Serafimovski v Mosman Municipal Council

Case [2018] NSWLEC 1615


Land and Environment Court


New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Serafimovski v Mosman Municipal Council [2018] NSWLEC 1615
Hearing dates: Conciliation Conference on 28 November 2018
Date of orders: 29 November 2018
Decision date: 29 November 2018
Jurisdiction:Class 1
Before: Morris AC
Decision:

See [7] below

Catchwords: DEVELOPMENT APPLICATION: conciliation conference; agreement between the parties; orders
Legislation Cited: Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979
Land and Environment Court Act 1979
Mosman Local Environmental Plan 2012
Category:Principal judgment
Parties: Goran Serafimovski (First Applicant)
Aleksandra Serafimovski (Second Applicant)
Mosman Municipal Council (Respondent)
Representation:

Counsel:
Dr S Berveling (Applicants)

  Solicitors:
Penklis Lawyers (Applicants)
R McCulloch, Pikes & Verekers Lawyers (Respondent)
File Number(s): 2018/164244
Publication restriction: No

Judgment

  1. COMMISSIONER: This is an appeal by Goran and Aleksandra Serafimovski (applicants) lodged under s 8.7 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EP&A Act) against the refusal by Mosman Municipal Council of Development Application 8.2017.144.1. The application proposed demolition of existing site improvements, construction of a new dwelling house with lower level parking, swimming pool and landscaping at 62 Wyong Road, Mosman.

  2. The Court arranged a conciliation conference under s 34(1) of the Land and Environment Court Act 1979 (LEC Act) between the parties, which has been held on 28 November 2018. I have presided over the conciliation conference.

  3. At the conciliation conference, the parties reached agreement as to the terms of a decision in the proceedings that would be acceptable to the parties. The decision agreed upon is to uphold the appeal and to grant development consent subject to conditions of consent, pursuant to s 4.16 of the EP&A Act. That agreement was based on amended plans prepared by the applicant which, according to the council’s experts, addressed the contentions in the case.

  4. As the presiding Commissioner, I am satisfied that the decision is one that the Court can make in the proper exercise of its functions, as required by s 34(3) of the LEC Act.

  5. I have formed this state of satisfaction because the development is permissible in the R2 zone under Mosman Local Environmental Plan 2012, the development complies with all relevant development standards in that plan and, as agreed by the parties, takes into consideration potential impact on views from neighbouring properties. Conditions of consent have been imposed that reflect those impacts and ensures appropriate landscaping, tree retention and boundary treatments. These were issues raised by objectors to the development.

  6. As the parties’ decision is a decision that the Court could have made in the proper exercise of its functions, I am required under s 34(3) of the LEC Act to dispose of the proceedings in accordance with the parties’ decision.

  7. The Court orders:

  1. The Applicants are granted leave to rely on the further amended plans listed in Annexure “A”.

  2. The appeal is upheld.

  3. Development Application DA 8.2017.144.1 for demolition of the existing dwelling and 2 brick sheds and the construction of a dwelling house and swimming pool at 62 Wyong Road, Mosman, is approved subject to the conditions set out in Annexure “B”.

………………………..

Sue Morris

Acting Commissioner of the Court

Annexure A (13.3 KB, pdf)

Annexure B (110 KB, pdf)

Amended Plans_Part1 (5.01 MB, pdf)

Amended Plans_Part2 (11.7 MB, pdf)

Amended Plans_Part3 (7.27 MB, pdf)

Amended Plans_Part4 (8.01 MB, pdf)

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Details
AGLC
Serafimovski v Mosman Municipal Council [2018] NSWLEC 1615
Case
[2018] NSWLEC 1615
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of Serafimovski v Mosman Municipal Council was heard in the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales. The dispute arose from a decision made by the Mosman Municipal Council to refuse a development application by the plaintiff, Mr Serafimovski, for the construction of a house on his property. Mr Serafimovski sought judicial review of the council’s decision, claiming that it was unreasonable and based on an erroneous understanding of the relevant planning and environmental laws.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the council’s decision was made in accordance with the applicable statutory framework and whether it was based on a proper consideration of the relevant evidence and applicable laws. In particular, the court needed to determine whether the council had acted unreasonably by failing to properly consider the potential environmental impacts of the proposed development and by relying on information that was not before them at the time of the decision.

The court found that the council's decision was indeed unreasonable and that it was based on a misinterpretation of the evidence. The council had failed to properly consider the potential environmental impacts of the proposed development, particularly in relation to the protection of a nearby waterway. The court also found that the council had acted outside its statutory powers by relying on information that was not available to them at the time of the decision. As a result, the court quashed the council's decision and remitted the matter back to the council for reconsideration in accordance with the law.

Orders

Orders of the court

See [7] 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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