Major redesign needed

We (Wagstaffe to Killcare Community Association) are concerned about Gosford Council's decision to recommend the approval of a proposal to build three refreshment rooms at the Empire Bay service station (Peninsula News, 05 Sep 2011).

We feel this decision has been made partly on the basis of receiving a tick from the Rural Fire Service for bushfire protection based on erroneous drawings showing the proposed building separated from native bush by a 10 metre wide lawn.

However, almost the entire lawn area is required by order of the Land and Environment Court, to be regenerated to 100 per cent natural bush whose boundary is only one metre from the proposed building.

It is impossible to believe this is permissible to Council and we suggest that, since the bush regeneration boundaries have been set in stone by the Court, it could not be remedied without withdrawal of the application and major redesign.

The existing service station was built following a protracted battle with Council which concluded with the Land and Environment Court in 2003 applying many strict conditions including requiring that a considerable area be regenerated to natural bush.

The property owner has consistently failed over the intervening eight years to carry out the Court's orders and, as a result, has been unable to obtain a completion certificate.

In the light of this dismal record of failure to comply, why would Council proceed with the approval process before every order of the Court had been carried out?

Email, 15 Sep 2011 Ian Bull, Wagstaffe