A NSW farmer has been fined $175,000 in the Land and Environment Court.
A cattle farmer in New South Wales has been fined $175,000 after he pleaded guilty in the Land and Environment Court to breaching the Environment Planning and Assessment Act when he demolished a 100-year-old homestead in Cowra without council consent.
Gregory Fuller said he wanted to build a new home for his ailing wife because the homestead was in poor condition and his wife was unable to walk up the stairs to the second floor. The Shiel homestead was constructed in the 1900s, and bought by the Fullers in 2011 for $6.9 million. The Fullers lodged a development application with Cowra Shire Council to erect three sheds on their property, and discussed plans to replace the homestead with a new one. The couple then spent $600,000 on new sheds and a cattle yard complex, and two months later were informed by the council that the home was to be listed as a heritage item in the local environment plan. Shortly after, the homestead was demolished in April 2012, reports Cowra Community News.
In handing down the sentence last week, Justice Nicola Pain said Fuller's desire to provide a suitable residence for his ill wife is not an adequate excuse. "The state of repair of the Shiel Homestead is irrelevant to lessening the seriousness of the offence. While it was in poor repair and required significant restoration work … it remained structurally sound.”