THE wrath of Bob Porter has been tempered as Hawkesbury Council recommitted to pushing the state government to allow for detached dual occupancy, or two separate homes on one block, at its latest Council meeting.
Cr Porter was a picture of bliss at the May 31 meeting, which is a far cry from the previous meeting, where he blew up with anger and had to be cajoled by acting Mayor Warwick Mackay.
His blood boiled because he believed a question he had asked at an earlier meeting on the issue of detached dual occupancy (DDO) was misquoted.
Cr Porter has long pushed Council to allow detached dual occupancy on rural lands in the Hawkesbury, and at the latest meeting, Council unanimously passed a motion to seek permission from the state government for DDO.
Blocks of land in built up areas like Windsor and Richmond can have detached houses, mostly granny flats, but in many rural areas the law does not allow for them.
A second house can be built, but it must be attached to the original house in some way, shape or form.
Cr Porter and others have asked for the word detached to be removed from the law, so that blocks of land with two houses can apply for retrospective DAs to have their second houses made legal.
In December, 2014, Council voted to ask the state government to allow DDO.
However, earlier this year, the state government’s Department of Planning denied Council’s request, citing flood evacuation as the primary reason to disallow DDO.
The department was of the opinion allowing DDO would lead to an influx of people into the area, and the extra people would not be able to evacuate in the event of a large flood.
Cr Porter said that was laughable, because most rural areas in the Hawkesbury were above the 1 in 100 year flood level, and should a flood occur, the residents would simply stay put, or seek higher ground, not evacuate toward Sydney.
When the state government’s reason for blocking the move became known, Cr Porter told the Gazette he felt Council staff did not pursue the issue with the Department of Planning enough.
Hawkesbury Mayor Kim Ford told the Gazette he agreed the state government’s reasoning was flawed.
Cr Barry Calvert said at the May 31 meeting he thought having DDO was a good idea.
“I have been on about affordable housing for quite some time. There are a number of ways to address the issue and this is one way,” he said.
At the meeting, Cr Porter extended an olive branch and thanked Council staff for their renewed effort in asking the state government to re-examine Council’s case for DDO.
Council’s motion will see a speedy request sent to the state government to look at DDO in rural areas again. If unsuccessful, Council will seek to amend its Local Environment Plan to include DDO.
