DPA-12 Update The consultation period for the Draft Territory Plan Amendment DPA-12 closed in April. The proposed amendment to the Territory Plan would legitimize the car park illegally developed by the Brindabella Christian College by permitting that part of Lyneham Neighbourhood Oval to be used as a car park despite the area being zoned as urban open space. Over 350 individuals made a submission to the Territory Planning Authority (TPA) through the LCA website. The TPA website shows 46 submissions in favour of the amendment, and 391 submissions against. That’s over 89% of submissions against the proposal: almost 9 out of every 10 in opposition. We have not heard anything from the TPA about what they are proposing to do about DPA-12. Normally the next stage would be for the TPA to prepare a final amendment for the Minister for Planning to present to the ACT Legislative Assembly, or they could revise or withdraw it. In the meantime, some members of the LCA committee have met with a number of MLAs to make them aware of the issue. In particular, we’ve met with most members (or their advisors) of the Standing Committee on Environment and Planning, as it is this committee that may choose to investigate the proposed amendment if it goes to the Assembly. Separately, we are still waiting for the judgement to be handed down on the appeal by BCC in the Supreme Court against the decision of ACAT in late 2023 to close the carpark. The appeal was held on 4 February 2026. It’s possible that the decision will have significant consequences for the proposed amendment. We can only hope the TPA is sensibly waiting for that decision before it makes a decision on the amendment. | 
