The Department of Planning has threatened to strip the City of Newcastle of its planning powers if it does not put a controversial plan for the development of 505 Minmi Road on public exhibition.
The directive comes less than a month after the council's planning staff said they had no option but to support plans for the nearby Minmi Estate development, which will see up to 858-lot residential lots created on the city's western fringe.
Owned by Kingston Property, 505 Minmi Road has been a battleground for conservationists and those calling for more land to be opened for housing for more than two decades.
City of Newcastle has sided with residents who are fighting to have the 26 hectare block included in a Hunter Green Corridor project, which extends from the Wattagans to Stockton.
Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery has also expressed concerns about the project.
The council has urged the government not to proceed with the development and consider buying the land for inclusion in a National Park.
However, Kingston Property is pushing ahead with a planning proposal to rezone the site from C4 Environmental Living to R2 Low Density Residential and C2 Environmental Conservation to potentially facilitate the delivery of 140 dwellings.
The Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure wrote to the council on March 23 advising that it would be stripped of its planning powers for the project if it was not put on public exhibition by April 30.
"I wish to advise that if council does not meet the exhibition time frame, the department will recommend the appointment of an alternative planning proposal authority under section 3.32 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979" the department's executive director, local and regional planning Malcolm McDonald wrote.
A City of Newcastle spokeswoman confirmed the planning proposal would be put on public exhibition by the end of the month.
"This will enable the community to comment on the proposal. It will also allow City of Newcastle to retain its function as Planning Proposal Authority and maintain responsibility for the continued assessment of the proposal," she said.
"City of Newcastle's concerns with the current proposal remain and we are committed to ensuring the appropriate level of conservation is achieved in accordance with the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016.
"The elected council has strongly objected to the proposed 505 Minmi Road planning proposal and has reiterated this on several occasions. This includes resolving at the December 2023 Ordinary Council Meeting to request that the Minister does not proceed with the planning proposal."
A Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure spokesman told the Newcastle Herald on Monday that the council recently advised the department it was progressing the planning proposal and was seeking to address outstanding matters to allow the planning proposal to be placed on public exhibition.
"The department encourages council to finalise these matters to ensure the planning proposal is able to be placed on public exhibition in a timely manner," he said.
Project consultant Stephen Barr wrote in the Newcastle Herald last October that the proposal for 505 Minmi Road suggests a balanced approach, allocating half of the site for conservation and half for housing.
"This plan is grounded in extensive studies and technical advice, ensuring that both environmental preservation and housing provision are achieved," he wrote.
Federal Shadow Assistant Housing Minister Andrew Bragg, who visited the site on Monday, described the housing proposal as a "no brainer".
"It will be a good test to see how serious (Premier) Minns is about opening up new land for housing," he said.
"I think the Newcastle area is a prime area (to help) the state to reach its housing target. It's a great place to develop a lot of houses and to provide houses that people can afford to buy and live in."
City of Newcastle recently advised the proponent that it did not support its Biodiversity Certification Application and did not believe it would achieve the required biodiversity outcomes.
Green Corridor Coalition spokesman Brian Purdue said Protection of the Blue Gum Hills Regional Park Corridor (505 Minmi Road) from proposed housing development was one of the longest, unresolved residential rezoning issue in Australia.
"Almost, without exception, bushland around Newcastle and Lake Macquarie has regional and local merit due to its location so it's a matter of determining which remaining unzoned land can be developed and which must be protected. This is not happening, with all land being developed except where development is constrained," Mr Purdue said in a submission.
"Instead, the NSW Department of Planning has used the Hunter and Central Coast Regional Planning Panel finding to develop 505 Minmi Road with no input from the public. Green Corridor Coalition vigorously objects to this. This also is a slap to the face of the four elected councils who used their democratic vote to refuse this rezoning and gave their full support to the biodiversity corridor."
