Huntlee, a planning disaster!

Posted on 27 Apr 2013 by
The approval of Huntlee by the Planning Assessment Commission demonstrates that planning does not work in NSW.

How can a development which:

a) is located in the worst place for large scale development in the Hunter;

b) does not have a credible assessment of its impact on the critically endangered persoonia pauciflora, and;

c) contains an uncontrolled landfill which was closed by the EPA and in which there are unknown materials,

be approved?

Clearly the NSW Planning system does not deliver good or rational results for the community. Equally clearly the Liberal Government is just as at fault as the previous Labor Government.

James RyanHuntlee

Huntlee housing estate approved

By IAN KIRKWOOD

April 26, 2013, 2:30 p.m.

  STAGE one of the controversial Huntlee housing estate at Branxton has been approved by the state government.

With an estimated value of $230 million, the first stage of Huntlee involves a subdivision to create 1473 residential lots and 14 ‘‘super lots’’.

Land will also be set aside for a primary school and open space.

The project has changed substantially since it was first proposed by different owners in 2005, and while the imminent opening of the Hunter Expressway has eased some fears about a lack of transport from the area, various sectors of the coalfields community are still opposed.

The approval was granted by the state’s Planning Assessment Commission after an endorsement by the NSW Department of Planning.

Originally proposed by developer Duncan Hardie and his Hardie Group under the name ‘‘Sweetwater’’, the project became ‘‘Huntlee’’ in 2006.

Its Western Australian owners, the LWP Property Group, bought in to the project in 2007.

LWP managing director Danny Murphy said the approval was a major step forward for the project.

‘‘We are very pleased with the decision, which follows many months of consultation with local residents, business groups, the Cessnock and Singleton Councils and the State Government,’’ Mr Murphy said.

But Cessnock councillor James Ryan, a long-time critic of the project, said it was still the wrong project in the wrong place.

‘‘It’s a satellite city built at the end of a freeway that will only increase the reliance on the motor car while having a shocking impact on biodiversity,’’ Cr Ryan said.

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Brad Hazzard’s new planning laws will be hazardous to heritage

Posted on 18 Apr 2013 by

New laws hazardous to heritage

The Better Planning Network (BPN) says the new planning laws proposed by NSW Planning Minister Brad Hazzard will endanger our Heritage buildings and sites.
BPN’s Corinne Fisher said: “With the Government proposing that 80% of development will be approved with no opportunity for heritage assessment, community comment or involvement, we can expect a huge decrease in heritage assets over the coming decade. We are particularly concerned that Aboriginal heritage which has not yet been listed on a heritage register will simply be bulldozed.”
Under the current system things like rock carvings and middens that neighbours are aware of but are not officially listed on the National Parks register, or are only discovered once the site is surveyed, can be protected.
“The proposed system opens the way for destruction of many priceless carvings, middens and artifacts simply because they have remained hidden and undisturbed, sometimes for thousands of years. Now they could be in the way of development where there is no heritage assessment and the community has no right to comment or raise objections,” said Ms Fisher. “We have to rely on the goodwill of developers to declare these heritage items and to protect them.”
The same fate will await heritage houses that Councils have been slow to place on heritage registers. The new planning laws allow buildings with heritage value but which have not been formally listed as heritage to be demolished without any opportunity for their character to be preserved.
“We urge residents who do not want the local character of their suburbs to be demolished and who do not want what is left of our Aboriginal heritage to disappear to voice their opinion strongly to the Minister.”
“The Minister can act to protect heritage. It’s up to the community to show him we care.”
For more information contact: Corinne Fisher 0421 831 889
18 April 2013

 

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NSW White Paper on planning and the residents of Bulga

Posted on 16 Apr 2013 by

I can’t help but feel like celebrating with the people of Bulga for a great win assisted by the EDO.

With the NSW White Paper on Planning due out today I predict the NSW Government will be looking to make wins like this impossible. Witness the comments from C&A that the decision meant that planning was failing to deliver timely  outcomes and jobs. In contrast this outcome is a symbol of a planning system that works, one which residents can overturn an appalling and substandard approval from the NSW State Government. These are the planning laws we should be protecting.James Ryan

 

Tiny Bulga wins day against mining Goliath

 
Date
April 16, 2013

from SMH and Ben Cubby, Sam Rigney

"We've got a lot of happy people who were born and bred in Bulga".“We’ve got a lot of happy people who were born and bred in Bulga”. Photo: Ryan Osland

The tiny NSW town of Bulga has won a three-year battle against mining giant Rio Tinto when a court overturned a state government-endorsed decision to allow it to dig an open-cut coalmine next to the town.

A Rio Tinto subsidiary, Coal & Allied, had been granted approval to mine bushland next to the town which had been created as an ”offset” a decade ago. It was to have created 150 mining jobs and extracted 18 million tonnes of coal a year, in the community of 300 people.

In a scathing judgment, Justice Brian Preston, chief judge of the Land and Environment Court, criticised the government’s approval of the proposed Warkworth mine in the Hunter Valley, which he said could damage Bulga’s ”sense of place”.

