Planning Proposal 16 - Rezone of Land at Endeavour Drive to E3 & E4

A planning proposal is the way in which changes to the Councils’ Local Environmental Plan are progressed. Planning 16 Proposal covers Lot 456 DP 755557 (the land), which is a 75ha land parcel at the end of Endeavour Drive. The planning proposal proposes to rezone 17ha of the land as Zone E4 – Environmental Living, and to permit a Community Title Subdivision on that part of the land.

Any house lots approved as part of a community title subdivision would need to be at least 600m2 in area. The rest of the land (58ha) is proposed to be placed within Zone E3 – Environmental Management, with stipulations that this land is to be managed for conservation purposes in perpetuity.

The community title status of the proposed subdivision means that the road network would not become an asset of Council, but would be owned and maintained by an association comprised of the owners of the house blocks. The same association would also collectively manage the conservation assets of the community, including the proposed E3 Zone as well as additional wildlife corridors within the portion of the site zoned E4. Whilst these types of developments occasionally restrict public access to the internal road network, in this instance the proponents intend to maintain public access through the development site.

Planning Proposal 16 is at an early stage in the planning process. The documentation submitted in support of the rezoning proposal does contain details regarding a potential lot yield from the land (80 lots approximately) and a proposed layout showing roads and other key infrastructure, however Council is not making a decision on these matters at this stage of the planning process.

The advancement of the design to this level of detail has been necessary for the proponents to consider and/or demonstrate how some of the key constraints of the site can be accommodated. Land can only be subdivided if the zoning of the land firstly permits the subdivision, and a Development Application is submitted and approved for the subdivision.

Council considered a request from the proponents to rezone the land as part of the exhibition process for the Bellingen Shire Local Housing Strategy. When Council approved the Housing Strategy, and this was subsequently approved by the NSW Government, it affirmed that it was generally supportive of the concept subject to the submission of a further detailed proposal by the proponents.

Find details on the Bellingen Shire Local Housing Strategy 2020-2040 here.

Council received a detailed proposal in February 2021, and this matter was reported to Council on 28 April 2021. Council resolved at this meeting to proceed with preparing a planning proposal to advance the rezoning request.

Following the resolution of Council to commence this process, the next step was to submit the proposal to the NSW Government Department of Planning Industry & Environment, who needed to issue Council with a ‘’Gateway Determination’’ before the planning proposal could proceed any further. In issuing a Gateway determination, the NSW Government needed to be satisfied that the proposal had a degree of planning merit and was not fundamentally incompatible with relevant planning legislation.

The NSW Government issued Council with a Gateway determination on 9 June 2021. Relevant documents to date, including the Council Report of 28 April 2021, the Planning Proposal document including supporting studies, the Gateway Determination and the Gateway Assessment report are all available for viewing at the following location on the NSW Planning Portal.

https://www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/ppr/pre-exhibition/planning-proposal-16-rezone-land-endeavour-drive-e3-environmental-management

The Gateway Determination required Council to consult with a range of Government Agencies and organisations, including the;

• NSW Rural Fire Service
• Department of Planning, Industry & Environment (Biodiversity & Conservation Division - BCD)
• Bowraville Local Aboriginal Land Council
• Coffs Harbour and District Local Aboriginal Land Council
• Department of Primary Industry - Agriculture

Council completed this consultation and has received comments from government agencies. The comments that Council received from the NSW RFS and DPIE (BCD) have necessitated going back to the proponents to ask them to provide additional information to support the proposal.

In broad terms, the comments received from the Department of Planning, Industry & Environment (Biodiversity & Conservation Division) raised some concerns with the methods used to assess impact, the physical characteristics of the site and the method proposed to protect the rear portion of the site. The comments received from the NSW RFS requested some additional information on land slope, internal road layouts and vegetation management practices.

Comments received from government agencies will be published in full if the matter proceeds to public exhibition, however at this stage it is premature to publish these comments because the proposal may change in response to them, and this would necessitate seeking revised comments from those agencies.

At this stage, Council is yet to receive any further information from the proponents addressing the matters of concern raised by government agencies. Ultimately, Council will need to review any response received from the proponents and determine whether it wishes to proceed with the proposal. Because there is no certainty that the proposed conservation method for the rear portion of the site can be achieved (ie: registration of a Biodiversity Stewardship Agreement) an alternative method will need to be proposed by the proponents. This alone will change the essential characteristics of the proposal which will require the elected Council to reconsider whether it wishes to request a new Gateway Determination. It is also possible that other design changes may be proposed to address matters of concern.  

At this stage, Council cannot advise when additional information will be received from the proponents, or when the matter may be reported back to the elected Council. It is noted though that the original Gateway Determination required that the matter be finalised within 9 months of that Determination, which would be 9 March 2022.

In the first instance, Council would encourage you to review the Council Report of 28 April 2021, and the Planning Proposal document. There are a number of reports from specialist consultants that may address some of your concerns.

If the matter is reported back to the elected Council to reconsider whether it wishes to issue a Gateway Determination then you may wish to request to address Council at the relevant Council Meeting to outline your concerns, or raise your concerns with Councillors prior to this meeting. Because there is no certainty as to when this will occur, please feel free to contact Councils’ Planning Team periodically to check on progress, or monitor Councils website to check Meeting Agendas.

https://beta.bellingen.nsw.gov.au/Your-Council/Council-Meetings

Council would then encourage you to make a submission to Council if and when the matter proceeds to public exhibition. This will ensure that you are commenting on the most recent version of any proposal. The current engagement strategy that has been endorsed by Council proposes to notify in writing all residents of Endeavour Drive, Wattle Close and George Hewitt Close as well as all adjoining landowners if and when the proposal goes on exhibition, in addition to the placement of advertisements in relevant locations. The proposal would be on public exhibition for a minimum of 28 days.

Any submissions will be taken into account by the elected Council in determining its position with respect to this matter.

Ultimately, the final decision as to whether to support the rezoning proposal will be made by the NSW Government Department of Planning Industry & Environment.

Councils’ Planning Team can be contacted on 6655 7300 should you wish to discuss this matter further with a Council Officer.