14 October 2014 A victory for common sense with Lake Macquarie City Council sea level rise policy Lake Macquarie City Councillor Jason Pauling and Member for Swansea Garry Edwards have applauded Lake Macquarie City councillors for overruling council staff on a dual occupancy development application in Swansea. Councillors voted 7-3 on Monday night to approve the dual occupancy application after Council Officers had since the lodgement of the Development Application opposed the application, arguing the “intensification” element of Council’s current sea level rise policy. Councillor Pauling said for the last two years Lake Macquarie City Council has been pushing an unproven and hysterical agenda on sea level rise and flood risk. “Last night’s result is a positive sign that the majority of councillors are using their common sense and not blindly following council recommendations. I encourage all Lake Macquarie City Councillors to think carefully before denying someone the opportunity to invest in their future. This matter requires a balanced and common sense approach” Councillor Pauling said. Member for Swansea Garry Edwards said “the Coalition Government scrapped the 2050 sea level rise benchmarks – which were part of the former Labor Government’s Sea Level Rise Policy – and instead gave councils discretion to plan for perceived environmental and planning impacts of sea level rise, should it actually occur. “However, it is clear that Lake Macquarie City Council has to date, refused to adopt a common sense policy in relation to sea level rise, and in fact, is pursuing the most extreme policy adopted by any council in New South Wales and this has directly resulted in causing the maximum detriment to the affected Lake Macquarie residents.” “More than 10,000 homes around Lake Macquarie carry section 149 certificate notations and as a result, insurance premiums have skyrocketed, house values have plummeted and people are struggling to sell their homes,” Mr Edwards said.
Posted on: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 00:29:49 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015