Minister could give assent by March
The Rural Fire Service must support the Patyegarang ‘Lizard Rock’ development before the planning authority will recommend the controversial Belrose build.
In December, a majority of three to two of the Sydney North Planning Panel said Patyegarang, which would see 450 homes built on untouched bushland on Morgan Road, had ‘strategic merit.’ However, given the NSW RFS had objected to the development, the panel recommended the Department of Planning should ‘continue to liaise with the RFS in order to ascertain what changes might be required in order to gain the support of the RFS.’
“The panel believes the bushfire risk and zoning are unresolved and need further consultation with the RFS and the Northern Beaches Council.”
The land is owned by the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, which has been seeking to build at the site for some years.
As part of the decision process, the panel held a public hearing, with some 3,633 written submissions already received in 2023, with 98 per cent objecting to the proposal. Wakehurst MP Michael Regan has long-campaigned against Patyegarang. “‘I am frustrated and dismayed that the panel has kept this reckless bushfire trap of a proposal alive, despite the overwhelming evidence that the site is completely inappropriate for a residential subdivision,” Mr Regan said in a statement.
“It seems they are essentially trying to bully the RFS to say yes. Facts are facts. Local volunteer firefighters have told me that there is no safe place to build residential buildings on the site.”
Mayor Sue Heins said council was ‘disappointed’ with the decision. “This is not a viable development and should be abandoned,” she said. “The one road in and out of a community surrounded by dense bushland poses too big a risk to life and property. Many of us remember all too clearly the terrifying 1994 bushfires blackening the Northern Beaches, and have seen the devastating loss of life in other areas since then.
“Council cannot see how any mitigation measures can make this proposed development safe.”
Nonetheless, the RFS left open the door to approving the development, saying in a letter to the panel in October, 2024: “The RFS remains committed to working with the department in terms of how our concerns may be addressed.”
Minister Paul Scully must make a decision by 31 March.