Amended development application for Mr Fluffy block at 18 Darke Street, Torrens refused by ACT planning authority

The ACT government this month knocked back a development application amendment in Torrens which sought to approve some elements of a dual occupancy build after they had been completed.

The planning authority said the amended application was knocked back as it was found to "negatively impact neighbouring properties through impacting and reducing the privacy of these blocks".

But Torrens resident and president of the Woden Valley Community Council Fiona Carrick, whose home is overlooked by the development, said the refusal is a case of too little, too late.

"This development is a great case study to investigate the protections we want from our new planning system," Ms Carrick said.

The application sought approval for amendments to a development proposal for two townhouses built on a former Mr Fluffy block at 18 Darke Street, Torrens.

The planning and land authority refused the amended application in February, stating it did not comply with relevant codes.

The original development application was submitted in November 2020 and proposed two double-storey detached dwellings on the block. The application was conditionally approved in March 2021.

In 2022, the planning authority refused a separate development application for two swimming pools on the site.

With construction nearing completion, the developers submitted an amendment to the original development application in December 2022.

It sought approval for the final floor levels and building heights of the homes, as well as changes to the windows, the addition and relocation of external stairs, changes to landscaping and new internal decking.

In its notice of why the application was refused, the authority said finished floor levels for one residence resulted in the windows being higher than 1.8 metres, which would require a six-metre setback from neighbouring properties. Plans show the setback was less than three metres in some areas.

"Similar to the external stair these windows offer a direct line of site over the adjacent boundary fence with no design elements or measures in place to ensure the privacy of adjoining residential blocks," the notice stated.

The authority concluded there was a "poor landscaping outcome" and also noted two holes had been dug for swimming pools that were previously refused by the authority.

Ms Carrick has been watching the development take shape next door.

She was shocked the development was initially permitted and said it should serve as a case study for future development across Canberra, particularly with changes to the planning system underway.

"We should review the Mr Fluffy dual occupancies to learn about the good, the bad and the ugly impacts on neighbours and inform our views on desired densification outcomes in our suburbs," she said.

The decision comes amid calls from some industry and community groups for the territory government to allow more dual occupancies and multi-unit developments in Canberra.

Master Builders ACT chief executive Michael Hopkins this month said the government seriously needed to consider changes to RZ1 zoning to encourage more housing types as part of the planning reforms.

A newly formed group, Missing Middle Canberra, last week urged the government to allow townhouses, duplexes, terraces and small blocks of flats in all areas currently limited to detached housing.

In its notice of decision, the planning and land authority said if the applicant wishes to pursue a further amendment application it should consider a number of solutions.

These included, but were not limited to, raising the boundary fences to the adjoining properties to 2.1 metres high, addressing the windows that overlook neighbouring properties by using opaque windows and ensuring the rear alfresco areas are screened.

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Other solutions included changing the proposed external stair to "a one-way stair and providing it with screening", including hedge planting to the boundary and "strengthening site landscaping as a whole".

The developers of the block, Francis Supple and Mark Supple, did not wish to comment on the application when contacted by The Canberra Times.

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