Meander business looks to council for court costs
by Sharon Webb
MEANDER BUSINESS, Timber World, believes it will recover at least $50,000 in costs from Meander Valley Council after a four-year fight over a plan to use Meander School for drug rehabilitation
The business will also pursue the council for additional legal costs for four appearances in the Tasmania’s Resource Management and Planning Tribunal to support the local ratepayers’ group to move drug rehabilitation group Teen Challenge off the site
It is believed that Teen Challenge director Peter Ferrall is resisting leaving the school site while the organisation has almost a year of its lease left.
‘Why is the property still being occupied by people who are not doing what they said they’d do there?’, asked Meander local Kim Booth.
Following the council’s recent reversal on allowing Teen Challenge’s permit to use Meander School, Meander Area Residents and Ratepayers Association has written to the council asking about the councils plan for the site.
‘We ask the council to instigate an open and transparent consultation process involving the whole Meander community, in order to reach consensus on a new use for the site’, wrote MARRA president Bodhi McSweeney.
‘Meander Primary School used to be the “social glue” for Meander’s extremely diverse community. Everyone came together for the good of the school.
‘If handled well, the consultation process could start healing the rift in the Meander community caused by the Teen Challenge matter, and the new use could reestablish the “social glue” role of the school site.’
But Mayor Wayne Johnston reiterated that Teen Challenge retains a current lease, with options over the site.
‘When Teen Challenge advises of their intent, the council will consider our position’, he said. The legal costs apply from two appearances in the Supreme Court and four appearances before RMPAT
MARRA’s legal bills of $140,550 plus 18 per cent GST were funded by Timber World.
Meander Valley Council admits to paying $60,000 and Teen Challenge paid no legal bills.
