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THE TWEED www.tweedecho.com.au
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Volume 4 #11 Thursday, November 10, 2011 Advertising and news enquiries: Phone: (02) 6672 2280 editor@tweedecho.com.au adcopy@tweedecho.com.au 21,000 copies every week CAB AUDIT
LOCAL & INDEPENDENT
Leda ramps up attack on planners Mayor slams developer’s claims of green bias and incompetence Staff reporters
A tenuous peace pact between Tweed Shire Council and property mogul Bob Ell’s Leda group is in tatters following a second attack on key planning staff whom the company accuses of an anti-development bias. Mayor Barry Longland, who last week pledged to work to improve relations with Leda after it released a dossier of complaints about council’s handling of its massive Kings Forest project, says he is incensed by the new allegations. ‘It [the report] removes any belief that Leda wants to work constructively with council,’ said Cr Longland, who last week organised an emergency meeting of councillors to examine Leda’s claims of green bias and incompetence with council’s planning department.
Chief planner targeted over submission The new report targets chief planner Vince Connell over a 74-page submission he sent to the NSW planning department in October last year before it gave concept plan approval for Leda’s 5500-home development at Cobaki. It claims Mr Connell failed to specifically alert councillors to several issues when they voted to endorse the report, including calls for ecological buffer zones and warnings to potential residents about aircraft noise. The latest allegations, selectively leaked to the Gold Coast Bulletin which again splashed with front page headlines proclaiming Leda’s ‘crisis’,
claimed staff didn’t alert councillors to so-called significant issues before they endorsed the report. Leda claims that a proposal that residents be warned the site was subject to light aircraft noise is ‘an unwarranted stain upon its product’ and says plans for an ecological buffer zone would have deprived them of 70ha of residential land worth more than $250 million if the department had agreed. Mr Connell declined to comment on the new allegations but issues of aircraft noise and buffer requirements were addressed in detail in his submission which give a different twist to Leda’s objections. In the submission, Mr Connell said the Gold Coast Airport wanted potential purchasers to be advised of the fact that light aircraft often flew over the site on training exercises to headoff future complaints. He reported that the company had rejected the suggestion and had responded with the statement that: ‘Leda will from time to time determine the information that is given by it to prospective purchasers.’ Mr Connell said council officers believed that the airport and developer should take responsibility for the management of complaints about light aircraft noise by advising residents of the potential nuisance on property titles. The submission also details Leda’s objections to dozens of suggested environmental works, including the provision of extra buffer zones and compensatory plantings. Leda’s complaints have been sent to several senior NSW government
ministers, including the premier, attorney-general, local government minister and planning minister. It is believed Leda is claiming there is a case to remove council staff from the approvals process. The new report follows Leda’s release of a dossier purporting to justify their claims that some council planning staff and consultants involved in assessing their two major residential
projects had written ‘biased’ reports and had a ‘negative attitude’ to developers. Cr Longland labelled Leda’s suggestion that councillors were incapable of reading the submission to be sent to the NSW planning department as patronising and arrogant. And he said he was puzzled by Leda’s claim that Cobaki residents should not receive a warning about aircraft noise.
‘Having received advice from the Gold Coast Airport that future Cobaki residents should be routinely advised of the impact of aircraft noise on their amenity, councillors had a responsibility to advocate for such a condition on this development. ‘What were we supposed to do, keep that a secret from future residents? continued on page 4
Murwillumbah show a swinging success
The ever popular sideshow attractions at last week’s Murwillumbah Show included this set of swings with designs taken from an old-fashioned carousel. A welcome return of the ‘trots’ to the 111th show helped make the annual event an unqualified success, according to Tweed River Agricultural Society president
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Phil Keevers. After an absence of some seven years, trotting made its return to the show and attracted plenty of attention. Mr Keevers thanked all sponsors and singled out this year’s batch of volunteers for special praise. Photo Jeff ‘Spun-out’ Dawson