28 January 2022
Congratulations to our first raffle winner!
Congratulations to Jann Shepherd, the winner of the beautiful Glossy Black Cockatoo mosaic created by artist and Dalmeny Matters stalwart Judy Gordon. Thank you to everyone who bought tickets- the raffle has raised $315, deposited into the Dalmeny Matters trust account. A wonderful first step in our ongoing fundraising efforts.
Funds will be used for incidentals such as printing, meeting room hire, council fees for viewing of documents or FOI searches. We will continue to raise money so that we may have a fund to contribute towards future legal costs, if it gets to the point of having to challenge a development application in court.
We know many people have contributed money to Change.org when signing the Dalmeny Matters petition- however please know that this money goes to the Change.org platform, not to Dalmeny Matters.
New Information Points to Incompetence or Corruption
We have been fortunate to have been given advice recently by a planning expert. We have put together information and questions for the new Councillors- there is an excerpt below but please contact us or join our facebook group to see the full version.
Excerpt from Dalmeny Matters: 24.1.22 Information for Councillors and Questions for Clarification 2022 regarding Dalmeny Land Release
“We have asked that Council immediately halt preparation of the Master Plan and Development Control Plan for the Dalmeny Land Release Area. New information includes:
That Council officers have misreported the property address to Council
That the sale progressed before the land was ready for sale (that is, the need to excise the community land portion from the title of the operational land)
The Council land has been significantly undervalued by selling before doing the Development Control plan- This may enable the purchaser to on-sell council’s former land to an experienced developer for a large profit once the DCP is made and the development potential is clear.
The Planning expert has also questioned the experience of the appointed consultants to do the planning, environmental and infrastructure assessments. It is currently unclear how these consultants were appointed- who recommended them and who made the decision while Council were in caretaker mode.
Property Address: When reporting the proposed land sale, the subject land was described by Council’s Director of Planning as Lot 2 DP1151341, 16 Tatiara Street, Dalmeny.
This description is not consistent with other public information about the site. On 17 January 2022 the NSW Department of Planning and Environment planning portal gave the full description as 16 Acacia Close Dalmeny; Lots 16-18/ DP 262089; Lot 2/ DP 1151341; Lot 86/DP253659.
Subsequent review of the Planning Portal on 23 January 2022 showed the subdivision as completed and a different property description given. 22/-/DP1280016
Nevertheless, for the purposes of accuracy, integrity and transparency, it is important that the land be described accurately. It is concerning that the wrong street address was used in reporting to the council.
Why was the incorrect property description used when reporting the sale to Council?
How did this happen given that 16 Tatiara Street is a single residential allotment of about 600 sq m in area?
Why were no QA checks done given the scale and scope of the proposed sale?
Land Value: The Beagle reported a sale price of $4.7 million in October 2021, for the 41 Ha parcel and this figure has not been challenged by Council. https://www.beagleweekly.com.au/post/councilor-seeking-answers-around-dalmeny-land-sale
In comparison a 1 Ha parcel of land zoned for residential development was sold in 2020 in Dalmeny for $2.2 million, https://www.realestate.com.au/property/13-noble-pde-dalmeny-nsw-2546
The public land has been sold prior to the Development Control Plan being made. We have planning advice that is unusual in the sale of public assets. If council interests were driving the sale, the sale price would have been optimised by doing the planning work and obtaining a proper valuation based on the development potential of the land first.
A basic principle of valuation is that it should be based on potential future use, not just unimproved value of the land, especially if the land is already zoned for residential development. The Master Plan and DCP giving explicit development parameters and an estimated lot yield will substantially increase the value of the Council’s former land. The current arrangement enables the purchaser to on-sell council’s former land to an experienced developer for a large profit once the DCP is made and the development potential is clear.”
It is very important that we find out who benefits from this sale and potential re-sale: if anyone has any further information please let us know!
