Goulburn planning consultant lodges formal complaint

Kate Cartwright, of Plan and Co, and husband David, a private certifier, also maintained that many of the developers on the Tall Timbers Estate at Eastgrove should not have paid the money, levied years ago by Goulburn Mulwaree Council.

Mrs Cartwright claimed the council had contravened the NSW Local Government Act in 2004 when it decided by councillor resolution to charge developers in the 48-lot subdivision a $1250 fee for each block built upon. The amount, which rose with inflation, was charged to pay for an archaeological report and work on the subdivision.

At the time, it was seen as a compromise in a sticky situation whereby the subdivision had been approved in 1988 but its archaeological importance for Aboriginal artefacts only discovered six years later. By that time, blocks had been sold and the total $80,000 cost for investigations could not be levied retrospectively on the original applicant.

Since then, owners have had to pay the $1250 fee, which has risen to $1740 with inflation, before the council would grant a construction certificate for homes.

But in her complaint, Mrs Cartwright alleged the council was engaging in “fiscal deception” and abusing the trust the community placed in it to properly administer the Act. In essence, she argued that the council could not charge a fee it had not firstly publicly advertised in its draft operational plan – in her case for the 2017/18 financial year. 

“The Act is quite clear on how the council can levy fees and charges,” she said.

“There is a process it has to follow and it is not simply enough to hold a meeting and for councillors to decide to charge it. I feel the the management has let down the councillors by failing to administer the Act.”

Mrs Cartwright said according to her advice from the Office of Local Government, the fee had to be included in each year’s operational plan to be valid.

She told The Post she picked up on the fee after receiving consent conditions for a three-lot subdivision she and her husband were developing in Redgum Place. The DA was lodged on August 31, 2017 but not determined until May 25. One of the conditions was the $1740 fee.

“It sparked my curiosity so I went back to the assessing officer. They confirmed it was imposed as a condition and I couldn’t act on the development until it was paid. They stood by the fee so I realised it needed to go further,” Mrs Cartwright said. 

She said the Office of Local Government “confirmed her suspicion” that the fee couldn’t be charged unless it had been advertised in the draft operational plan. The result was the formal complaint.

A council spokesman said as the complaint was “in a legal process” it would be inappropriate to comment until the matter was resolved between the two parties. 

But Mrs Cartwright said she wasn’t the only one affected. The resolution applied to specific parcels of land in Red Gum Place, Dianella Place, Melliodora Drive and Banksia Way. According to her investigations, 17 properties paid the fee before the resolution, while 30 remained outstanding. The total liability added up to more than $78,000 (subject to CPI), for the 47 landowners.

She said she had spoken to other developers who had paid the money. Mrs Cartwright is considering doing a mail-out to those affected.

“They were not necessarily in a position to push back on it,” she said.

“(But) people shouldn’t need to engage someone like me to raise it. They should be able to trust the council to impose conditions of consent that are valid.”

She and her husband are calling on the council to undertake an audit of affected people and refund the money to property owners.