Members of the Manyana Matters Environmental Association [MMEA] say the inquiry into historical development consents in NSW is good news.
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Also known as "zombie developments", historical developments consents are development projects which were approved years or sometimes decades ago but remain unfinished with minimal work completed.
Sometimes, work on these developments may restart after years or decades of no activity.
A new inquiry by the Legislative Assembly Committee on Environment and Planning will be looking into historical development consents in NSW.
This sort of inquiry is something MMEA had been asking for since our inception.
"We urgently call for an immediate moratorium on all zombie DA's while the inquiry proceeds," a MMEA spokesperson said.
Manyana Matters would like the following outcomes from the inquiry:
- All historical DA's should be considered nul and void unless successfully reassessed under current laws, especially environmental.
- A publicly available, comprehensive and detailed list of all Zombie DAs.
- A realistic time frame in which developments must be completed and
- A solid definition of "physical commencement".
MMEA is trying to stop a piece of land from being developed near the village and recently published a vision statement on what the would like to see happen to the land in the future
Meanwhile, inquiry chairperson, Clayton Barr MP, said zombie developments reflect the law at time the development consent was initially granted.
"Planning and environmental standards have changed since some of these older consents were issued and the community's expectations have shifted too," he said
People can take part in the process by submitting submissions.
"We are calling for submissions on the impact of these development consents on the NSW planning system, development industry and property ownership," Mr Barr said.
"We would also like to consider policy and legal solutions to address the issue, including what other jurisdictions have done to address similar issues.
"The committee would really like to hear from members of the community, businesses and local councils who live near or are affected by historical development consents."
The committee, as part of the inquiry, will also consider any barriers in using the current planning framework to address the issue and the benefits and costs to taxpayers if action is taken on the issue.
Further information on the inquiry including the terms of reference and how to make a submission is available on the committee's web-page - here.
Submission close on Monday, June 3 2024.
