Assessment

We must assess each application against those relevant considerations under section 79C Evaluation of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

It is unlawful for any consent authority, including any Council, to give any weight to irrelevant matters or fail to consider relevant matters.

Relevant considerations

In summary, the relevant considerations are:

• environmental planning instruments
• draft environmental planning instruments
• development control plans
• contribution plans
  
• planning agreements
• draft planning agreements that a developer has offered to enter into
• the regulations (prescribed matters)
  
• the likely impacts of that development, including environmental impacts on both the natural and built environments, and social and economic impacts in the locality
• the suitability of the site for the development
• submissions made within the advertising or notification period, and
•  the public interest.

Our assessments are informed and guided by the Planning Principles and other judgments published by the Land and Environment Court and we assess all development applications in accordance with section 79C of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

Irrelevant considerations

We will not give any weight to submissions that do not relate to the development application being considered by Council.

Objectives and numerical controls

Compliance with numerical controls does not mean "as of right" approval.

Whilst numeric and prescriptive development standards and development controls are our best indicator as to the general acceptability of any development (and every applicant must strive to meet these controls), we will always consider whether the objectives of development standards and development controls would be achieved if we grant development consent.

There will be cases when a proposal complies with numeric or prescriptive controls, but does not meet the objectives of development rules.

Objectives are paramount and if not achieved by any proposal, favourable consideration will not be given to the approval of the application.

As economics and technology drive innovation in architecture and solutions to issues that our numeric or prescriptive controls did not envisage, we will assess compliance with the objectives to inform our decisions.  Judgements of the Land and Environment Court also provide us with rigorous guidance.  Court of Appeal and High Court judgements provide higher levels of precedence.

Council is committed to the principles of Environmentally Sustainable Development (ESD) and all applicants must ask themselves, would a more skilful design meet their objectives and create a more Environmentally Sustainable Development (ESD).

Objections and comments

All objections and comments recieved within the submission period will be considered as part of our assessment.  We can only give weight to objections which fairly and reasonably relate to the proposed development and which are themselves reasonable.  We get many submissions that raise issues which we cannot give any weight to in our final recommendations.  We ask that, if you are making a submission, you read through our advice on objections and submissions.

Generic petitions are not very helpful to the process.  If you are affected by a proposal, then what we need to know is exactly how the proposal will affect you, your property and the amenity of your property.

Public Interest

Ulimately, having regard to all relevant considerations, the consent authority must determine, balancing all relevant considerations, whether or not it is in the public interest to grant development consent.

This is the final consideration we will make before determining any application made to Council.

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