Kalkie - Bundaberg - Dual Living / Dual Occupancy - Council Letters

Hi All

Council recently won an appeal on dual living dwellings.

They are now sending friendly letters to owners seeking information.

From experience of other councils sending friendly letters like this, the information would subsequently be used as admissions to issue show cause notices/ enforcement notices or prosecutions.

If anyone has one of these properties, I hear you will be getting a letter (if not already). My suggestion is that a response should not be given without legal advice.

We have a way through to fix the situation and get Dual Occupancy approval.

Interestingly, and not for the first time, I have seen a written advice from a large law firm who outlined how these uses were lawful. The advice was completely wrong. It would have taken me a whole 2 and 1/2 minutes of looking at the properties and the scheme to identify the use was unlawful.

It no longer amazes me how often a large firm provides advice that is blatantly wrong and it is clear from the letter they have zero understanding of how planning law works. This includes some whose solicitors' profiles state they act in planning and environment matters. (they must act only in large environment type matters or others removed from the general development type planning).

 

Update:

More than 100 of these have been built. Lot's of angry and upset people as you would understand. Either spend significant money changing the use or lose a lot in rent and value. Not a fun choices.