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Corridors in self-storage development not ‘gross floor area’
A judge of the Land and Environment Court has ruled that the corridors in a self-storage development are not within the definition of ‘gross floor area’. The decision has potentially wide ramifications in terms of the permissible bulk and scale…
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Commencement of Development Consents: Requirement for Registration on the NSW Planning Portal
With the commencement of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning Portal) Regulation 2020 on 1 July 2020, the NSW planning portal became the central platform for the making of development applications (and other applications) with a consent authority. To…
NSW Productivity Commission Publishes Final Report on Review of Infrastructure Contributions System
On 3 December 2020, the NSW Productivity Commission released its final report on its review of the infrastructure contributions system in NSW (Review), entitled Review of Infrastructure Contributions in New South Wales – Final Report (Final Report). Following on from the…
UPDATE – Telstra Payphone Cabinets NOT ‘low-impact facilities’
In April 2020, we blogged on a decision of a judge of the Federal Court which held that Telstra Corporation did not require development consent (or planning permission under the town planning laws of other states) to install about 1,800…
Planning Certificates – Scope of Councils’ Immunity from Liability Limited
In the recent decision of Lorenzato v Burwood Council [2020] NSWSC 1659 (‘Lorenzato‘), the Supreme Court considered the scope of the immunity from liability in negligence enjoyed by public authorities such as councils under various pieces of legislation. The Court…
Can a VPA be entered into for the conservation of a privately owned heritage building?
In a recent Land and Environment Court case, IPM Holdings Pty Limited v The Council of the City of Sydney [2020] NSWLEC 1593, the Court considered whether it could impose a condition of consent requiring a voluntary planning agreement (‘VPA‘)…
Proposed reforms to the Education SEPP on exhibition
The NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment is currently exhibiting proposed reforms to the State Environmental Planning Policy (Educational Establishments and Child Care Facilities) 2017 (Education SEPP). The proposed amendments are part of the NSW Government’s Planning Reform Action…
Easements over Public Land
Section 88K of the Conveyancing Act 1919 (‘s88K‘) enables the Supreme Court to grant an easement over land in circumstances where such an easement is reasonably necessary for the effective use or development of the land which is to have…
COVID-19 – Investigations via AVL
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of Acts were amended to enable authorised officers and investigation officers to take evidence and answers to questions by audio link or audio visual link. Those provisions were repealed on 13 November…
Challenge to validity of coastal wetlands mapping dismissed
State Environmental Planning Policy (Coastal Management) 2018 (NSW) (SEPP) imposes restrictions or requirements on development occurring in four ‘coastal management areas‘, namely: Coastal wetlands and littoral rainforests area Coastal vulnerability area Coastal environment area Coastal use area. Together, and under…
Eyes in the sky – (some of) the laws applying to use of drones in NSW
Drones are quickly becoming a favourite operational tool for government agencies, as they provide an affordable and effective means to carry out a range of functions such as surveillance, surveys of unauthorised development, and emergency and hazard management. However, the…
Liability as an Occupier of Public Land and Effective Warning Signs
The ownership and control of public land is varied. It may be owned and managed by a local council, or owned by the Council and managed by the private sector. Alternatively it may be owned by the State government and…