Perth Voice Interactive

STIRLING council looks set to join neighboring Vincent in calling for development assessment panels to be abolished.

A motion put up by Stirling councillor Elizabeth Re to “advocate for the abolition of DAPs” will soon go to a vote by colleagues, expected late May following a workshop, mirroring a motion unanimously passed at Vincent the week before.

Echoing the words of Bayswater councillor Dan Bull, both Vincent and Stirling’s motions said the DAPs were undemocratic, given they have three state government-appointend members but only two councillors, meaning elected members are easily overruled.

Meanwhile in South Perth, residents living opposite a proposed tower have won a court appeal to stop the development, based on the DAP wrongly applying planning guidelines.

And federal Labor MP for Perth Alannah MacTiernan has used the messy situation of the multi-storey project on King William Street in Bayswater in her weekly newsletter, to highlight widespread problems with DAPs.

“It’s a problem we’re seeing across the metropolitan area—DAPs going against the clear language of the town planning schemes to give developers everything they want, ignoring height limits, plot ratios and amenity in the process.”

WA premier Colin Barnett established DAPs, which replace locally elected councils as decision-making bodies for major development applications.

by MARTA PASCUAL JUANOLA  and DAVID BELL