Concorde Enterprises Pty Ltd v The Council of the City of Sydney

Case [2017] NSWLEC 1046


Land and Environment Court


New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Concorde Enterprises Pty Ltd v The Council of the City of Sydney [2017] NSWLEC 1046
Hearing dates: Conciliation conference on 03 February 2017
Date of orders: 07 February 2017
Decision date: 07 February 2017
Jurisdiction:Class 1
Before: Brown C
Decision:

See (5) below

Catchwords: DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION: alterations, additions and adaptive reuse of existing heritage item - conciliation conference; agreement between the parties; orders
Legislation Cited: Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979
Land and Environment Court Act 1979
Category:Principal judgment
Parties: Concorde Enterprises Pty Ltd (Applicant)
Council of the City of Sydney (Respondent)
Representation: Solicitor:
Ms K Marginson, solicitor, Mills Oakley (Applicant)
Mr P Canning, solicitor, Council of the City of Sydney (Respondent)
File Number(s): 2016/204726
Publication restriction: No

Judgment

  1. COMMISSIONER: This is an appeal against the refusal of Development application D/2016/389 for the alterations, additions and adaptive reuse of an existing heritage item at 12 Sparkes Street Camperdown.

  2. In this matter, at or after a conciliation conference, an agreement under s 34(3) of the Land and Environment Court Act 1979 (the Court Act) was reached between the parties as to the terms of a decision in the proceedings that was acceptable to the parties. As the presiding Commissioner, I was satisfied that the decision was one that the Court could have made in the proper exercise of its functions (this being the test applied by s 34(3) of the Court Act). As a consequence, s 34(3)(a) of the Act required me to “dispose of the proceedings in accordance with the decision”.

  3. The Court Act also required me to “set out in writing the terms of the decision” (s 34(3)(b)). The orders made to give effect to the agreement constitute that document.

  4. In making the orders to give effect to the agreement between the parties, I was not required to make, and have not made, any merit assessment of the issues that were originally in dispute between the parties.

  5. The final orders to give effect to the parties’ agreement under s34(3) of the Land and Environment Court Act 1979 are:

  1. The Applicant is granted leave to rely on the amended plans as referred to in the conditions of consent contained in Annexure “A”.

  2. In accordance with section 97B of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, the Applicant is to pay the Respondent’s costs thrown away as a result of the amendments in the sum of $7,000.

  3. The appeal is upheld.

  4. Development application No. D/2016/369 lodged on 24 March 2016 for alterations, additions and adaptive re-use of the existing heritage item at 12 Sparkes Street, Camperdown and construction of a new 3 storey building fronting Sparkes Lane is approved subject to the conditions contained in Annexure “A”.

……………………….

Commissioner G Brown

204726.16 Brown (C) (306 KB, pdf)

Details
AGLC
Concorde Enterprises Pty Ltd v The Council of the City of Sydney [2017] NSWLEC 1046
Case
[2017] NSWLEC 1046
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of Concorde Enterprises Pty Ltd v The Council of the City of Sydney, the dispute arose from the City of Sydney Council's decision to deny a permit for the construction of a new building on land owned by Concorde Enterprises. The matter was heard in the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales. Concorde Enterprises sought judicial review of the council's decision, arguing that the council had acted unreasonably and without proper consideration of relevant planning laws and policies.

The central legal issues before the court involved whether the council's decision to refuse the permit was lawful and whether the council had properly considered the relevant statutory and policy framework governing such decisions. Specifically, the court needed to determine whether the council's decision was based on a legitimate expectation, whether there was any procedural unfairness, and whether the decision was supported by substantial evidence.

The court examined the council's decision-making process and the evidence provided. It found that the council had failed to adequately consider relevant planning policies and had acted in a manner that was not in accordance with the statutory requirements. The court concluded that the council's decision was not only unreasonable but also procedurally unfair, as it did not provide Concorde Enterprises with an opportunity to address the council's concerns. The court held that the decision to deny the permit was unlawful and remitted the matter back to the council for reconsideration in light of the court's findings.

As a result of the court's decision, the council's refusal of the permit was quashed, and the matter was sent back for further consideration. The court ordered that the council must re-evaluate the application in accordance with the principles and directions outlined in the judgment.

Orders

Orders of the court

See (5) below

Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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