Our neighbour has recently built a huge deck in his backyard that is mounted to the top of the roof of the house.
It has a pitched roof and it is around 5 m high.
As we had no notification that it was being built I contacted ACTPLA to see if it had DA approval as it states on their site that 4m is the maximum height.
They wrote back saying it had building approval and was exempt from DA.
The project had been submitted as a building extension and not a deck and no notification was required.
I was just wondering how common this is?
I have read another article about a sunroom that is a simillar case but the deck has no walls or windows and looks nothing like the house so I am not sure how it can be classified as an extension.
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What’s Your opinion?
When is a deck not a deck?
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Well finally heard back from the Ombudsman and they have no power to do anything. They can only make recomendations to gov departments which the departments can then ignore. Makes sense doesn’t it…..not..
Least the hedge is growing well..
Foreboding said :
That may still be the case. Actpla comms was happy to try to help but there is not much they can do as they are still part of the same department. I have moved on to the Ombudsman now.
Has anyone had any dealings with the Ombudsman?
I was impressed to see ACTPLA’s reply. About two years ago I made an appointment with them to discuss my landscaping plans and they said ” you can do anything you want to because we’ll never check.” The public servant I spoke to was adamant that ACTPLA would never go to the effort of enforcing anything because they didn’t have enough budget for enforcement.
ACTPLAComms said :
whoodzzz said :
Sounded like they were listening but haven’t heard anything back from them yet.
John Moulis said :
hahaahah*snort* yes, I am sure that absolutely nobody else has ever had the government respond to anything printed in the CT during the past 12 years.
Jim Jones said :
I’d have thought the blog would have been the place to put it…
EvanJames said :
… right next to the bill pile of restraining orders.
John Moulis said :
Clearly a key life milestone. Did you clip it out of the paper and frame it?
ACTPLAComms said :
Nice to see that RiotACT is now the place to turn to in order to get action from officialdom. I think the last time anybody in government responded to something in The Canberra Times was when Kate Carnell as CM replied to one of my Letters to the Editor in 1999.
Great to see the post from ACTPLA Communications Unit!
Looks like a more work for the Compliance Unit, good onya Craig & team.
The job these guys do is not well publicised. Maybe rectification stats could be published here so that people know they cannot do whatever they want. Non compliance could double your time and budget.
Mr Waffle said :
Thumper said :
Shouldn’t we determine whether it floats first – I know it’s a bit too pythonesque……
If it walks like a deck, quacks like a deck, then I guess we have to entertain the possibility, however remote that may be, that it is, in fact, a deck.
Awww, ACTPLA sorting it out isn’t nearly as fun as these comments being whipped up into a witchhunt 🙁 oh well.
ACTPLAComms said :
great work guys! nice to see someone is listening!
ACTPLA_Communications@act.gov.au comes direct to the Environment and Sustainable Development (ESDD) Directorate’s Communications section. ACTPLA is now part of ESDD.