Planning proposal before Byron council could legitimise unauthorised activities at The Farm

There has been a lot of support for the proposal, but nearby farmers have raised a host of unresolved issues.

The Farm, Byron Bay.

A planning proposal to address some of the existing, but non-permitted, activities at The Farm Byron Bay will go before the council next week.

In a process which began back in 2016, the planning proposal has sought an avenue to allow for the bakery, farm tours, administration offices and information centre at the Ewingsdale Road property.

It would also “identify a rural activity precinct” and a “farming precinct” on the site, according to the council.

The proposal is not seeking approval for any new, non-existing, uses.

“It was commenced some years ago to provide an approval mechanism for those uses but had been delayed to resolve traffic issues, primarily related to the adjacent Pacific Motorway roundabout,” the council’s staff said in their report.

“Recent progress regarding those issues allowed council to resolve in December 2020 to move forward to exhibition of the planning proposal.”

The report said Transport for NSW previously indicated they would only support the proposal if it had an accompanying voluntary planning agreement to secure contributions to future traffic upgrades in the area.

“Following further discussion in April, TfNSW agreed to allow the planning proposal to proceed without such a VPA, acknowledging that future road infrastructure improvements can be addressed by a separate process,” the report said.

The proposal was placed on public exhibition in May.

The council received 182 submissions supporting the planning proposal, and four objections, during that time.

The council’s staff have recommended referring the proposal to the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment to be finalised.

They have also recommended that the council adopt amendments to the Byron Development Control Plan.

A submission prepared on behalf of a family which owns a nearby property argued the proposal should not proceed for a range of reasons.

They said it “reinforces and consolidates the dominant use of the land of tourism”, that the subject site is “regionally significant farmland” which is “zoned for primary production and not for tourism”.

They also said traffic concerns had not been resolved.

A neighbouring farmer expressed concerns about the potential for run-off which had led to them hand-harvesting macadamias.

Part-owner of Three Blue Ducks restaurant, based on The Farm, Andy Allen, wrote a submission in support of the planning proposal.

“Being there from day one, I’ve been a part of what The Farm and connecting businesses have worked so hard on and built from the dirt up and what a positive impact it has been on the local community of Byron and surrounding areas,” he said.

“In regards to the proposal at hand, educating people has always been a focus for everyone

involved in and around The Farm. We’ve all worked together to cross-pollinate and share each

other’s knowledge, to pass it through the local community.

“The proposal really allows us to take this to another level.”

The matter will be considered at the council’s planning meeting on Thursday, August 5.