In the Summer edition of
Envisage, we provided commentary on the Planning and
Environment Court's decision in Gerhardt v Brisbane City
Council (2015) QPEC 34. We noted that the judgment called into
question planning scheme provisions which attempt to make building
work assessable against a planning scheme where no material change
of use is involved.
The Court's judgment has been upheld by the Court of Appeal
– Brisbane City Council v Gerhardt (2016) QCA 76.
The Court's reasons were written by Philip McMurdo JA with whom
the other members of the Court agreed.
The relevant building work application could have been made to
the Council which would in that event have been required to assess
it in full. In those circumstances, the Council would have been
required to assess the building work against both the Traditional
Building Character (Design) Overlay Code and of City Plan 2014 as
well as the building assessment provisions which include the
Building Code of
