McGraths Hill Residents Association Inc.

HOW TO RESPOND TO A DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION THAT MAY AFFECT YOU OR YOUR PROPERTY

You have become aware that someone is asking to change something about the structure or use of a property that may affect you or your community. You either believe, or you are uncertain about, the implications of this proposed development. What do you do?

Here are some suggestions about actions that you might take:

1. BACKGROUND RESEARCH - Try to understand as much as you can about what is being proposed and the potential effects on you and others.

1.1. Sometimes you may be aware of a development proposal before it is formally lodged with the Hawkesbury City Council. The Hawkesbury Gazette may report a change of ownership or proposed new use well before this is finalised. You might try to arrange to meet with the developer to gain an appreciation of their proposed development and its potential effects. If possible explain to them your issues with the proposal. Council planners should ideally be encouraging developers to liaise with community groups and affected individuals during the preparation of the Development Application (“DA”), but this does not usually happen in real life.

1.2. Read the Development Application on the Hawkesbury City Council website:

http://www.hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au/development/development-applications/application-tracking

Often the quantity/formatting of the documentation can be overwhelming. The Council officer managing the application may be able to assist you. They may be able to guide you to key summary documents, help you understand the plans and diagrams that show the potential effects, and assist you develop relevant points of objection.

It is not uncommon that documents forming part of the application are not scanned to the DA Tracking system, so it is advisable to visit the Council offices and ask to see the file for the DA.

1.3. What do other community members think? It is a good idea to find out if your neighbours share your concerns or perhaps if there are others in your community who have had issues with similar developments. Get together with them or have an email discussion to share your concerns. Experienced objectors are good people to take the lead as they will have been through stages of the process previously. Community-based resident groups including the McGraths Hill Residents Association may be able to help you make contact with community members who will be helpful to your cause. It may be useful to get resident groups to also make an objection to the DA. The Facebook page Responsible Development For The Hawkesbury may also be able to provide assistance.

It is important, however, to remember that the planning system is complex and rules that apply to one form of development may not apply to another. Council will also rely on section 79C(3) of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act to give it a virtually unlimited ability to make decisions that defy explanation.

2. MAKING AN OBJECTION

2.1. List the common concerns and circulate these to those interested via email or a flyer. This will make it easy for others to use the core objections in their submissions while potentially adding to these their own points. Making it easier for others will lead to a greater number of written objections.

For particularly controversial DAs include with the list of key concerns that you circulate the email addresses of all Councillors (you can find those email addresses here: http://www.hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au/council/council-meetings/councillors). Suggest that each person's objection is also emailed to the Councillors and provided to other objectors.

2.2. Your objection can include photos in addition to words. These might be visual presentations made from your own perspective including photos taken from your own property. They might show angles that are not represented in the DA.

2.3. Lodge your objection with Council before the closing date for submission of objections. If you are not sure of the closing date or the email address, check with Council’s front desk at 366 George Street, Windsor. Council should formally acknowledge receipt of your objection but rarely does, so make sure you get a copy stamped at the counter. Objections may also be emailed to council@hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au

Further details on making a submission can be found here: http://www.hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au/development/development-applications/making-a-submission

2.4. Make direct contact with individual Councillors who might be interested in the issue. Many DAs are “determined” (that is, decided) by Council planners who make the decision based on “delegated authority” from the Council. This means that the planners get to decide “Yes” or “No” or to approve the application with modifications. However, if Councillors “call in” the DA, it will be “determined” (decided) at a Council meeting rather than just by Council officers. The advantage of this is that you will get the opportunity to speak and make your objection direct to Councillors. Councillors need to consider your concerns and become publicly accountable for their response to the issues raised by residents both for and against the proposal. In theory anyway.

2.5. A written objection should be addressed to the General Manager and detail the following:

– your name, address and the date

– the address of the proposed development and the DA number

– concerns with the proposed development

– how the proposed development affects your property or area

– include the reasons why planning approval should not be granted

– reference to the planning regulations (LEP, DCP and others)

Some valid concerns with the development may be

• type of land use is not appropriate

• appearance or character

• overshadowing eg. shadows cast by the proposed building onto the neighbor’s back yard or windows

• overlooking eg. potential views from upstairs windows/balconies into the neighbour's yard or windows

• traffic generated

• proposed development is at odds with the LEP, DCP or other planning documents

3. IF THE DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION IS “CALLED IN” FOR A COUNCIL MEETING

3.1. The Council will determine the timing of matters coming before it but will usually notify objectors some time in the week prior to the meeting. Meeting dates are on the Council's website at http://www.hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au/council/council-meetings/business-papers

There is a chance that even if you are an objector you may not be notified in time when a DA is before Council. So it is important to check the business papers that are usually available on the Council website after midday on the Friday of the week before the Tuesday Council meeting. A printed copy will also be available at the Council on the Friday. If you cannot see the papers, ask at the desk. There is usually little time to prepare for your presentation to Council once you become aware that the application will be coming before a full Council meeting on the Tuesday.

3.2. Speaking at a Council meeting. Members of the public objecting to a development proposal can address the Council meeting as can its proponent and/or supporters. Speakers are currently allowed to speak for up to 3 minutes. It is ideal to organise several people to address the Council. Councillors will be interested in hearing different points from different members of the public. It is therefore suggested that speakers arrange amongst themselves to each cover different key points of their objections. You may want to consider and pre-empt points that supporters or persons proposing the development may raise with the Council.

You must register to speak at the Council meeting online at http://www.hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au/council/council-meetings/address-council-meeting before 3pm on the day of the meeting, or contact the Manager Corporate Services and Governance on 4560 4426. You will need to know the item number from the business paper and whether you are speaking for or against the recommendation, so check if the item is recommended for approval or refusal.

3.3. If you are an objector it is important that you take the opportunity to address the Council as Councillors rely on this to understand the level of concern in relation to a proposal (they do not necessarily have the time to read each of the individual written objections). This may be your only opportunity to formally address Councillors as a group. Encourage as many of your group as possible to address the meeting. You can also make an extra impact by encouraging more objectors to attend the meeting and sit in the public gallery, even if they do not speak. It is important that those objectors who are speaking refer to the presence of their neighbours and other objectors sitting in the Council gallery.

3.4. What happens at the Council meeting? The Council meeting decides the official outcome of the DA. Objectors being obviously present in the public gallery are of great value. Their presence reminds the Councillors of their responsibility to be answerable for their decisions that might affect the community. Make sure you let a Councillor sympathetic to your objections know of your group's intention to attend. Catch the Councillor’s eye or meet him/her beforehand or during a break in proceedings to remind her/him of your presence. This will enable him/her to refer to your presence during any speech he/she makes during Council’s consideration of the DA.

Council meetings commence at 6.30pm.

4. OTHER THINGS YOU MIGHT DO:

Contact Councillors to outline your case. Encourage them to come and speak with you and others at the site so that you can detail your objection.
Write a letter to the editor of the Gazette.
Use social media – especially Twitter and Facebook - to make interested parties aware of your objection and your concerns.

Disclaimer: The information contained herein is correct as at 1 December 2016. However, over time, rules, procedures, meeting times, email addresses, telephone numbers and webpages may change. You should check that those things have not changed since 1 December 2016 before relying on information contained herein.