Lake Macquarie mayoral candidate councillor Luke Cubis defends involvement in application to subdivide 45 Victoria Street, Teralba

Lake Mac Independents councillor Luke Cubis lodged a development application for a one into 24 lot subdivision and associated works at 45 Victoria Street the day after nominations closed for the December 4 council election.

The estimated cost of the works are $1.96 million and 105 trees are estimated to be impacted by the proposed works, according to planning documents.

A local government election candidate is required to provide a candidate information sheet when lodging their nomination, in which they must declare if they are a property developer.

Cr Cubis ticked the box on his nomination for mayor saying he was not a developer, and told the Newcastle Herald he did not meet the definition as set out by the Electoral Funding Act.

The NSW Electoral Commission says a person is considered a property developer if the individual or a corporation carries on a business mainly concerned with the residential or commercial development of land, with the ultimate purpose of sale or lease of the land for profit, and in the course of that business either a relevant planning application has been made by or on behalf of the individual or corporation and is pending, or they have had three or more relevant planning applications determined in the past seven years.

Close associates of these people are also considered to be property developers.

Cr Cubis said he did not fit these definitions as he does not conduct business mainly concerned with development of land and had not had three or more relevant planning applications decided in the past seven years.

He also said he deliberately lodged the development application the day after nominations closed and had received legal advice on the matter to ensure he was not in the wrong.

"We dotted our Is and crossed our Ts," he told the Newcastle Herald.

"We're 100 per cent comfortable what we've done is appropriate."

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