Smart Growth Alliance
Dense eucalypt canopy in the foreground looking out over a wooded plain, with a distant city skyline just visible on the horizon.

News & updates

This Wednesday: stand with us at Kurmond

7 September 2026

On Wednesday 9 September, a Land and Environment Court commissioner will visit the site of the proposed development to hear the case for and against DA0060/26. It is called a conciliation conference, and it is the most important day this campaign has had. The best thing you can do is simply be there.

The more people who come, the better. The commissioner will see who has turned out. A large, calm crowd says more clearly than anything we could write how deeply this community cares, so please bring the people around you.

Please respect the process. Members of the public will not be able to speak on the day. Representatives of the Alliance will present the community's case on road safety, the proximity to Colo High School, the character of the region and the environment. We ask everyone who attends to be respectful of the commissioner, the proceedings and everyone present, including those on the other side of the application. There is no need to chant, interrupt or confront anyone. Being present is enough.

For last-minute changes on the day, join the WhatsApp group.

Conciliation conference confirmed for 9 September

3 August 2026

The Section 34 conciliation conference for DA0060/26 — an on-site meeting with a court-appointed commissioner — is confirmed for 9:30am on Wednesday 9 September 2026 at the Kurmond site. Only a limited number of speakers from the public can be heard, so we will share how to take part as arrangements are settled. Council continues to accept objections in the meantime, and it's not too late to lodge yours.

We also have two things to print for community notice boards, both A4 and both carrying a QR code back to this site: an A4 flyer (PDF) that sets out the facts of the application in full, and a brighter A4 poster (PDF) for catching the eye of passers-by. Put one up wherever locals will see it.

The Smart Growth Alliance website is live

July 2026

This website is our new home base. Sign up on the Get Involved page to receive updates about key dates, hearings and ways to help, starting with the community response to the proposed fast food development at Kurmond.

Residents gather in Kurrajong to form the Alliance

18 July 2026

Locals from across the district, with backgrounds spanning engineering, science, law, the arts, farming and community service, met to form the Smart Growth Alliance. The group agreed on a positive, fact-led approach: celebrate what makes this region special, oppose the Kurmond fast food proposal on its merits, and organise for the bigger planning decisions heading our way.

We will report back here after the conference.