Wyee Paper Subdivision

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The Wyee Paper Subdivision consists of 199 residential lots that are owned by more than 140 landowners.

Over the last few years, Council has spent a significant amount of time engaging with landowners and residents, progressing a range of site investigations, and has identified, designed, and costed the infrastructure required to support future residential development of the paper subdivision. The delivery of this infrastructure and essential services is required before development can be approved and the required infrastructure was estimated to cost about $25 million in 2021.

The funding and delivery of infrastructure and essential services, as well as other matters associated with the paper subdivision, creates a very complex situation that Council is not able to resolve on its own. As a result, Council is focussed on lobbying the State and Federal Governments for funding and to identify a delivery agency to be responsible for the construction of infrastructure and essential services and to assist in resolving other matters associated with the paper subdivision. This is likely to remain the focus of Council activity for the next few years.

Meetings of the Wyee Paper Subdivision Reference Committee will not be held and there will be no regular updates to landowners and residents unless there is noteworthy advocacy progress.

Council will also continue to manage ongoing issues associated with the paper subdivision such as managing unauthorised development and undertaking compliance activities, as well as mitigating bushfire hazards, and other hazards.

The Wyee Paper Subdivision consists of 199 residential lots that are owned by more than 140 landowners.

Over the last few years, Council has spent a significant amount of time engaging with landowners and residents, progressing a range of site investigations, and has identified, designed, and costed the infrastructure required to support future residential development of the paper subdivision. The delivery of this infrastructure and essential services is required before development can be approved and the required infrastructure was estimated to cost about $25 million in 2021.

The funding and delivery of infrastructure and essential services, as well as other matters associated with the paper subdivision, creates a very complex situation that Council is not able to resolve on its own. As a result, Council is focussed on lobbying the State and Federal Governments for funding and to identify a delivery agency to be responsible for the construction of infrastructure and essential services and to assist in resolving other matters associated with the paper subdivision. This is likely to remain the focus of Council activity for the next few years.

Meetings of the Wyee Paper Subdivision Reference Committee will not be held and there will be no regular updates to landowners and residents unless there is noteworthy advocacy progress.

Council will also continue to manage ongoing issues associated with the paper subdivision such as managing unauthorised development and undertaking compliance activities, as well as mitigating bushfire hazards, and other hazards.

  • August 2022 update

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    Minutes are available for the June 2022 Reference Group meeting.

    Contamination assessments

    Three detailed contamination assessments have been undertaken for different parts of the paper subdivision.

    1. Land in road reserves throughout the paper subdivision

    The detailed investigation identified some asbestos fragments in some road reserve areas. The investigation also identified the presence of household septic overflows in some road reserve locations.

    2. Conservation-zoned land in the south west of the paper subdivision

    Asbestos fragments were found in the road reserve and on one privately-owned lot. The owner of the lot has been separately notified and any required actions discussed.

    3. Former orchard area between Waropara and Pirama Roads

    A preliminary contamination investigation undertaken several years ago identified a former orchard between Waropara and Pirama Roads that required further detailed investigation. This detailed investigation has now been completed. The positive news is that the detailed assessment concluded that there are no significant contamination issues that would impact future development for the vast majority of the lots. However, there are two lots where asbestos was identified in surface soil. The owners of these two lots have been separately notified and any required actions discussed. For all other owners, the contamination assessment did not identify any significant contamination issues. As part of any future development, contamination assessments are likely to be required to confirm the land is suitable for the proposed development.

    Asbestos removal

    As a result of the contamination assessments, asbestos removal has occurred on all Council-owned road reserve land. Contractors, NAC Services, have identified, safely removed and disposed of the asbestos debris.

    Contractors, SLR Consulting, supervised the removal works and issued a clearance certificate to confirm completion. The removal of asbestos has occurred to ensure public safety, in line with Council’s policies on managing asbestos and illegal dumping on public land.

    Similarly, the NSW Department of Crown Lands has recently completed the removal of waste, including asbestos, from the Dillabirra Road reserve (Bushells Ridge Road end). Council is taking further steps to discourage illegal dumping in this area.

