The ongoing saga over a development application for a vital mobile phone tower on Wards Hill Rd at Killcare Heights has been rejected in the NSW Land and Environment Court after local businessman Tony Denny successfully challenged tower proponents Optus Mobile, Central Coast Local Planning Panel and Central Coast Council.
In published court documents, Judge Pain said that development consent DA/57736/2019 for the construction of a telecommunications facility was invalid and of no effect.
Many community members are disappointed by the outcome after years of waiting for improvements in mobile phone and data reception.
President of the local Progress Association Mike Allsop said in the latest community newsletter that “the overwhelming support for improved coverage in the community has been amply demonstrated and we hope
the legal shenanigans will soon be brought to a close”.
In April 2018 the then Federal Member for Robertson, Lucy Wicks, announced that Telstra was awarded money through the Mobile Black Spot Program to build a macro base station to improve mobile phone coverage.
A joint media release by Wicks and Senator Bridget McKenzie (the then Minister for Regional Communications) said that “Killcare is receiving funding for a Telstra macro base station to provide improved coverage to areas of Killcare, Killcare Heights, Hardys Bay and Wagstaffe”.
The announcement followed years of lobbying by local residents, businesses and community groups to improve mobile reception in the area.
Ian Bull of the Wagstaffe to Killcare Community Association instigated a study in 2016 for a detailed map of mobile phone reception across the Bouddi Peninsula on the back of a previous community survey from 2014 citing considerable problems.
Bull released his map and findings in January 2017; the map was published in Coast Community News shortly after.
Local resident and telecommunications expert David Abrahams said at a subsequent public meeting that he thought a series of small micro-towers would be a good option due to the lengthy DA process and difficult topography in the area.
It is understood that Telstra out-sourced the project to Optus Mobile who proposed to build a so-called mono-tower at Wards Hill Rd, Killcare, mounted on a Council-owned water tank.
Optus lodged the DA through Central Coast Council for the mono-tower and the matter was then sent to the independent Local Planning Panel for consideration.
The planning panel eventually approved the DA, despite several appeals from Tony Denny and his wife who own property adjacent the water tower.
They were not happy with the planning panel’s decision and elected to take the judgement to the NSW Land and Environment Court.
It has been reported that Optus is preparing a new development application.
Meanwhile, residents and visitors at Killcare and Wagstaffe continue to have poor or non-existent mobile coverage.
CCN