8 June 2018 Hon Sterling Hinchliffe MP Minister for Local Government Minister for Racing and Minister for Multicultural Affairs

Via email: [email protected]

Dear Minister Hinchliffe,

LAWFUL USE OF PREMISES

Thank you for your letter of 11 April 2018, acknowledging our email of 26 March 2018, and advising that our email has been forwarded to the Honourable MP, Minister for State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning, as “use of premises” is a matter that falls within the portfolio responsibilities of this Minister.

Although our email of March 26 only covered correspondence sent to Gold Coast City Mayor Tom Tate dealing with Lawful use of premises, we have recently sent to Minister Dick the attached file detailing far wider correspondence that provides evidence of failed enforcement within both the Gold Coast City Council and City Council, the applicable law that supports our argument, and penalty exposures.

The attached documentation demonstrates a systemic failure of Local Government to enforce regulation, concern of which has existed well beyond Airbnb, Stayz and the like, for some time. It is no coincidence that the management industry has a strong presence in the examples presented, as bodies corporate, over many years have experienced difficulty in exercising management and supervision over these contractors, due to the privileged engagement arrangements and censure availability, in deference to the objectives of prevailing legislation.

In , the community is subject to the regime of Management Rights, imposed on owners under the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997, which is now clearly seen as the driving force behind the unlawful use of buildings in our state. This legislation permits developers, whilst they control the body corporate, to sell these arrangements, that sees the purchaser proceed to operate commercial short-term accommodation within Class 2 buildings that is considered unlawful by council planning officials as demonstrated within the attached documentation.

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UOAQ is seeking in the interests of its members and the community at large, to have the failures of local government compliance and enforcement responsibilities addressed.

Our letter to Mayor Tate of March 15, copied to CEO Dale Dickson, although acknowledged by both as received, has not been responded to.

Yours faithfully,

Wayne Stevens President

Cc. Hon MP, Minister for Housing and Public Works; Minister for Digital Technology; Minister for Sport. Hon Yvette D’Ath MP, Attorney-General and Minister for Justice

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From: Minister for Local Government, Racing & Multicultural Affairs To: Jana Koutova Subject: Thank you for your email Date: Friday, 8 June 2018 1:25:35 PM Attachments: image001.png image003.png

Thank you for your correspondence to the Office of the Honourable MP, Minister for Local Government, Minister for Racing and Minister for Multicultural Affairs.

Please be assured that the contents of your email are receiving attention and a response, should it be required, will be provided as soon as possible.

Again, thank you for taking the time to contact the Minister for Local Government, Minister for Racing and Minister for Multicultural Affairs.

Office of the Honourable Stirling Hinchliffe MP Minister for Local Government, Minister for Racing and Minister for Multicultural Affairs P 07 3719 7560 E [email protected] 1 William Street Brisbane QLD 4000 PO Box 15009 City East QLD 4002

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10 July 2018 Hon Sterling Hinchliffe MP Minister for Local Government Minister for Racing and Minister for Multicultural Affairs

Via email: [email protected]

Dear Minister Hinchliffe,

RE: Misuse of Class 2 buildings / Unlawful use of premises/ Contravention of development approvals

I write to inform you of extreme and unreasonable difficulties in bringing matters described above before local government.

The attached files demonstrate the herculean effort necessary to be applied against the two largest and most resourced councils in the country to have our matters addressed.

We provided to you on 8/6/2018 a brief of documents showing the process undertaken to establish local government responsibility on the question of enforcement.

We now deliver a further brief of exchanges titled Brisbane City Council that seems to be descending to the absurd. Also attached is a brief demonstrating the effort required at the Galleria, Brisbane to convince council to enforce.

A UOAQ member sought assistance to have council address a matter of unlawful use of premises at 212 Margaret St Brisbane. The property is a Class 2 building used as an Oaks hotel in contravention to the development approval. Council initially indicated that the business was a Home-based business, then argued on the question of zoning. Council continually avoided addressing the matter of a required development application for a Material Change of Use approval, required to be provided by council to permit the changed usage to commercial short-term accommodation. These requirements were well known to Oaks as they were subject to court intervention in NSW: Council of the City of Sydney v Oaks Hotels and Resorts (NSW) No.2 Pty Limited (No 2 re Maestri) [2011] NSWLEC 235 (7 December 2011)

The second brief titled Galleria demonstrates the effort a colleague was put to by council, to address Airbnb incursions in his residential building. A complaint was lodged with council, and for over 18 months was deflected by council

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compliance officers. It was not until the matter was referred to the Ombudsman, that council addressed his complaint seriously which led to council advising they would take action to stop the Airbnb usage in his building.

One can only wonder how many complaints have been received by council and been dealt with in the same way. It takes the most persistent in our community to overcome such intransigence and obfuscation.

UOAQ continues to debate issues with council, titled Gold Coast City Council Mediterranean dealing with the building at Burleigh Heads and the most recent exchanges are attached, that further demonstrate the above claims. A second file Gold Coast City Council Allisee, gives further evidence of questionable process.

For your information the UOAQ met with the Deputy Director-General DSDMIP Kerry Doss and Executive Director, Policy and Statutory Planning DSDMIP Megan Bayntun last Friday July 6.

The UOAQ seeks the intervention of the Minister to have local government address their responsibilities to the matters raised herein, particularly in the light of commentary emanating from the office of Hon. MP, which pays no credence to existing law.

Yours faithfully,

Wayne Stevens President

Cc. Hon Mick de Brenni MP, Minister for Housing and Public Works; Minister for Digital Technology; Minister for Sport. Hon Cameron Dick MP, Minister for State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning Hon Kate Jones MP, Minister for Innovation and Tourism Industry Development and Minister for the Commonwealth Games Mr Brett Bassett, QBCC Commissioner Mr Robert Schwarten, Chair Stakeholders Advisory Committee, QBCC Hon Yvette D’Ath MP, Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Ms Esther Blest, BCCM A/Commissioner

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From: Minister for Local Government, Racing & Multicultural Affairs To: Jana Koutova Subject: Thank you for your email Date: Tuesday, 10 July 2018 3:20:28 PM Attachments: image001.png image003.png

Thank you for your correspondence to the Office of the Honourable Stirling Hinchliffe MP, Minister for Local Government, Minister for Racing and Minister for Multicultural Affairs.

Please be assured that the contents of your email are receiving attention and a response, should it be required, will be provided as soon as possible.

Again, thank you for taking the time to contact the Minister for Local Government, Minister for Racing and Minister for Multicultural Affairs.

Office of the Honourable Stirling Hinchliffe MP Minister for Local Government, Minister for Racing and Minister for Multicultural Affairs P 07 3719 7560 E [email protected] 1 William Street Brisbane QLD 4000 PO Box 15009 City East QLD 4002

This email, together with any attachments, is intended for the named recipient(s) only; and may contain privileged and confidential information. If received in error, you are asked to inform the sender as quickly as possible and delete this email and any copies of this from your computer system network.

If not an intended recipient of this email, you must not copy, distribute or take any action(s) that relies on it; any form of disclosure, modification, distribution and /or publication of this email is also prohibited.

Unless stated otherwise, this email represents only the views of the sender and not the views of the Queensland Government.

Please consider the environment before printing this email.