Meriden School v Pedavoli - [2009] NSWLEC 183

Land and Environment Court

of New South Wales

CITATION: Meriden School v Pedavoli [2009] NSWLEC 183

PARTIES: APPLICANT
Meriden School
RESPONDENT
Joe Pedavoli

FILE NUMBER(S): 10389 of 2009

CORAM: Pain J

KEY ISSUES: APPEAL :- appeal against noise abatement order made by local court - whether noise from school offensive - appeal upheld and order set aside

LEGISLATION CITED: Land and Environment Court Act 1979 s 17
Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 s 268, 290
Protection of the Environment Operations (Noise Control) Regulation 2008

CASES CITED: Balmain Care for Kids Pty Ltd v Leichhardt Municipal Council [2009] NSWLEC 1146

DATES OF HEARING: 20 October 2009
21 October 2009

DATE OF JUDGMENT:
22 October 2009

LEGAL REPRESENTATIVES: APPLICANT
Mr N Hemmings QC
SOLICITORS
Allens Arthur Robinson
RESPONDENT
Mr R Nair
SOLICITORS
Legal & Company

JUDGMENT:

THE LAND AND
ENVIRONMENT COURT
OF NEW SOUTH WALES

Pain J

22 October 2009

10389 of 2009 Meriden School v Pedavoli
JUDGMENT

1 Her Honour: Mr Joe Pedavoli (the Respondent), his wife and two members of his family live at Vernon Street, Strathfield. Members of the Respondent’s family have lived at the site for around 38 years. At the time of purchase of the property by the Respondent, the Applicant Meriden School, (the school) was located to the rear of their property although at a much lesser scale than currently exists. Currently, the school owns the properties to the north, south and east of the Respondent’s property which together form the school’s junior campus and is bordered by Redmyre Road, Margaret Street and Vernon Street. The area to the north of the Respondent’s property is used as an access to the school and contains pedestrian paths and landscaped gardens. A pedestrian walkway at the southern end of the U-shaped school building is located to the east. A dwelling of similar style and size to the Respondent’s dwelling is located directly to the south and is currently used as the residence for the school principal. To the north-east of the Respondent’s dwelling and located inside the U-shaped school building is an open area used for outdoor activities for the schoolchildren known as the Jobling lawn. The senior school campus is very close by and lies to the east of the junior school on the corner of Redmyre Road and Margaret Street.

2 The Court visited the school’s junior and senior school campuses on the first day of hearing. I thank Commissioner Brown for his assistance in this matter.

3 On other boundaries of the junior school privately owned residences, flats and a retirement home are located. Across Margaret Street are several blocks of units. Other schools in the nearby area include St Martha’s Girls Primary School, Santa Sabina College and Strathfield Girls High. The land on which the school is located is zoned Residential 2(b) and flats and schools are permitted uses. The Respondent’s property is also zoned Residential 2(b).

4 The school has appealed against a noise abatement order made by Burwood Local…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Keep reading for free

Create a free CaseChat account to read Meriden School v Pedavoli and more:

Read every judgment in full
Ask AI and get answers linked to paragraphs
See how each paragraph was cited in later cases
Download judgments as PDF or Word

Continue with Google

One click creates your free account or signs you in.

By continuing you agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy.

Details

Case: [2009] NSWLEC 183
Decision Date: 22 October 2009

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of Meriden School v Pedavoli involved an appeal by the Meriden School against a noise abatement order made by the Burwood Local Court. The order was made in response to a complaint by Joe Pedavoli, who lived adjacent to the school, about noise generated by the school's activities, particularly from children playing on the Jobling lawn and the use of maintenance equipment. The Land and Environment Court was tasked with determining whether the noise constituted "offensive noise" under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997, and whether the abatement order should be upheld. The Court held extensive hearings, including site visits and expert evidence from acoustic consultants. After evaluating the evidence, the Court found that the noise from the children's play and the use of maintenance equipment did not meet the statutory definition of "offensive noise". The Court concluded that the school had taken significant steps to mitigate noise impacts and that the noise levels were consistent with typical school activities in a residential area. The Court set aside the noise abatement order made by the Local Court.

Orders