Unfortunately for the better management of Pitttwater waterways, RMYC won their Land & Environment Court case with the NBC (no wonder the NBC defence was pathetic). RMYC still have to get approval from Lands-this will be advertised soon? The conditions do not seem very onerous on the club. You can go to the following link for the full detail;
Royal Motor Yacht Club (Broken Bay) Pty Ltd v Northern Beaches Council [2017] NSWLEC 56
Land and Environment Court
Catchwords:
APPEAL – expansion of existing marina – prohibited development in expansion area – existing use – whether use for a lawful purpose – whether existing use of swing moorings unlawful – provision of environmental planning instrument prohibited erection of building below high water mark – whether swing moorings installed before provision commenced –whether swing mooring a building (including structure) – whether placement of swing mooring involves erection on land below high water mark – whether use of swing moorings, if unlawfully erected, nevertheless use for a lawful purpose – whether new environmental planning instrument rendered use lawful – whether later development consent rendered use lawful – use of swing moorings an existing use – development application able to be made for proposed marina expansion – environmental impacts of development acceptable – development consent granted
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A DA (No:N0379/15) has been received whereby the RMYC at Newport wishes to have a net increase of 39 Berths by expanding their Marina further westward into Pittwater by app 54m.
The application also states that the club would relinquish a number of swing moorings roughly in the area of the proposed expansion (although as at May 2016 there now appears to be some doubt about the RMYC offer to relinquish all these moorings).
Full details are available on the council website www.pittwater.nsw.gov.au/tracking and quote the above DA no. Also look under Documents/Submission in the Menu at the top of the page on this web site to review the NRA submissions on this matter.
As at May 2016 the RMYC has supplied further details to back up its DA and these are being vigorously challenged as potentially this would create a dangerous precedent for the users of the Pittwater waterway.
- The Development Assessment team of the Northern Beaches Council has written to both the Applicant and the Club requesting that the application be withdrawn, on the basis that existing use rights had not been established. We understand that the Applicant has refused to withdraw the application and have indicated they will be taking the matter before the Land and Environment Court.
- We further understand the RMYC is basing their existing use right on the Rose bay marina LEC judgement which drew a line around all the marina’s commercial moorings and ruled that the marina had existing use right and could therefore take over public water space with a marina that excludes the public . Just imagine if all the marinas in Pittwater were to extend their marinas into their leased mooring areas. There would be no room for other activities.
Maps of proposed expansion:
RMYC Existing swing moorings (click here)
RMYC Lease expansion area (click here)
Potential Pittwater Marina expansion if RMYC wins legal ‘Use Rights’ litigation (click here)
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Current Position as at August 2016
The DA is to expand the RMYC existing 50,000m2 marina another 13,300 sq metres by resuming 56 metres of waterway westward into Pittwater . That is taking another 13,300 m2 from the people of the northern beaches.
The RMYC was asked by Pittwater Council to withdraw their DA on the grounds that they could not prove that they had any existing use rights over this proposed area just because they had commercial swing moorings laid there, licensed from RMS. The RMYC refused! Not only did they refuse, they decided to by-pass the JRPP. and decided to fight the Northern Beaches Council in the Land and Environment Court.
Council’s planners and legal team have done a great job. With Judge Robson ordering on 21 July that there be 2 LEC cases – the first and most important on legality of existing rights use based upon current commercial swing moorings and a second on merits if the club were to somehow win the existing use case. The hearing is set down in the LEC for 9 September.
October 2016
PETITION – Please Support
The below has been sent to us by our NRA member friends form the Horseshoe Cove Assn – we need to assist them and ourselves to protect the Pittwater waterways.
“We have just started the petition “Northern Beaches Council: Support Northern Beaches Council in protecting Pittwater waterway against over development” and we wanted to see if you could help by adding your name.-also:
- Please click the “share on facebook” link once you have signed (same page).
- Please also click “send an email to friends”. An email will be launched with some generic text and the link to the petition – change as you see fit, but most importantly please distribute to as many friends as possible.
Our overall goal is to reach 5000 signatures and my goal is to reach 100 signatures and I need more support. You can read more and sign the petition here:
Once you have signed, please forward to all of your contacts and ask them to sign as well.”
