Legal Costs, Confusion, and a DA That Was Approved Anyway

July 3, 2025

Note: The proposed meteorological masts are part of the investigation process into the feasibility of the Pines Wind Farm.

Opinion by Councillor Helen Hayden

On Monday, June 30, at 2pm, Oberon Council debated a rescission motion aimed at overturning the previous approval of a Development Application (DA) for three wind monitoring stations (met masts). The original DA was compliant - whether assessed under our Local Environmental Plan (LEP) or the State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP). Myself, Cr Alevras, and the Mayor did not support the rescission.

Despite this, the motion passed - backed by councillors who appeared confused about the legal advice Council had already received, and ignored the lawful precedent that was already in place.

In a twist of irony, a separate motion later in proceedings, after the rescission, re-approved the very same DA for the met masts. So after all the posturing and political manoeuvring, the only thing this entire process achieved was a legal bill - paid for by Oberon ratepayers.

This is exactly the kind of misuse of council time and resources that frustrates the community. It didn't change the planning outcome - it just drained public funds, and delayed consent procedure.

I will continue to speak out against poor process, protect good planning decisions, and ensure transparency for our community.

Disclaimer: Oberon Matters has no opinion either way on the matter of wind towers near Oberon. This article is for public information only. Please see our position of total neutrality.

Also, this is a private opinion by Councillor Helen Hayden and is not necessarily endorsed by Oberon Matters. You can see where she had more to say on this matter at her Facebook page.

However - it is difficult to see who benefited by the rescission process except three law firms. You can see the submissions by the lawyers here. One thing that is probably not surprising is that all submissions by the lawyers agreed with their respective clients.