Do you comply with all your development conditions? If not, be warned. Brisbane City Council has started a series of audits to ensure development approvals are being complied with.
Council can impose penalties, show cause notices or enforcement notices for any inconsistencies between the approved plans and the finished product. And it’s not just the big end of town being picked up in the audit crack-down.
Small scale mum-and-dad operations are not safe from scrutiny either. One of our Brisbane clients has a 30 square metre café and placed a 4 square metre external (portable) cold-room at the rear of the building. The Council has written to them requiring a Material Change of Use application because of the “intensification” of the use of the site (the cold-room).
In light of this getting tough stance, now might be a good time to dig out your approval conditions, and check each of them to make sure the development complies fully. Depending on the outcome, you may need to complete additional works on site or possibly obtain retrospective approval for the changes.
Please note that the audits are not only for completed developments but also for compliance to conditions during construction.
For further information please contact us on telephone 5443 2844.