Thomco (No. 2087) Pty Ltd v Noosa Shire Council

Thomco (No. 2087) Pty Ltd sought to amend its development approval to change the staging of its proposed project. The Noosa Shire Council opposed the application on the grounds that the changes would result in a substantially different development. The matter was heard in the Queensland Land Court, where Justice Davies was tasked with determining whether the proposed changes constituted a minor change or a substantially different development.

The central legal issue revolved around the interpretation of the term "minor change" under the Planning Act 2016. The court had to assess whether the proposed changes to the staging of the development resulted in a substantially different development from that which had been previously approved. Specifically, the court considered whether the changes would result in the facility remaining in stage 1, rather than progressing to stage 2. The applicant argued that the changes did not amount to a substantially different development, while the respondent contended that the proposed alterations would fundamentally alter the nature of the approved project.

Justice Davies concluded that the changes proposed by the applicant would indeed result in a substantially different development. The court found that the changes would prevent the facility from progressing to stage 2 of the development, which was a significant alteration from the approved plan. Consequently, the court held that the proposed changes did not constitute a minor change but rather a fundamentally different development. The application was dismissed as the changes would result in a development that was not substantially the same as that which had been approved.