Bushfire-Prone Perth Hills Town Site Plan Rejected

A contentious proposal to develop a town site in a bushfire-prone area of Perth's Hills has been rejected by Western Australia's administrative tribunal. The tribunal found the plan, put forward by Australia's largest private land developer, was fundamentally flawed and could not be salvaged.

The Satterley Property Group, led by Perth businessman Nigel Satterley, had been attempting to develop a town site in the Shire of Mundaring on land owned by the Anglican Church since 2017. The North Stoneville development would have seen approximately 2,800 people housed in 1,000 lots, with two schools and a local centre also part of the plan.

However, the proposal faced significant opposition, with the local council and WA Planning Commission each rejecting it twice. This led to Satterley's appeal of the decisions in the State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) last year.

In its decision, handed down recently, the SAT found Satterley's plan did not adequately address bushfire risks in the area, and that it had "such basic flaws that it cannot be 'saved' by the making of modifications".

The tribunal acknowledged the state's ongoing housing crisis but emphasized that any development needed to manage risks to life, such as from bushfires, to an acceptable level.

Nigel Satterley said the company was disappointed with the decision and was reviewing the 177-page SAT judgement.

The proposed development had faced long-running opposition from locals and advocacy groups, who raised concerns about the bushfire risk and loss of native bushland. Over 1,500 people attended a rally last year to Save Perth Hills.

Debra Bishop, chair of advocacy group Save Perth Hills, said the SAT's ruling was a significant win for the community. "We have won, we have beaten a plan that was putting profit before people," she said.

Ms Bishop said the proposed development would have come with a significant environmental impact. "It's 535 hectares, which is larger than East Perth, larger than Kings Park," she said. "This decision means 60,000 trees, which consist predominantly of 100 to 200 year old jarrahs and marris, will now be saved and spared."

Satterley had proposed to offset the environmental cost by installing 70 artificial nesting hollows for birds at a site in Williams, about 180km south east of Stoneville.

WA Liberal planning and lands spokesperson Neil Thomson said it was clear Satterley needed to go back to the drawing board if it wanted to proceed with the development. "The structure plan has been ruled out by two independent bodies, there needs to be a reassessment of that structure plan," he said.

The development would have taken about 15 years to construct.