Baker Investments Pty Ltd v City of Vincent

The case involved Baker Investments Pty Ltd, a developer, and the City of Vincent, a local council, with the dispute centred around a proposed variation to a previously approved development. The case was heard in the Western Australian Court of Appeal. The developer sought to remove obscured glazing from a building, which had previously been approved, but the council refused to grant the necessary approval for the variation. The developer appealed this decision to the Western Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (WACA Tribunal), which upheld the council’s decision. Baker Investments then appealed the WACA Tribunal’s decision to the Court of Appeal.

The court had to determine whether the developer was exempt from the need to obtain planning approval for the proposed variation to the previously approved development. Additionally, the court needed to decide whether the proposed development was compliant with the relevant planning schemes and whether the Tribunal was required to approve the proposal. The court also had to consider whether the decision of the Tribunal was so unreasonable that no reasonable decision-maker could have made it.

The court found that the developer was not exempt from the need to obtain planning approval for the proposed variation. The court held that the proposal was not compliant with the relevant planning schemes as it involved a change in the use of the building, which required a new development application. The court found that the Tribunal was not required to approve the proposal and that the decision of the Tribunal was not unreasonable. The court held that the Tribunal had considered all relevant factors and had come to a decision that was open to it. The appeal was dismissed, and the decision of the Tribunal was upheld. The court did not make any further orders.