Day 82 - Council FAIL

Grrr Port Stephens Council. Major fail today.

I lodged the DA on 24/08/12. On the 27th August it was listed on the Councils DA tracker saying that information check complete. Transfer to building - waiting. Advertising 06/09/12 to 20/09/12 - process completed.

We have been waiting for 06/09/12, knowing that it would be advertised in the paper.  Yesterday I checked the local paper, and there was nothing there.   My boss told me that it was OK as it only had to be advertised for one week.  Didn't think more about it.

I rung the council today and was told by the assessing officer that it was under advertising as of yesterday and due to come off at 5pm on 19/09/12. Everything was good with the application as it was in the building envelope and it was just a formality.

I had some time to kill this afternoon and I went on the DA tracker - advertising date has changed to 06/09/12 - 27/09/12.  I rung the council to be told that it was probably a mistake and they would call me back as far as they were concerned it was 20/09/12 and thankyou for picking up the mistake. 

Check the DA tracker again and it has changed again to 13/09/12 to 27/09/12. Ring the council again to be told it was a mistake and it was 20/09/12.

Get a phone call an hour later to be told that no there has been a mistake and when our DA was lodged there was information missing and that is the reason for the delay in advertising.  I asked what was missing - she said signatures - I told the lady that I lodged the DA myself and I know there was no missing signatures. She then said maybe it was the Basix certificate that was missing. I said no - it wasn't missing. Maybe the plans hadn't been stamped by Hunter Water - no, I had them stamped myself and you had 4 copies.   Well she said she didn't know what was missing, but because it was, it wouldn't be advertised until 13/09/12 delaying it a week. 

I rung Rawson and they have said that they have a letter dated 27/08/12 confirming the application and there is no mention of anything missing and no one from council has contacted them and asked for further information. Basically the council has stuffed up and they forgot to put it in the paper and now we are the ones that have to suck it up.

One thing I was told by the council was to look at this positively, to look at what has happened as something positive, not as a set back.  Hmmm don't see the logic in that one.