Residents Sharon and Peter Cordell say that their concerns about the granny flat development which has taken place at 3b Newport Island Road have been ignored by the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council.
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Mrs Cordell said she has raised issues with the development at each stage of the process, sometimes on a daily basis.
“Each time they’ve said that there is nothing they can do about it, that the development has been approved,” she said.
Originally the granny flat development was approved with 1000mm difference between their property at 3a and the one at 3b.
The distance, Mrs Cordell has since been reduced to 900mm and then 700mm.
“I have found out that the council holds caveats over all the properties on the canals and they can change them at any time.
“In order to get that stupid development up and going they have moved the boundary line back and back and back.”
About a month ago Mrs Cordell said she came back from a holiday to find a fence had been built between the properties.
“They’ve actually put a fence up to the boundary of our property blocking side access to our house,” she said.
The couple contacted council who said now it is a civil matter.
“If they had come out when we asked them to and addressed the situation at each point when we raised concern, then something may have been done,” Mrs Cordell said.
“Each time they’ve said we’ll inspect the property once it’s finished.”
The Cordells argue the development goes against state regulations as it has been built on an already subdivided block, on the front lawn of the property.
Mrs Cordell said that council are in favour of developers buying blocks of land where there was one property, demolishing it and building two on the block.
“Why settle for one lot of rates when you can get two?,” she said.
Port Macquarie-Hastings Council director Matt Rogers said any changes to building setbacks after a development application is approved, require an application to be submitted to council to modify the development.
“In relation to the subject granny flat, an application to modify the side boundary setback from one metre to 900mm was lodged with and approved by council,” he said.
“The 900mm setback complies with the Building Code of Australia and council’s development control plan.
“Issues relating to accessing easements are a civil matter and not adjudicated by council.”
Port Macquarie News spoke to four residents who live on the street to ask them if they were against the development of the granny flat on the street.
All four residents said that they didn’t have an issue with it.
One woman, who was initially against the move to build the dwelling said now she thought it fitted in with the rest of the property and had been constructed to a neat standard.
Another man said that to his knowledge the granny flat had been built to the legal requirements which were set by council.