CHAMBER of Commerce and Industry chief executive Lyndon Rowe is among the high-profile development proponents to have recently received a rebuff from the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River.
Mr Rowe unsuccessfully tried to appeal a council decision concerning his application to build an 11-metre high house on his Witchcliffe block.
The council had rejected the application on the grounds that: only dwellings up to eight metres were permitted in the area; visual amenity; and that it would set an undesirable precedent.
Last week council also refused Mr Rowe’s application to relocate the site’s building envelope 30 metres north of its existing location.
Shire of Augusta-Margaret River councillor Jamie McCall said there were sweeping ocean views from just six metres up on Mr Rowe’s site and that it was unnecessary to build up so high.
Mr McCall said that, of the hundreds of development applications that came in monthly, there were usually about 10 that did not meet the shire’s planning rules.
He said it would have been foolish for council to approve a building envelope relocation with-out first knowing what sort of building was going to be built.
Mr Rowe declined to comment on the issue due to his ongoing negotiations with the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River.
