Construction times had ballooned to two years and more, with more tradies on site, more heavy vehicles bringing in building materials and the use of pile drivers and cranes.

“Neighbours are affected due to the prolonged nature of the construction, noise, dust, loss of street parking for themselves and their visitors and constant road blockages whilst heavy vehicles access the block,” he said. “We are aware of one situation where a local resident is contemplating moving from the area to avoid exposure to dust.”

Mr Mackinnon said the growing trend of demolishing old houses and entire blocks to carry out major building work is “arguably out of keeping with” the area’s zoning.

Cr Amon said residents were “furious, as am I, that many developments are being approved that do not comply with the council’s own development standards.

“We are often seeing developments given a seal of approval which in some cases are double the otherwise permitted height and which do not comply with setback standards and so on,” he said.

“This is detrimental to the local community, in terms of its look and feel, in terms of increased traffic, in terms of the loss of amenity to residents during the construction of such monstrosities.”

Loading

Northern Beaches chief executive Ray Brownlee said the council had received concerns from residents about the volume of construction and its impact on local roads, including the availability of parking and the road being blocked while deliveries are made to sites.

“Unfortunately, Council has no control over when a development commences,” he said. “A consent lasts for five years during which works can commence at any time during this period.”

A Planning Department spokeswoman said the council had the power to order construction work to speed up in certain circumstances. “They can also enforce compliance orders to minimise disruption to neighbouring properties and the community.”

Loading

Mr Mackinnon said the council gave complainants a “sympathetic hearing”, but did not deal with their concerns about issues such as building heights and vegetation clearance.

Cr Amon said there were instances of building works going on for more than 10 years, “which causes significant frustration and disruption within local communities”.

He called on the state government to consider measures to address this “vexed issue”.

Cr Amon said the state government was “allowing these developments to occur by stealth” because of a mandatory clause in local planning rules that allows consent authorities, including courts, “to ride roughshod over the community and that is not acceptable”.

The Planning Department spokeswoman said the state government had no role in deciding DA’s under the clause – but it is under review.

Fellow councillor Michael Gencher said there was a perception that the council was on the side of developers, “and that inevitably developers will get their way through the Land and Environment Court”.

“This needs to change through moving forward with tighter and fairer planning rules and controls,” he said.

The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.