Over the moon: Paul Burgess says the court ruling against the mine is a huge relief for the town.Over the moon: Paul Burgess says the court ruling against the mine is a huge relief for the town. Photo: Ryan Osland

Planning Minister Brad Hazzard said he was seeking legal advice on what action might be available to the government. Rio Tinto said the community’s ability to challenge the government’s decision was ”significantly obstructing investment and job creation in NSW”.

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The challenge was brought by the Bulga Milbrodale Progress Association, representing the views of most of the town’s residents, with help from the Environmental Defender’s Office of NSW.

The publican at Bulga’s only hotel said she awoke on Monday to a text message that read: ”Bulga is safe”.

Message on a tree: A protest poster. Message on a tree: A protest poster. Photo: Peter Stoop

Margueritte Hannaberry, who owns the Cockfighter Creek Tavern on Putty Road with partner Paul Burgess, said the pub was in the acquisition zone for the proposed mine, meaning it would have to have been sold.

”Everyone on the progress association is over the moon. It’s a massive relief,” she said. ”We’ve got a lot of happy people who were born and bred in Bulga.”

Mr Burgess said the mine would have destroyed the town. ”The town would have been fairly uninhabitable anyway, cut off from Jerrys Plains and Denman and really a shell of itself.”

In his judgment Justice Preston said he was not persuaded by the economic analysis offered by the company. ”The project’s impacts would exacerbate the loss of sense of place, and materially and

adversely change the sense of community, of the residents of Bulga and the surrounding countryside,” he said. ”I am not satisfied that the economic analyses relied on by Warkworth and the minister have addressed these environmental and social factors adequately.”

The mine would have had ”significant and unacceptable” effects on plants and animals, and would generate serious levels of dust and noise, the judgment said.

It was to have removed a nearby ridge, wiping out a quarter of the remaining Warkworth Sands Woodland, a refuge for endangered plants and animals.

The acting managing director of Coal & Allied, Darren Yates, said in a statement: “The fact it has now taken 3½ years to get an outcome on this project – and that it can be overturned notwithstanding a rigorous government process – shows that the planning system is failing to deliver timely and predictable outcomes.

”This outcome is a blow to our plans for the Mount Thorley Warkworth mine and the jobs of the 1300 people who work there, at a time when the Australian coal industry is struggling to remain globally competitive.” The new mine, which would have added to Coal & Allied’s existing operation in the area, would have created 150 more permanent jobs, the company said.

The mine was approved in February last year after being considered by the NSW Planning Commission and the NSW Environment Protection Authority.

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New Cessnock GM will need people-skills: Ryan

Posted on 9 Apr 2013 by

New Cessnock GM will need people-skills: Ryan

From ABC Regional Radio, Newcastle, Tue Apr 9, 2013 7:16am AEST

Cessnock Greens councillor James Ryan says it is crucial the organisation’s new general manager is able to communicate with all stakeholders and members of the community.

There will be an extraordinary council meeting tomorrow night to get the recruitment process underway after the resignation of Lea Rosser yesterday.

Ms Rosser stepped down citing personal reasons.

She has been surrounded by controversy for more than a year, with the previous mayor Alison Davey taking Supreme Court action to prevent other councillors from voting to have her sacked.

Councillor Ryan says the new GM will need to have several important skills.

“Our task is to recruit a new general manager, that’s not an easy job,” he said.

“We need a general manager who can talk to all parts of the community, a general manager who can provide a steady hand and good leadership, a general manager who can take Cessnock forward into the future.”

Councillor Ryan says choosing a new general manager is the most important decision the current council will make.

He says it is a decision that cannot be rushed.

“Our job as councillors is to go and implement a robust process that selects the right person for the job,” he said.

“I’m very confident that council can do that.

“That is the single most important thing we will do, in a sense, in this term of this council, is select the right person for the job.

“There are a number of things that we will be taking extra precautions with, I think.”

Topics: local-government, cessnock-2325

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Residents given cold-shoulder Huntlee – Minister should replace PAC chair

Posted on 3 Apr 2013 by

The Greens are calling for the Minister for Planning Brad Hazzard to replace the Chair of the NSW Planning Assessment Commission (PAC) hearing the Huntlee development, following a series of rulings that have given developers unfair access to the PAC while leaving local residents out in the cold.

The PAC will meet this Thursday evening at 5pm in Branxton at the RSL Hall to consider Huntlee.

Greens Councillor James Ryan said:

James Ryan and David Shoebridge

James and David in Huntlee in 2010.

“The process the Commission is using is grossly unfair.

“The Commission announced on Thursday they will only allow residents five minutes to speak at a public meeting, despite the developer being allowed several hours in which to promote the massive Huntlee development at Branxton.

“While the developer will be showing the Planning Assessment Commission over the site in private, the Commission has refused to allow myself and members of the Sweetwater Action Group to show them aspects of the site.

“Instead of being treated as second class citizens with token consultation, the Planning Assessment Commission should be willing to listen to local residents as much as they are willing to listen to the developer.

