Media Release
Friday, 8 December 2000
Randwick Council Building Code Ignored
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The Greens claim that an "essential" building objective intended to assure Randwick residents of at least three hours of sunlight each day was set aside last Tuesday night.
The Greens made an unsuccessful plea that a proposed two storey house be lowered another 0.36 metres to allow sunlight to fall longer on a neighbouring property to the South.
Greens Councillor Murray Matson stated after the meeting,
"I am appalled by the decision made by Randwick Council. Our development controls are clear in that underlying building objectives are essential and have to be meet. Residents of number 14 Bellevue Street Maroubra were owed at least three hours of direct sunlight by Council but were denied it."
Council's Development Control Plan for Dwelling Houses has a "performance requirement" that states,
"North-facing windows to living areas of neighbouring dwellings receive at least 3 hours of sunlight over at least part of their surface between 9.00am and 3.00pm on 21 June" (P9 page 25)
The problem is that a Council report admits that when a new house at 12 Bellevue Street Maroubra is built some residents of 14 Bellevue Street will only
"…receive approx. 2.25 hours of either direct or semi-direct sunlight between 9am and 3pm."
The "How to Use" part of the introduction to the Development Control Plan (DCP) is quite specific that this performance requirement had to be met before the building could have been approved.
The DCP's introduction states,
"In order to gain Council approval, proposed developments must demonstrate that they have full filled the relevant objectives for each topic." (page 6, DCP Dwelling Houses & Attached Dual Occupancies)
A "performance requirement" (such as the sunlight access one) must first be meet before any of these objectives can be regarded as having been fulfilled.
"The performance requirement provide the means by which a development will achieve the objectives for each topic." (and latter) … and an application must meet all relevant performance requirements." (page 6, DCP Dwelling Houses & Attached Dual Occupancies).