    We encourage residents to report any further illegal dumping to the Regional Illegal Dumping (RID) Squad on 131 555.

    Next steps

    As you may be aware, Council’s project officer Kirsty Hammer has completed her time with Council. Kirsty did a great job and was able to progress many of the issues within the paper subdivision.

    The designs for essential services have been completed and costed. The complexity of delivering these essential services is significant and will require State or Federal Government support to deliver it. Council staff are now shifting focus over the next 12 months to lobby the State and Federal Governments for funding, and to identify a delivery agency to be responsible for the construction of essential services. While Council staff focus on lobbying government, Reference Group meetings will be held less frequently.

    Council staff have also prepared a Risk Management Plan to mitigate the risks to residents, the environment and Council based on the current situation. The Risk Management Plan includes actions such as removing waste and reducing the bush fire hazard.

    Council staff are currently seeking a NSW Government grant to help fund this Risk Management Plan. Further information will be provided to landowners and residents when the outcome of our grant application is known.

    For any questions relating to the paper subdivision moving forward, please contact Council's Integrated Planning Team on 4921 0333 or email [email protected].

  • Highlights from meeting 26 and 27 of the Wyee Paper Subdivision Development Plan Reference Group

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    Progress is being made on the design and costing of the essential services.

    For a full overview of the Reference Group meeting discussions, please refer to the April and May minutes, and the relevant meeting attachment listed below.

    Key highlights include:

    • The contamination study is complete, draft reports have been received from consultant and are under review by Council’s contamination expert.
    • Detailed discussion of the costs and variation between the “high cost” (standard subdivision) and “low cost” (minimum standard) options for the development of essential services.
    • Council are considering a range of funding and cost options to resolve the paper subdivision which are outlined in the following attachment:
      • Funding options summary June 2022
      • These options represent staff views on the range of available funding options. They do not reflect the position of Council. Council support is necessary to pursue any of the funding options.


    We will provide more information in coming months. Past Reference Group meeting minutes can be found on our website.

  • Highlights from meeting 25 of the Wyee Paper Subdivision Development Plan Reference Group – 3 March 2022

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    Design and costing of the essential services is making progress. The following items were discussed at the meeting:

    • The land survey and marking out of easements is complete
    • We are now working with consultants on a contamination assessment to confirm any remediation costs for land on the unformed roads and in the former orchard. Land owners affected by this assessment have been separately notified
    • We have received a draft flora and fauna assessment and bushfire threat assessment and are confirming the planning approval pathway for the delivery of essential services
    • We are preparing a revised cost estimate for the essential services and will release this as soon as it is available
    • We’re still approaching State and Federal Government for funding and grants.


    For a full overview please refer to the March meeting minutes.

  • February 2022 Update

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    We’ve been busy over the Christmas and New Year period, confirming cost items and looking for funding. The Reference Group minutes are available to view below - please note that a meeting was not held in January 2022.


    In summary, here are some of the things we’ve been doing:


    1. Confirming the costs of the essential services

    A few months ago, we provided an initial estimate of $32 million for the costs of developing the essential services for the paper subdivision (roads, stormwater drainage, sewer, water and electricity). We’re working towards a final estimate of those costs by:

    • Marking out the easements throughout the subdivision to see what structures need to be moved, for future sewer and stormwater drainage. Our surveyors are about halfway through this job and should finish by March 2022. You’ll see their pegs and stakes throughout the area.
    • We’ve engaged contamination consultants to undertake a detailed site investigation, to estimate the costs and extent of any remediation required. This will start after the easement survey is complete.
    • A staging plan has been completed to estimate the costs of staging the works around existing residents. We are reviewing the draft plan and costs with our consultants.
    • We are confirming the costs and detail required to obtain planning approval for the work.
    • We are obtaining detailed design and quotes to construct the stormwater detention tanks, which are a part of the stormwater detention system.


    2. Preparation for future development

    • We’ve asked Crown Lands to transfer the land reserved for Dillabirra Road from Crown to Council ownership, so that a road can be built when funding is confirmed.
    • We have received a draft bush fire threat assessment for the subdivision. It helps us work out which future buildings would need to be built to bush fire construction standards.


