SNORTS AND CHORTLES SINCE 1986 The Byron Shire Echo • Volume 35 #39 • Wednesday, March 10, 2021 • www.echo.net.au
Councillors ĈşŕƆĶĎĕſ ƆƐëǔ proposal on ëǔ şſĎëćōĕ IJşƖƆĶŕī Paul Bibby
Land of ice creams discovered! The Llewellyn clan – Pax Douglas, Dan, Ron Jr and Naava Bear get stuck into Gelato Vibes big time at last Saturday’s Sunset Market Food Festival at The Mullum Leagues Club. There will be a Food Truck Carnival at Bangalow Showground next Friday evening from 5pm. Photo Jeff ‘I Scream For Ice Cream’ Dawson
Large Bruns boarding house DA heads to court A proposal to build a mixed use commercial building, including a 48 self-contained room boarding house in the heart of Bayside in Brunswick Heads is heading to the Land and Environment court over a ‘deemed refusal’, after developer Kollective claimed the development application (DA) took too long to process. A deemed refusal occurs when a development application is not determined within the prescribed
North coast news ▶ p4
assessment period. From the start of the pre-DA lodgement period, residents were concerned with Kollective’s Corso proposal, including its size and associated planning issues. Resident Lisa Sandstrom told The Echo a conciliation meeting between Council and the applicant is taking place on March 15, which will give residents a chance to address the many concerns they have.
Pascoe gig attracts big donations ▶ p5
She says there is a lack of infrastructure to support the development and that the ‘rooms will rent at expensive market rates in line with the rest of the area’. She says, ‘Despite being built under [NSW government] Affordability Housing legislation [SEPP], there is no measure of affordability’. ‘There is a woeful lack of parking, and traffic will pose serious safety issues. There is also a lack
Where does a lack of empathy lead us? ▶ p8
of integration with the community; it is totally out of character and incompatible. We will lose a commercial hub that has been promised to the community for close to 30 years. This DA completely compromises the planning that has underpinned this precinct’. Matthew O’Reilly from the Brunswick Progress Association will speak at the conciliation meeting ▶ Continued on page 3
What’s not to love about Lismore? ▶ p24
Should Byron Council be given greater powers to facilitate development in the Shire to address the worsening housing affordability crisis? This is one option councillors will consider at this week’s meeting, as it explores the housing challenges facing our key workers. A Council staff report paints a grim housing picture for a broad cross-section of local workers, ranging from nurses and teachers to food and accommodation employees. The cumulative impact of lower-than-average incomes and the dramatic increase in rents and house prices, is leaving our key workers with an unprecedented level of housing stress. The proportion of local workers who still live in the Shire has plunged, and there are anecdotal reports that others are forced to live in their cars or with colleagues. ‘There is an urgent need for a policy circuit breaker to enable the supply of low to high-end rental and ownership accommodation opportunities outside the current ‘inflated free market…’ the report states. ‘Although Council is poised to deliver shovel ready solutions, it is unable to do so easily owing to the state planning framework and the constraints in which local government operates...’. In response to this challenge, the report suggests that Council advocate for policy changes, so that councils can ‘directly facilitate development through planning, providing land, and offering subsidies to developers’.
Northern Rivers awash with talented artists ▶ p26
Scoopfuls of goodies ▶ p30