Presentation from Biodiversity Conservation Trust
On Tuesday 25 January staff from the Biodiversity Conservation Trust (BCT) volunteered their time and expertise to help group members understand how the Biodiversity Conservation Act will apply to the Dalmeny Development plans.
It is a complex process, but the important points for us are:
Environmental assessments are paid for by the landowner and done by a registered assessor
Assessments must be made prior to a development application
It is most likely Council will be the decision makers about whether the plans have done enough to avoid and minimise impacts to biodiversity, and how much it will cost to ‘offset’ unavoidable impacts
If the development is worth more than a certain amount, the decision may rest with a higher up Planning Panel instead
There is the option for the landowners to set aside some of the area under a Biodiversity Stewardship Agreement- ie the ‘offsets’ would be on the actual development area rather than somewhere else
Landowners can also generate an income for properties over 20 Ha by entering a Voluntary Conservation Agreement. It is hard to say whether this would generate the same profit as subdivision and development, as no one knows yet what proportion of the land release is actually developable, however the funds/ annum can be substantial
There is a video recording of the presentation, and a copy of the powerpoint available for group members, so let us know if you are interested in understanding this process further.
MLC Penny Sharpe (Leader of the Opposition in the NSW Legislative Assembly)
On December 17 a group representative spoke with the Hon. Penny Sharpe. Unfortunately, at the last minute the meeting had to go ahead via zoom as she was a Covid close contact. She was supportive of our campaign and promised to speak to her colleagues on our behalf. She advised us to contact the candidates for the Bega bi-election on this matter.
Housing Information
Affordable housing is apparently top of the list for new Mayor Mat Hatcher and Council. The Beagle ran a piece by Mr Hatcher earlier this month: https://www.beagleweekly.com.au/post/hatcher-affordable-housing
We have been reaching out to non profits involved in housing issues in the Eurobodalla to try to find a clearer picture of:
Why Council are investing time and money into a development which will NOT provide affordable housing
What we should be pushing for instead
Many residents have expressed that they are worried about the animals and bushland being destroyed by this development, but also worried about their family and community members who can’t afford to buy or rent here anymore.
Council have confirmed in writing that the Dalmeny Land Release will NOT include affordable housing, and it seems likely that blocks and houses will be very expensive. Housing strategies for the South Coast all talk about increasing density in already developed areas as the way to go.
Koalas
The Eurobodalla Koala Project has recently released a Review of Koala Habitat Significance of Bodalla State Forest 2021, following a koala sighting just north of Dalmeny, reported by Dalmeny Matters.
The review highlights the importance of conservation of bush corridors adjacent to Bodalla State Forest, like the Dalmeny Land Release area.
Keith Joliffe commented “The review argues Bodalla State Forest, where the sighting (still not finally confirmed) was reported last October, must be a priority focus for any Eurobodalla-wide koala population revival.
Eurobodalla Koalas reviewed the koala habitat significance of Bodalla State Forest, supported through a partnership between the Great Eastern Ranges Initiative (GER) and World Wildlife Fund Australia as part of a broader bushfire recovery effort. The Eurobodalla’s environment group Coastwatchers is delivering the GER south coast component.
With its remnant habitat and history of koala presence, the forest is a viable location for home ranges of about 350 hectares each, according to our review. Bodalla State Forest is also needed as a breeding connector for a sustaining regional koala metapopulation.
The review lists challenges for land managers in and near Bodalla State Forest if local koalas are to revive. Threats to address are landscape drying, further severe wildfire impacts, atmospheric carbon dioxide affecting leaf nutrients, degraded soils, dieback, historical clearing of the Tuross River lowlands, over-intensive logging and new clearing for urban development.
Over the next three years, the Coastwatchers Great Eastern Ranges Project hopes to make a start by helping adjacent private property owners survey and rehabilitate their spaces.”
Review available at https://eurokoalas.files.wordpress.com/2022/01/review_bodalla-sf.docx.pdf