A proposal to house 152 workers near Kalgoorlie has been deferred for a second time, as authorities consider legal advice.
Planning authorities have deferred their decision on plans for a $6.5 million workforce accommodation village near Kalgoorlie for a second time.
The proposal, to house 152 workers for nearby MLG Oz and Top Drill projects, comprises 38 units at Vivian Street in South Boulder.
It would operate alongside the recently approved workforce accommodation village on Vivian Street, for 302 people, currently under construction.
The Regional Joint Development Assessment Panel today unanimously deferred the proposal, submitted by Goldfield Villages Pty Ltd.
JDAP members chose to defer the proposal, to get more certainty over whether the correct procedures have been followed, particularly in relation to advertising.
Presiding JDAP member Tony Arias said it was not an easy decision to make, but given the legal advice the panel had received “we don’t have any choice”.
ASIC records show Topdrill founder Timothy Topham and MLG Oz managing director Murray Leahy as major shareholders of Goldfield Villages.
The proposal was deferred at a regional JDAP in June this year for a number of reasons, including to address the absence of a structure plan for the area.
Planning Solutions director Ben Doyle, who lodged the proposal on behalf of the applicant, said the workers village would only operate for five years, which meant a structure plan was not necessary.
He said the area would be zoned light industrial, which would allow this type of use on the land.
“We consider this development can be approved in the absence of a structure plan as it will not prejudice future developments for the area,” he told the JDAP.
The proposal noted the critical need for more worker accommodation near Kalgoorlie, which has a population of about 30,000 and a residential rental vacancy rate of 0.4 per cent.
The application was deferred for up to 60 days.
