Byron Bay residents win war against ‘poor quality’ Paterson St housing development

The Byron Bay development could have seen a popular street changed forever with a multi-dwelling development. So why did it get knocked back by an independent planning authority?

A development application for 14 townhouses at 103 Paterson St, Byron Bay has been determined by a NSW Northern Regional Planning Panel.

An independent planning panel has ruled a proposed Byron Bay multi dwelling housing development as “poor quality” as it refused the application.

The NSW Northern Regional Planning Panel was held by teleconference on Wednesday to determine the future of a mega dwelling proposed for 103 Paterson St.

The subject application was a multi dwelling housing development, consisting of 14 townhouses, eight swimming pools, the removal of 24 trees and the demolition of the existing dwelling.

Associated earthworks, upgrades to drainage channels and compensatory planting were also part of the proposal.

The development application has been one of controversy for Byron Bay residents, with many worried about the potential loss of the Masked Lapwing Plover habitat, access, parking and manoeuvrability issues, and an overdevelopment of the site.

While the developers Planit Consulting submitted a revised application in March, Byron Shire Council continued to refuse the application, on the basis of five “fundamental threshold issues”, which the panel discussed on Wednesday.

They included a lack of landowner’s consent; disabled carparking requirements; disabled driveway requirements; stormwater modelling; and dwelling height concerns.

A development application for 14 townhouses at 103 Paterson St, Byron Bay has been lodged with Byron Shire Council.

Planit Consulting’s planning manager, Luke Blandford, said many of the concerns could be alleviated with an amendment to the current proposal as he asked the planning panel for a deferral.

However, not all listeners agreed, with one resident heard muttering “rubbish” when Mr Blandford went into the possible amendments to fix a lack of disabled parking.

In particular, Mr Blandford stated that the developers had proposed disabled carparking spaces for terraces 3, 4 and 5, which had not been reviewed by Byron Shire Council.

“I believe some of the plans show parking spaces that are compliant, the reference in council’s report is not to the right set of plans,” he said.

“Those plans are showing how those (units) can be adapted to meet accessible housing requirements.”

The meeting also heard how developers had not been aware of a lack of consent from 11 Cooper St homeowners for stormwater works.

“The Cooper St owner made a submission that there were works on their land but under the original submission, it actually did not,” Mr Blandford said.

“I know that sounds incorrect but many of our team were not aware.”

Northern Regional Planning Panel Chair Paul Mitchell questioned Mr Blandford’s response.

“It is bit of a stretch that you had to be told you need owner’s consent to determine the application, you don’t need to be told that,” he said.

“I cannot object, I cannot refute that,” Mr Blandford responded.

Council engineers also voiced their concern that garage walls could “fail” if the proposed amendments were made.

In the end, Mr Mitchell said the determination had been made to refuse the application and for a deferral, as the developers had “sufficient opportunity to lodge a complete application”.

“We also believe all of the issues that apply to the applicant are well known,” he said.

“The panel also notes that many other issues have been identified in the council submission.

“Many of those issues would warrant refusal in their own right and that all of the issues identified in that material would need to be address for the application to be approved.

“The panel is also concerned about the poor quality and inconsistency of a number of aspects in the plans that have been submitted.”