DEVELOPMENT APPEAL — assessment of expert evidence on navigational safety — orders
Quick Take
1Where competing navigational safety experts disagree, the court may prefer the evidence of the expert whose conclusions align with the specific DCP controls addressing pontoons near canal corners, ends and narrow canals, even where the other expert holds superior formal qualifications as a marine engineer.
2DCP provisions cautioning against pontoons near canal corners or ends and requiring careful merit-based assessment in narrower canals (Ch 2.12.3.1(b) and 2.12.3.3(n) of the Central Coast DCP 2022) were given determinative weight where the proposed structure would impede launching and retrieval of vessels from existing boat ramps.
3The court left open the possibility that a redesigned structure with reduced impact on existing boat ramp operations might be capable of approval.
