A recent decision in the Supreme Court of New South Wales highlights the difficulties that can arise when valuing works-in-kind under agreements between a council and developer under s94(5)(b) of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EPA Act).
The Department of Planning and Environment has revised its guidelines on Community Consultative Committees so that they apply not only to mining projects but to State significant projects generally. The draft Community Consultative Committee Guidelines (Draft Guidelines) are now available on…
In a recent decision, the Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal against Shoalhaven City Council’s claim that a landowner carried out unlawful clearing of land. The decision confirmed that the provisions of the relevant development control plan, argued by the landowner…
The safety of council parking inspectors is a matter of increasing concern across New South Wales as officers are faced with aggressive and abusive drivers when issuing parking tickets. Councils keen to protect their staff are considering equipping officers with audio…
The Land & Environment Court has clarified further how to apply savings clauses in local environmental plans (LEPs) to development applications (DAs) made but not determined before the LEP is made or amended.
The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (‘Tribunal‘) has recently upheld an earlier decision of the Local Government Pecuniary Interest Tribunal (‘PIT‘) holding that the Deputy Mayor of Auburn City Council breached the pecuniary interest provisions of the Local Government Act…