Warringah Council v Ulrich [2012] NSWLEC 234

Land and Environment Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Warringah Council v Ulrich [2012] NSWLEC 234 Hearing dates: 10, 11 and 12 October 2012 Decision date: 19 October 2012 Jurisdiction: Class 4 Before: Pepper J Decision: See judgment at [100]. Catchwords: CIVIL ENFORCEMENT - non-compliance with orders by council to remove collected items from residential property - whether orders breached - whether appropriate to order the removal of material - nature of further relief ordered - whether applicant to pay council's costs. Legislation Cited: Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 ss 76A, 121B, 121H, 121ZJ, 122, 123

Local Government Act 1993 ss 124, 132, 672, 678 Cases Cited: Council of the City of Sydney v The Estate of the Late Alfred Sulligoi care of The Public Trustee [2007] NSWLEC 778

Manly Council v Moffitt [2006] NSWLEC 184; (2006) 146 LGERA 215

North Sydney Council v Wouters [2012] NSWLEC 94

Warringah Council v Ulrich [1999] NSWLEC 227

Waverley Council v Bobolas (No 2) [2009] NSWLEC 211 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Warringah Council (Applicant) Joachim Ulrich (Respondent) Representation: Mr A Hudson (solicitor) (Applicant) Mr J Ulrich (in person) (Respondent) Wilshire Webb Staunton Beattie (Applicant) N/A (Respondent) File Number(s): 40983 of 2011

Judgment

Mr Ulrich is a Collector 1The respondent, Mr Joachim Ulrich, is a collector of items that others have thrown away. Until 2004, when his van was the subject of an arson attack and was firebombed, he drove around collecting goods that other people had discarded or no longer had any use for, thus proving the adage that one person's trash is another person's treasure. After the use of his van ceased in 2004, he collected these items on foot, usually transporting them to his residence with the aid of strollers, also collected "in the usual way". He has engaged in this practice over many decades. The items range from televisions, video tapes, taps, clothing, tins of food, books, and include a myriad of other items. Some of the material is collected for personal use, some is recycled, and some is repaired and resold. The items are generally stored in organised piles on his property. 2Mr Ulrich stores the items he collects at his property located at 17 Ballyshannon Road, Killarney Heights, or Lot 21 Sec 80 DP758566 ("the premises"). Killarney Heights is a suburb located in the Warringah local government area. It is a quiet residential suburb, characterised by separate single and two storey dwellings. The suburb is leafy and green and is in close proximity to a national park. 3At first, the collected items were stored inside the dwelling located on the premises. But over the decades, the dwelling became full, causing Mr Ulrich to move and live outside on the premises, which he has done for the past eight years. Once the house had reached maximum storage capacity, the collected items overflowed into Mr Ulrich's front and rear yards, onto his driveway and around the sides of his house and onto two verandas at the rear of his house. 4Because he now lives in his front yard, rather ingeniously, Mr Ulrich has constructed sleeping quarters in his front yard and an outdoor living area, where he cooks, eats meals, reads, watches television and listens to music. 5Some, but not all, of Mr Ulrich's neighbours object to the collected and stored items visible not only from Ballyshannon Road, but also from at least one property situated across the road, and from another immediately adjacent to, the premises. Consequently, there have been complaints to the council by neighbours about the unsightly nature of the premises, odours emanating from the premises and disturbance late at night caused by the noise from Mr Ulrich's television set and stereo. But apart from these activities which Mr Ulrich engages in upon his premises, he otherwise keeps to himself and does not disturb others. Mr Ulrich is in his late sixties or early seventies. He lives alone and is not employed.