The 'best fit' test, previously applied in the Queensland Planning and Environment Court to resolve overlapping planning scheme definitions, is not a valid canon of construction. Planning schemes must be construed according to established principles of statutory construction, including the Project Blue Sky harmonious construction approach. Where planning scheme definitions overlap, the qualifier 'several discrete' in the Multi-unit Dwelling definition distinguishes that use from a House, such that student accommodation involving individual tenancies of separate bedrooms is properly characterised as a Multi-unit Dwelling requiring impact assessment.
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