    3. Looking for assistance with funding

    • We are exploring a Federal Government loan and grant program called the National Housing Infrastructure Fund.
    • We’re also still looking for other funding support through State and Federal Government. Our initial meetings have not yet provided any other avenues for funding.


    4. Managing existing risk

    We’re actively reviewing the risks residents face from living in the subdivision and looking to reduce these. We have met with our bush fire consultant and the NSW Rural Fire Service to review our current bush fire risks. Our Compliance staff will also be considering any outstanding building and development, sewage management and waste matters.


    If you have questions, please contact Council's Integrated Planning Team on 4921 0333 or email [email protected].

  • Surveying work to start at Wyee paper subdivision in November

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    Council’s surveyors will be in Wyee paper subdivision from 22 November 2021 to mark out the location of future essential services. Some of these locations will be within private properties.

    Download this plan to see the proposed location for water, sewer and stormwater pipes. We are contacting all affected landowners to arrange access to properties.

    If you have any questions about this work occurring onsite, please contact Council's Integrated Planning Team on 4921 0333 or email [email protected].


  • Highlights from meeting 21 of the Wyee Paper Subdivision Development Plan Reference Group – 7 October 2021

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    Council held the October Reference Group meeting online due to COVID-19 restrictions.

    For a full overview of what was discussed at the meeting, please refer to the October meeting minutes.

    The agenda for the October meeting focused on the following items:

    • Council’s Government Relations and Policy Advisor provided an update on the Wyee paper subdivision advocacy plan. We are proceeding to raise awareness about the project through levels of government.
    • We are proceeding with land surveys of the proposed easements in November 2021. After that we will undertake a contamination study to confirm potentially contaminated land. Landowners will be notified in the coming weeks of Council and consultant work in the subdivision, especially where we require access to private properties.
    • A discussion took place about small and affordable housing options at the paper subdivision.
    • The group discussed a study that CSIRO prepared in 2019 for the paper subdivision, to provide electricity via a shared solar energy system.
  • October 2021 progress update

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    The latest Wyee Paper Subdivision Newsletter outlines next steps for Council’s work at the Paper Subdivision.

    Investigations have highlighted it will cost more than $30 million to proceed with a Development Plan to deliver essential services using the Paper Subdivisions Legislation. We are confirming cost estimates over the next few months with further work on land surveying, staging and contamination investigations.

    To make the essential services more affordable, we are seeking external funding from both State and Federal Governments. We need to know the outcome of funding approaches before we can work out how much landowners need to contribute.

    We will begin conducting land survey works to identify future easements on properties in the subdivision starting in October 2021. More detail on this will be distributed to all landowners in coming weeks.


    Highlights from meeting 20 of the Wyee Paper Subdivision Development Plan Reference Group – 2 September 2021

    Council held the September Reference Group meeting online due to the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions.

    For a full overview of what was discussed at the meeting, please refer to the September meeting minutes.


    Join the Wyee Heights Action Group

    A Facebook group has been set up for the paper subdivision. It is an independent discussion group open only to landowners and residents of the subdivision. It is not affiliated with Council in any way. Organisers have asked us to make you aware of the group and extend the invitation to join it.

    You can request to join the Facebook group via this link and click on ‘join group’. A few questions will be asked to make sure all in the group are landowners within the paper subdivision. Please note, you will need an active Facebook account in order to participate in the group.

  • Highlights from meeting 18 and 19 of the Wyee West Paper Subdivision Development Plan Reference Group – 8 July and 5 August 2021

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    Council held the July and August Reference Group meetings online due to COVID-19 restrictions.

    For a full overview of what was discussed at these meetings, please refer to the minutes below.

    Appointment of three new Reference Group members

    The agenda for the July and August meetings focused on appointing three new Reference Group members.

