Letters
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Holiday letting blues Q Matthew
Hartley puts forward plan to shut down illegal letting in residential zones and garner millions for Byron Shire. According to Hans Lovejoy, who says he checked, staff say Matthew Hartley’s plan can work. Mayor says staff are great. But, mayor says, nothing can be done about holiday letting in residential areas. Hmmm. Then again, mayor also said no-one made an issue of rate rises during the council election. Matt Hartley took out three half-page ads in The Echo, and spoke about it at every public meeting. Who is telling the truth? Tell you what: I will shut down holiday letting in residential areas, at zero cost to Council. Now, Hans Lovejoy, can we please publish my plan of action? Matt Hartley Byron Bay
Q Hans Lovejoy replies: It ap-
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14 February 1, 2017 The Byron Shire Echo
pears correct that, under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, there are provisions to appoint and empower a special investigative and prosecutorial team to pursue holiday letting. Council’s legal services continued from page 12 bureaucracy and a mayor more interested in his tourism development concepts for the rail corridor than getting involved with the local grassroots to secure a bestpractice infrastructure outcome for his community. Please explain with real facts, not fake facts, why our green council sees fit to destroy a wide stretch of redflagged critical habitat in the Cumbebin wetland at an unquantified and significant perpetual cost to the community; why no cost benefit, in fact no detailed costs whatsoever have been provided to the community for the proposal; why we undertake studies and legislation for the preservation of our community-built heritage environment when our very own council can ignore impacts and ram a main road right through an established residential conservation area. If Byron Shire Council were pragmatic in the face of the obvious blowout in costs for their bypass proposal you would be sensible in thinking they might now seek an out-of-court settlement of the hugely expensive appeal, call in all parties and address
co-ordinator, Ralph James, told The Echo on November 22 last year that such an enforcement approach on holiday letting ‘could result in Council being locked into constant and expensive litigation.’ ‘The risks and results of such litigation would be counterproductive to achieving a long-term strategic planning and compliance solution. ‘Allowing planning instruments for Short Term Rental Accommodation (STRA) is likely to enable neighbours and the community to decide where and how STRA premises can be located and conducted,’ he said. However, Mr James reaffirmed that instances of safety and environmental harm would have priority, be investigated and where substantiated, enforcement action taken. Q I found myself shaking my head in disbelief at our mayor’s ‘Thoughts on holiday letting’ in last week’s Echo. He says there is ‘no legislation to stop it’. This statement needs a bit of further explaining from our mayor. The Land Use Tables in Byron Shire LEP 2014 set out ob-
a quick and cheap solution. This would be evidence of a progressive and smart administration, saving money, seeking mutual benefit and best practice. Instead we have thus far only experienced arrogance, laziness, misinformation and a careless attitude to facts, figures and families. Who wants to pay this administration a load more rates to squander on this ineptitude? But we remain open to a change of heart. Paul Jones President, Butler Street Community Network
WTF Rudd?
Last week’s Echo interview with Xavier Rudd had me perplexed. Messianic appearances aside, he failed to mention the plight of chickens when he spoke of his lofty idealism about ending cruelty to animals for human consumption. Ban beef? Sure. Commercial fishing? Great. Chicken torture? Nope. Nothing was mentioned by Rudd in that soft, fuzzy puff piece. In 2015, his song Let Me Be was used in a Kentucky Fried Chicken TV ad. This song followed on from the 2012 album named
jectives and permitted uses for each land zoning. The tables also list prohibited uses. For example in an R2 – Low Density Residential Zone ‘commercial premises’ are prohibited. Clause 1.2 in the LEP sets out the aims of the plan including: ‘to minimise conflict between land uses within a zone and ensure minimal impact of development on the amenity of adjoining and nearby land uses’. My understanding is that the LEP is a statutory document (ie a state law) that is effectively policed under the EPA Act, which sets out the procedure for orders and penalties for failure to comply. If a permanently shortterm-rented property is not a ‘commercial premises’ then why this is so needs to be explained by the council to the neighbouring residents who experience the conflict described above. If holiday letting is a ‘commercial premises’, then there is legislation to stop it. The mayor appears to be saying that the planning system applies to every other form of development and use, but not to this one. Frank Stewart Byron Bay Spirit Bird! Despite the social media backlash at the time, Rudd is not on record as to why he sold his art and soul to the biggest corporate chicken concentration camp on the planet. How does hawking for fast-food chicken align with being the sexiest vegetarian of the year? Am I the only one who finds it more than hypocritical? Rudd has been invited to join the Facebook page named WTF Rudd? I encourage Rudd to explain the inconsistency of his spiritual morals at any time. Robert Llewellyn Ocean Shores
Greens showdown
Apparently the Greens in NSW are at a crossroads and a showdown is looming between the left and the populists. Leader Robert Di Natale is a populist who wants the party to increase its electoral base, while Lee Rhiannon wants to institute Bernie Sanders-type criticisms of the capitalist system as part of the Greens’ core values. Locally I would put mayor Simon Richardson in the Di Natale camp; he is a populist who is unwilling to see continued on page 16
Byron Shire Echo archives: www.echo.net.au/byron-echo