Councillors engaged in a heated debate last night after Cr Arch Humphrey unsuccessfully tried to move a motion to allow councillors to help work through solutions to problems with individual multi-storey development proposals in central Maitland.

These issues could include problems with floor space ratios and height constraints or incentives to encourage development.

“It’s about understanding what stops things and what makes things work,” Cr Humphrey said.

“It’s not about taking over the planning decisions of council. It’s about avoiding waiting until the end of the line when staff recommends we reject or approve a development. The involvement of councillors would be an advisory role.”

But Mr Evans said he did not want councillors involved in progressing merit-based proposals with developers before staff had made their recommendation, because that was not the elected representatives’ role.

He said councillors worked through development issues by setting the general policy framework.

“Having a briefing is fine, but involving councillors in coming up with solutions is fraught with danger,” Mr Evans said.

Cr Brian Burke said councillors should only become involved in developments after a development application is lodged. 

“I don’t feel qualified to meet with developers, pre-DA [being lodged],” he said. “That is the role of our fully qualified staff.”

An 18-month trial period that involved councillors getting a briefing on all multi-storey development proposals in central Maitland recently ended.

Cr Burke put a successful amendment to councillors that meant these briefings would continue.

Cr Humphrey raised the ire of the mayor, Cr Peter Blackmore, during the debate when he claimed council had missed out on tens of millions of dollars because of rejected DAs in central Maitland.

Cr Blackmore said the claim was unsubstantiated and challenged Cr Humphrey to name the failed developments, which he did not.