Driver IGA owner Adele Snaidero has instructed her solicitors to take their objection to the land and environment court in a bid to overturn approval for a new supermarket on the site of Ferraro Food Distributors. 

Mrs Snaidero took issue with what she perceived as conflicts of interest and the council’s misinterpretation of planning and zoning laws. 

While the minority of councillors who voted down the motion did so on the basis of traffic flow concerns, Mrs Snaidero laid in black and white that a supermarket larger than 200sqm could not be developed in an industrial zone. 

“We will soon issue a summons and it will take around 16 months before the case is heard, during which time we intend an injunction to delay development”, Mrs Snaidero said.

“This is a nasty way of doing it but this could all have been resolved if council used an external body to assess the DA, which we asked for originally.”

Dissenting councillors were expected to sign a rescission motion on Tuesday to haul the matter before council for another round of heated debate, but deputy mayor Doug Curran bowed out.

“My views on the development haven’t changed, I’m still against it but I would only vote for a rescission motion if I thought something was going to come of it,” Cr Curran said.

“Unless one of the seven who voted for it was going to change their mind I couldn’t see it being anything other than an unnecessary delay.

“My biggest concern remains the traffic management and we’ve asked for a complete traffic management plan, so that is still a mechanism to improve the development.

“I still don’t think it’s a suitable development in the area but if we can improve the traffic flow and parking access then we can make progress.”