Appeal next step for trail
By Tony Scott
February 17, 2021
Opponents of the North-East Rail Trail have vowed the Dorset Council’s approval of a development application for part of the project is not the end of the matter.
The Chairman of the North-East Residents and Farmers group, Stuart Bryce, said he already has an appeal to the Resource Management and Planning Appeals Tribunal written.
He has two weeks from the approval to lodge it and he says it won’t be the only one.
“I expect there’ll be up to 20 appeals put in,” he said.
Mr Bryce believes several individuals will make submissions.
“If we were to just put in one appeal covering one big group the board would just have to hold one hearing.
“This way we’ll keep them busy for quite some time.”
An appeal is no surprise to Dorset Mayor Greg Howard.
“They could take it all the way to the Supreme Court, but they’ll need to find grounds for each step.”
He said the council’s approval was based entirely on the recommendation of an independent consultant.
The only dissenting voice at the council table was Councillor Edwina Powell, who said the recommended approval discounted the Land Use Planning and Approvals act by not protecting public infrastructure.
“The fact that the tracks are not in use does not meant they are not fit for use.”
There was applause for her contribution from the otherwise relatively quiet public gallery.
Mr Bryce said he didn’t see any point in attending the meeting at Winnaleah.
“We knew what was going to be decided so why bother going.”
Councillor Wendy McLennan declared an interest and took no part in the vote.
Deputy Mayor Dale Jessup, who moved the consultant’s report be accepted, said the application clearly met all requirements of the planning scheme.
“There’s no conceivable way it could be used as a railway again without at least a $15 million government grant.”
Earlier a petition of more than 1100 signatures calling for the council to cease and desist works on the rail trail was presented and noted.
Mr Bryce said he was disturbed that Mayor had dismissed the petition.
“I also have difficulty in the way a survey of ratepayers showing 70 per cent supported keeping the rail was ignored as well,” he said.
The approval is for the 26-kilometre section of the trail from Wyena to Scottsdale, within Dorset.
A development application for the 14 kilometres from Wyena to Lilydale Falls is still to be lodged with the Launceston City Council.
Dorset’s Director of Community and Development, Rohan Willis, said that would be done soon, but in the interim there were discussions about car parking spaces at the Lilydale Falls reserve area.
But Mr Bryce said he was confident the City Council would reject the project.
“Launceston’s view is that the rail line should stay in place to Wyena.
“There are also issues of toilets and other facilities not covered in the plan,” he said.
A member of the City Council’s bicycle advisor committee and president of the Tamar Bicycle Users Group, Malcolm Reid, applauded the approval saying it was time to get on and build the trail with all the social, environmental and particularly economic benefit to flow.
“In regards to the likely appeal, it’s a free country and they can appeal as much as they want, but it would be a lot better for everyone if they’d get on with the project they’ve been allocated on and not stand in the way of something that would have such widespread benefit.”
A former business operator in Bridport, Mr Reid, said many of the same types of argument were raised against the building of the walking track there.
“I reject this claim that you’ve got to be some sort of Olympic standard elite athlete to use a rail trail.
“The examples interstate and overseas show riders from kids to grannies use them.”