Minister Overturns Indigenous Opposition to Defence Housing

Lee Point project has come under fire from inception mainly from local indigenous leaders owing to its status as a place of ecological and cultural significance

Guided Missile Frigate HMAS Melbourne leads the fleet back to harbour following Exercise KAKADU, Australia's largest maritime exercise, in Darwin, NT, on Sept. 13, 2018. AAP Image/Glenn Campbell

A court has given the green light to a contentious defence housing development in Darwin, despite opposition from environmentalists and the land’s traditional owners.

In 2019, Defence Housing Australia (DHA) in conjunction with contractor BMD Urban, was given planning approval to clear around 40 percent of the peninsula area at Lee Point, also known as Binybara, in Darwin’s coastal north for an 800-home development.