About Alesia
Alesia specialises in governance and planning and environment law, focussing on planning and environment litigation including appeals, declaratory proceedings and enforcement proceedings, as well as infrastructure and governance advisory.
Alesia acts for a variety of public and private sector clients, including local governments, government owned entities, town planning consultants, and property developers as well as members of the community.
She has experience acting for clients in the Planning and Environment Court, Supreme Court and the Magistrates Court, as well as the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
Alesia regularly provides advice in relation to the Local Government Act 2009, particularly in relation to local laws, recovery of overdue rates and obligations of road authorities. Alesia also provides advice about the requirements of the Planning Act 2016 and all its related legislation and predecessors, local planning schemes, town planning compliance matters, infrastructure charges and infrastructure agreements.
Specialisations
Experience
Governance Advisory – General
Advising Southern Downs Regional Council about its duties and obligations as road authority, particularly in relation to the maintenance and upgrade of a designated but unsealed road.
Governance Advisory – Local Laws
Assisting Ipswich City Council review its full suite of existing local laws, including reviewing Council’s existing local laws and providing advice about necessary and suggested amendments, drafting new local laws in accordance with the Local Government Act 2009, drafting Council resolutions and Government Gazette notices, advising on and undertaking a review of anti-competitive provisions and updating instruments of appointment following the making of the new local laws.
Governance Advisory – Rates
Advising local government clients about their powers to recover overdue rates, including the power to sell or acquire land for overdue rates, and assisting the client draft the necessary documentation under the Local Government Act 2009 to sell or acquire the land.
Planning Enforcement
Acting for Whitsunday Regional Council in successful contempt proceedings in relation to a failure to comply with an order of the Planning and Environment Court requiring the Respondents to cease using land for an unlawful purpose. The Court ordered fines totalling $20,000, the highest fine ever imposed by the Court in contempt proceedings, and an order that the Respondents pay 60% of the Council’s costs on an indemnity basis (see Whitsunday Regional Council v Branbid Pty Ltd & Fallon [2017] QPEC 66)
Planning Appeals
Acting for Ausbuild Pty Ltd in a Planning and Environment Court appeal to successfully obtain a development approval to vary the effect of the applicable planning scheme to facilitate the development of 129 residential lots. Some 100 local residents elected to join the appeal. The appeal resolved with all parties consenting to the issue of a development approval following changes to the design of the proposal that would provide open space, environmental, stormwater and traffic benefits to the community.
Planning Advice
Provision of advice to local government clients in relation to the merits of development applications and providing advice about the development assessment process under the Planning Act 2016 and their obligations/powers as assessment manager.
Infrastructure Agreements
Preparing a suite of template infrastructure agreements for Moreton Bay Regional Council and Sunshine Coast Regional Council ranging for a standard (all situations) type agreement with supporting documents to assist Council with collecting the necessary information, to more bespoke agreements for charities, incentives and payment plans, along with supporting deeds to enable those agreements to be varied or assigned.
Infrastructure Advice
Providing various advices to Whitsunday Regional Council in relation to the lawful point of discharge test under the Queensland Urban Drainage Manual (QUDM).