    In summary:

    • Council received 11 EOI applications.
    • Council shortlisted the EOIs using the selection criteria. Kirsty shared the three recommended candidates with the Reference Group at the July meeting.
    • Reference Group members considered the recommendations and finalised selection of the three successful applicants at the July meeting.
    • Kirsty contacted all applicants about the outcome.
    • Two of the successful applicants accepted their membership: Garry Van Dyk and Cheryl Ashdown.
    • The third successful applicant, however, declined their membership.
    • Kirsty discussed the appointment of a third member at the August meeting.
    • The group considered the next person on the EOI list and offered a membership position to Tara McDermott, which she has accepted.

    The newest members have been added to the Reference Group Terms of Reference.

    Thank you again to everyone who submitted an application.

  • Pausing drop-in sessions and update on the Reference Group EOI selection process

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    Drop-in sessions have been running weekly in Wyee on Thursdays since 18 March, with up to eight attendees at some sessions.

    We will continue running drop-ins until the end of June and pause through July and August as attendance numbers have dropped with the start of Winter. We’ll re-commence drop-ins and other landowner meetings after we finalise the cost estimates we are working on.

    We have appreciated the time to talk with many landowners over this time and we’ve heard your concerns about the current issues within the subdivision. Some of the common questions at these sessions have been on the cost and how landowners will pay for the essential services. We are working on finalising these costs for essential services and the Development Plan and we will provide a final figure once we have this confirmed.

    If you would like more information, view our FAQs on this topic.

    If you haven’t had the chance to attend a drop-in session yet, please come along to the next sessions which will be held on Thursday 17 and Thursday 24 June, between 10am and 2pm at the Seventh Day Adventist Church, 20 Gorokan Road, Wyee.

    We will continue to explore other ways of contacting other people we haven’t spoken to yet to ensure all landowners understand the Development Plan process and have the opportunity to ask questions.


    Selection process for new Reference Group members

    We have had interest from eight applicants so far to join the Reference Group. If you’d like to submit an EOI to join the Group you can do so on our website until Thursday 1 July, 2021.

    Here's some information about how the selection process will work:

    • Once EOI submissions have closed, Council staff will undertake an initial assessment of the applications and create a shortlist of eligible candidates using the selection criteria.
    • At the next Reference Group meeting, Kirsty will present the full list of applicants to the group to discuss how their applications were assessed, who was shortlisted and why. The minutes of this meeting will be published on this website.
    • We will then use the selection criteria as a group to determine the three successful candidates. Phone calls to these candidates may occur at this point to clarify any final details before membership is offered.
    • Once the successful candidates have accepted their membership, we will let the other candidates know that their application was not successful.
    • Should any candidates decline membership, we will offer Reference Group membership to the next eligible candidate.
    • Once membership has been filled, we will notify all landowners and update our Terms of Reference to include new Reference Group members.


    If you have any questions or concerns about the process we intend to use for assessing these EOIs, please let us know.

    As usual, Reference Group meetings will continue on the first Thursday of the month. You can view minutes from the June Reference Group meeting here.



  • Highlights from meeting 17 of the Wyee West Paper Subdivision Development Plan Reference Group – 3 June 2021

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    The Reference Group met on Thursday 3 June, where Kirsty gave updates on the following items:

    • Seven (7) Expressions of Interest have been received so far from landowners interested in joining the Reference Group
    • Council staff met with Landcom to understand their approach to the Riverstone Paper Subdivision
    • We are gathering information to more accurately estimate the cost of the Development Plan. This includes surveying property boundaries affected by easements. We will be in contact with affected property owners soon.
    • We will not have costs finalised in time to report to Council before the September elections. This means that we will need to wait until November to confirm whether Council will support the proposed forward-funding model. The overall Project Plan and timelines are being revised.


    Minutes of the meeting are available to view here.


    New Reference Group Members: Call for Expressions of Interest!

    Are you interested in being part of the Landowner Reference Group and assisting landowners to vote on a Development Plan?

    Three positions have opened up on the Reference Group. Any owners of land in the Wyee Paper Subdivision are invited to apply.

    Please click for more information and instructions on how to apply.

    Expressions of Interest will close 5pm Thursday 1 July, 2021.

Page last updated: 15 Mar 2024, 11:12 AM