- A longer version of this article first appeared on BRW
Some people argue that the planning system has become so complicated it’s an incentive for doing work on the sly.
Sydney town planner Matthew Benson says he is aware of a case in Paddington around a decade ago where a man owned a terrace in a row of identical homes in a heritage conservation area. Without approval, he built a modern, curvy dormer window that was out of character with the house. The council took him to court and he was ultimately allowed to keep it.
Benson is also aware of a Sydney petrol station owner who dug up the site, replaced the petrol tanks, demolished and re-built several buildings, and even blocked the road and brought in a crane, all without council approval. Nothing came of it. “It’s something I certainly don’t recommend," Benson says. “But if someone does the right thing for a project like that they are put through the wringer."
A search through the NSW Land and Environment Court register yields plenty of examples of people being ordered to demolish illegal structures that pose a safety risk, or rile up the neighbourhood by having a blatant impact on nearby residents with affects such as overshadowing. But there are strikingly few examples of people being ordered to demolish well-built illegal works that have zero impact on the neighbours.
Councils do not have the power to retrospectively approve illegal building works. But if they are safe and well-built, councils often issue building certificates for the works, allowing them to stay for a limited period such as five years. Another senior council officer said it was “unlikely" the matter would be taken up again after that period.
But Sydney architect Angus Kell says one problem with illegal works is they are often not done properly. A home owner might take four weeks off at Christmas and build a new deck with products from the hardware store. It collapses during a party and people die, or there are serious injuries during construction because they aren’t familiar with the tools.
However, he also believes the system sometimes encourages illegal behaviour. “There’s a lot of frustration about how complex building regulations are, and about the process."
The Australian Financial Review