“This is where we live – this is our home, our environment and our community,” Clr Ryan said.

Greens NSW MP and Planning spokesperson David Shoebridge said:

“This is an example of one standard for the developer and a completely different and lower standard for members of the community.

“This type of double standard where the developers get first-class access to decision-makers and residents get a pat on the head is what we would have expected from the former Labor Government.

“The Minister must act and replace the Chairperson of the Planning Assessment Commission with someone who will allow residents the same rights as are given to the developers,” Mr Shoebridge said.

Background: The Huntlee development proposes to bring 20,000 residents to Branxton in the Hunter Valley, in 7500 houses. 100′s of hectares of endangered bushland will be bulldozed and one of Australia’s rarest plants (persoonia pauciflora found only in the local area) will have 50% of its’ range destroyed.

The Huntlee proposal was placed into the Lower Hunter Regional Strategy without any public consultation in 2006 by the then ALP Cabinet.

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Cessnock Council Opposed to Amalgamations 12 – 1

Posted on 21 Mar 2013 by

Media Release 20.3.13

Cessnock Council Opposed to Amalgamations 12 – 1

Cessnock Greens Councillor James Ryan said he was very pleased that Cessnock Council voted 12 to 1 to oppose amalgamating with any surrounding Councils.

The vote followed Clr Ryan’s  proposal last night that Cessnock Council oppose being amalgamated,

‘Cessnock has its own unique character and proud history.’ said Clr Ryan.  ‘ We should be very protective of our local democracy and the ability of residents to participate and talk to their local councillor.’

‘There is no evidence that larger Councils are more efficient than smaller Councils.  We are generally very good at sharing resources with other Councils, sharing tendering for large expenditure items and sharing of services.’

‘Cessnock’s vote will send a clear message to the O’Farrell Government that  he should think twice before breaking an election promise to return power to local communities.’

‘The NSW Governments’ so called ‘Independent Review of Local Government’ should focus on how the State Government can supply much needed infrastructure to local communities  rather then amalgamating them.’

Council’s resolution asked the Mayor to seek the unanimous support of Hunter Councils in opposing amalgamations.

‘I was moved to bring this debate on in Cessnock as a result of the over whelming  vote in Queensland  on Saturday 9th March for eight Councils to de amalgamate.  Governments who try to amalgamate Councils do so at their peril.’ said Clr Ryan.

‘Local Councils may not be perfect but we do serve our local community and we are accessible.’ said Clr Ryan.

James Ryan
0414 922 591

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Coalfields council merger threat

Posted on 20 Mar 2013 by

 Coalfields council merger threat

By  DAMON CRONSHAW

March 18, 2013, 10:30 p.m

CESSNOCK City Council is under threat of amalgamation with Maitland City Council, councillors and businesspeople believe.

The corridors of power in the Coalfields have been rife with speculation that a merger is on the cards.

The Lower Hunter being named in a NSW government review that is planning council mergers has heightened concerns.

High-profile developer Hilton Grugeon said he was terrified that Maitland council might have Cessnock council ‘‘foisted on it’’.

‘‘It’d be like West Germany copping East Germany,’’ Mr Grugeon said.

Cessnock Greens Cr James Ryan questioned whether Maitland was ‘‘looking to take over some of our land for expansion’’.

‘‘Maitland council is busily in the process of using up every bit of land above the floodplain to do more subdivisions,’’ Cr Ryan said.

Maitland mayor Peter Blackmore said his council was interested in commonsense boundary adjustments.

‘‘We are opposed to forced amalgamations,’’ Cr Blackmore, an independent, said.

‘‘We don’t want to be taking over Cessnock’s problems.’’

Mr Grugeon said Dungog Shire Council ‘‘could well be disbanded and some of it go to Maitland’’.

Cr Blackmore said: ‘‘We could look at taking over an area of Paterson, but it’s not as simple as it sounds’’.

The O’Farrell government has appointed an independent panel to review local government in NSW.

The panel would form proposals for amalgamation, shared services and ‘‘new regional entities’’.

A spokesman for NSW Local Government Minister Don Page said the government was reviewing all aspects of local government.

‘‘We’re expecting the final report after mid-April,’’ the spokesman said.

‘‘The Coalition’s position is there will be no forced amalgamations and that hasn’t changed.’’

Cr Ryan plans to raise the amalgamation matter at a Cessnock council meeting on Wednesday.

‘‘We don’t want to be amalgamated and neither do we want to take someone else’s land,’’ Cr Ryan said.

He said Cessnock had its own identity and sense of community.

‘‘We’re not culturally aligned with Maitland,’’ he said.

He questioned the panel’s ‘‘so-called independence’’ and warned payments could be offered to councils as incentives for amalgamation.

(From James Ryan:  In Queensland Councils have just voted to de-amalgamate. Our current NSW Government should be supporting vibrant local democracy instead of encouraging amalgamations. We do not want to become like Brisbane where, in practice, local government does not exist anymore, it has been replaced with a system of single member wards with only one Councillor out of 27 not being a member of either the Liberal or Labor parties.)

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