THE owners of the Hougoumont Hotel in Fremantle have taken their bid to get a five-storey extension to the powerful but unelected state administrative tribunal.

The local DAP deferred a decision on the extension in January because it wanted Red Rock Consolidated to check its overshadowing on rear neighbours.

One neighbour had challenged the developers’ diagrams with their own, which claimed a greater impact on their property. But the delay ended up allowing Red Rock the opportunity to claim it as a refusal, which it has done.

After SAT-ordered mediation between the DAP and Red Rock, the DAP was “invited” to reconsider its decision on the basis a review of the neighbour’s plans had found they were based on outdated data.

Fremantle council, which has no power in the matter, had opposed the plan as its West End conservation policy only permits a fourth storey if it is setback from the street. Red Rock’s project is set hard against Bannister Street and seeks additional height as a “loft”.