Wishing Well drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre plan stalls
OURIMBAH residents are celebrating their second win in as many weeks after the appeal period for a development application for a controversial drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre lapsed.
Central Coast
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OURIMBAH residents are celebrating their second win in as many weeks after the appeal period for a development application for a controversial drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre lapsed.
But it might be too early to start popping Champagne corks with the developer determined to go ahead and Central Coast Council confirming last week the DA was “still under assessment”.
Husband and wife doctors Dr Shashi and Dr Sujatha Kalava submitted a DA in February for a $3 million, 14-bed drug and alcohol rehab centre at the end of Glen Rd dubbed the “Wishing Well”.
Under planning laws council had 40 days to determine the DA before the proposal was “deemed refusal” and applicant could take it to the Land and Environment Court for a decision.
In accordance with Section 97 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, the appeal period after the deemed refusal period was six months, which expired in September.
Glen Road Action Group chairman Neville McGuckin said he questioned council and received a letter last week stating the appeal period for the DA had expired.
“The only avenue they have now is to submit another DA,” he said.
“There were over 200 objections so I can’t see them doing that.”
Mr McGuckin said they were always confident the rehab centre, which would have overlooked his property next-door, would not come to fruition.
“We were always confident but it’s never over until the fat lady sings. It’s nice now to have it in writing that it won’t be going ahead,” he said.
“The fact they (the developer) didn’t take it to the Land and Environment Court is a sign they won’t put in another DA.”
However Dr Kalava told the Express Advocate that while the appeal period had lapsed he was still waiting for the DA to be assessed by council.
He said he “absolutely” wanted to go ahead with the rehab centre but was waiting to hear back from council.
“I have no information [from council] whatsoever,” Dr Kalava.
A council spokeswoman also confirmed the appeal period had lapsed but the DA was still being assessed.
It comes after the DA for a 101-room boarding house at the other end of Glen Rd fizzled when the developer failed to comply with strict conditions imposed by the Hunter and Central Coast Joint Regional Planning Panel (JRPP) in time and was effectively knocked on the head.