Tregilgas v Newcastle City Council [2014] NSWLEC 1155

Land and Environment Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Tregilgas v Newcastle City Council [2014] NSWLEC 1155 Hearing dates: 5 - 6 August 2014 Decision date: 12 August 2014 Jurisdiction: Class 1 Before: Morris C Decision: Appeal upheld Catchwords: Development Application: alterations and additions, building envelope, whether objectives of the control are met Legislation Cited: Land and Environment Court Act 1979; Newcastle Local Environmental Plan 2012; Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 Texts Cited: Newcastle Development Control Plan 2012 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Warwick James Tregilgas (Applicant)

Newcastle City Council (Respondent) Representation: Mr C Ireland (Applicant)

Ms A Pearman (Respondent) Mr J Saddington O'Sullivan Saddington Lawyers (Applicant)

Mr James Marshall Newcastle City Council File Number(s): 10386 of 2014

Judgment 1Mr Tregilgas lodged Development Application DA 2013/931 with Newcastle City Council on 16 August 2014 seeking consent for alterations and additions to an existing dwelling house comprising the enclosure of an existing deck and construction of a storage area within the roof above at 8 Rowan Crescent, Merewether. 2The council refused consent due to non-compliance with building envelope controls and Tregilgas is appealing that decision. 3The issues in the case are whether the development satisfies the objectives of the council's control for building envelope.

The site and its context 4The site is described as No 8 Rowan Crescent being Lot 42, Section 10A of Deposited Plan 111243. It is located on the north-western side of Rowan Crescent between Janet and Curry Streets and falls from the rear to the street by approximately 8m over its 50m depth. Views of the ocean are available to the north and east from the existing dwelling, deck and rear yard. 5A part one and part two storey dwelling house is erected on the site in accordance with an approval issued by the council in 2003. The main living component of the dwelling is on its upper level and includes an internal deck on the northern side towards the rear. The living and family rooms open onto this deck and its southern face adjoins the main internal stairway. A shadecloth roof has been constructed above the deck following the line of the existing roof. 6Development in the vicinity of the site comprises a mix of single and two storey dwellings. Whilst this section of the street contains primarily single storey modest cottages, the area is undergoing transition with larger dwellings replacing those dwellings through either redevelopment or carrying out extensive alterations and additions.