North shore boarding house determined in court amid noise, height concerns
A controversial boarding home development has been determined in the Land and Environment Court amid fears the project would turn a street on Sydney’s north shore into a “ghetto”.
North Shore
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Residents have welcomed a court’s decision over a planned multistorey boarding home on Sydney’s north shore amid fears the development would have turned their street into a “ghetto”.
The Land and Environment Court has rejected the 31 room project at 16 Warners Ave in Willoughby that would have accommodated 52 people at the site of the current two storey home.
Freedom Development Group launched the court appeal after its proposal was rejected by Willoughby Council due to concerns the project was “incompatible” with the local area.
The development was also met with 43 submissions from residents along with a petition signed by 56 people opposed to the “size, scale and bulk” of the building.
Some homeowners hired lawyers and urban planners to lodge submissions, while others argued the building would have impacted their “privacy and property value”.
“A three-storey building where a single house currently exists is out of character with the streetscape,” one homeowner said.
“(The street) already has two community housing developments – more than any other in the local area,” residents Andrew and Danielle Warren-Smith said in their submission.
“This will in fact turn the street into a ‘ghetto’ like street,” resident Mary-Ann Petitto added.
Freedom Development Group argued the proposal would have created affordable housing in the area and was in line with long-term housing targets for the region.
The company’s legal challenge involved revised plans, scaling down the original scope of the building from 36 to 31 units.
Lawyers for the company argued the changes equated to a “modest redevelopment” and measures to limit noise included a ban on outdoor communal areas after 10pm.
But council lawyers said the measures, proposed to be enforced by a building manager, were “unlikely to be maintained” for a 53 occupant house.
The court agreed, finding the development would had resulted in “an acceptable amenity outcome for adjoining properties”.
Willoughby South Progress Association president Linda Tully said the decision was a “good result” for the community.
“There were considerable concerns over noise and the sheer number of residents (proposed in the development),” she said.
“None of the residents are against the idea of affordable housing, it was about the size and usage aspects that didn’t fit into the context of the area.”
Freedom Development Group was ordered to pay the council’s legal costs for the proceedings.