NSW Land and Environment Court reverses own ruling on seniors’ housing project
The council appealed against the LEC’s decision on grounds of legal error, one of the few pathways available for overturning a ruling within the same court.
An approved retirement village on Sydney’s Northern Beaches is now in jeopardy after the NSW Land and Environment Court overturned its own ruling that had approved the development.
The development application for 26 independent living units with amenities planned for Narraweena, 18km northeast of Sydney’s CBD, was given the green light in July after developer Vigor Master successfully appealed against the Northern Beaches Council’s refusal of the plans.
Vigor Master had submitted their development application in 2024 for four two-storey buildings and a community hub with a pool, gym, theatre and library. The subject site is near Marston Living Beacon Hill, which was also constructed by Vigor Master.
Northern Beaches Council refused the plan due to biodiversity concerns, arguing the “expansive tree removal” required for the category-1 bushfire-prone land was not characteristic of the “low intensity, low impact” development it wanted in the area.
NSW Land and Environment Court Senior Commissioner Susan Dixon found there were inconsistencies in statutory frameworks impacting the site and ruled the project acceptable, granting development consent.
However, the council appealed against the LEC’s decision on grounds of legal error, one of the few pathways available for overturning a ruling within the same court.
At a hearing last month, the council argued that the Commissioner had misconstrued key provisions of the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016, the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 and various local environment plans.
It argued that the previous Commissioner’s decision failed to take into consideration matters of relevance, and that they “asked the wrong question and applied the wrong test”.
The presiding Commissioner of the new hearing, NSW Land and Environment Court Chief Judge Brian Preston, agreed the previous Commissioner had misconstrued previous Acts and planning instruments and set aside the previous decision to allow the development.
A construction certificate application was made in August, but the current status of the project is now unclear.
