Deadlock over building northern beaches seawalls heads to court
The four-year deadlock over the construction of seawalls on Sydney’s northern beaches could be broken next week with the resumption of a landmark court case.
NSW
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A landmark case between a homeowner and bureaucrats could see an end to a four-year standoff over the construction of seawalls.
And it could have a wider impact for all coastal property owners potentially affected by erosion.
Jean Pierre Salama will appear in the NSW Land and Environment Court Monday, February 24, in an effort to resolve a dispute over a seawall that would help stop his property from falling into the sea.
He argues Northern Beaches Council’s DA conditions — including a 60-year council repossession clause and open-ended requirements to both maintain the public beach and obtain an engineer’s report every time sand washes off the seawall — make building the structure impossible.
Being without a seawall makes his Pittwater Rd property uninsurable, he claims.
Since the 2016 storm a total of eight seawall DAs have been approved by council.
However, not one property owner has built a seawall because of what they argue are onerous conditions and costs imposed by council.
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“Council are exploiting residents and seeking to profit from them in return for allowing them to build a seawall at their own expense,” Mr Salama told The Sunday Telegraph.
“Worse still they shamelessly masquerade in the media as attempting to help.
“All we want to do is protect our homes without council interference.”
In the past week residents have been sandbagging their backyards to protect their properties from large seas.
There are about 40 property owners between Collaroy and Narrabeen who are likely to build seawalls.
Northern Beaches councillor Vince De Luca says almost all of these property owners are sweating on this case.
If Mr Salama is successful, Mr De Luca predicts other homeowners will modify their DAs and start building.
“This case does set a precedent for the rights of property owners over a council that perhaps is abusing their power and authority,” Mr De Luca said.
“It could also set a precedent for property owners who are directly impacted by coastal erosion.
“It’s a serious concern that should these owners not have sea walls erected both people and property could be exposed to serious damage.”
The cost of these projects is more than $100,000, with the state government chipping in 10 per cent.
The storm hit in June 2016 and took out large swathes of people’s backyards.
There are five stand-alone seawalls in front of Collaroy Beach coastal properties.
Despite this, Mayor Michael Regan claims “seawalls between neighbours need to be built together so it doesn’t damage the beach or undermine the structural integrity of the works and threaten their properties”.
“Unfortunately, there is no easy solution in NSW to have residents build a wall along a public beach,” Mr Regan said.
“Council cannot approve a DA for sea walls under the NSW Coastal Management Act unless we ensure that we can protect the beach, public safety and private property.
“Since 2017 we have approved six of the seven DAs which have been lodged, which is one-half of the properties that require protecting.
“We have always encouraged our residents to seek the services of experts experienced in coastal engineering and sea wall construction to help them deal with some of the technical problems quickly.”