Slusarczyk and City of Stirling

The parties in this case were Slusarczyk and the City of Stirling. Slusarczyk lodged a development application for the demolition of a circa 1920 bungalow in Mount Lawley. The property was situated in a Heritage Protection Area. The dispute arose because the City of Stirling opposed the application on heritage grounds. The case was heard by the Western Australian Planning and Environment Commission, the Tribunal.

The key legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the local planning framework presumed the conservation of properties such as the one in question as a starting point and whether the planning framework was inconsistent with the 2007 State Planning Policy 3.5 Historic Heritage Conservation. The Tribunal also had to interpret the heritage values of the property and consider whether it should inquire into the creation of and assumptions that underlay the local planning framework.

The Tribunal concluded that the local planning framework did not presume the conservation of properties such as the one in question as a starting point, but rather, the contribution of such properties to cultural heritage was discussed in the framework. The Tribunal found that the planning framework was not inconsistent with the 2007 State Planning Policy 3.5 Historic Heritage Conservation. The Tribunal also found that the property had significant heritage conservation values underlying the planning framework. The differing views of the heritage experts did not outweigh the overall evidence presented. The Tribunal refused the application for demolition and dismissed the application for review.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review and dismissed the application for review. This means that the original decision of the City of Stirling to oppose the development application on heritage grounds was upheld.