Crown Resorts is currently in the process of developing a new hotel for its Perth property. Residents of the area have attempted to fight the construction of the new facility, escalating their case of Western Australia’s highest court – but their case was dismissed. Residents of Burswood maintained that the construction of the new hotel violated planning permissions.
They argued that this was the case because it was not subject to the planning and development processes the city council. This is the second time that the case has been dismissed. Last year, Burswood residents argued in the Supreme Court that the hotel development was unlawful. The judge disagreed, stating that the hotel was lawfully subject to the Casino (Burswood Island) Agreement Act in 1985.
This particular legislation applied to the construction of the original Burswood casino and hotel development, and it still applies today to Crown Perth’s new hotel. It provides an exemption for the casino, allowing it to bypass the usual planning and development rules that are imposed by the town.
Instead, the Minister for Racing and Gaming has the power to approve developments of the property. Jeff McCann, Chairman of the Burswood Residents' Action Group, disagrees with the decision to dismiss the case. He argues that the Act was written before there was a residential community in Burswood. Now that there is one, the Act denies residents the chance to voice their opinions on new developments in the area.
"Under normal circumstances, any other Australian citizen would be able to go to the local government body, the plans would lay on the table, residents would have an opportunity to have their say in those developments," he says. "As it stands, we have none of those rights under the casino act."
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