant on 23 December 1999 refusing development consent advanced seven separate reasons for the Council's decision. I will not stay to recite each and every one of the reasons other than to note that they addressed such matters as environmental sensitivity of the land, especially by virtue of the likely presence of koala, wallum froglet and powerful owl fauna. The land contained a large proportion of acid sulfate soils. The land was low lying and was likely to be surrounded by slow flowing water during prolonged rainfall and the downstream landowners, which had formed themselves into a union called the Anna Bay Drainage Union, were opposed to receiving additional urban runoff from the proposed development.