Ministers and Aboriginal custodians divided over Darwin housing development

The federal government ministers responsible for new housing estates being built at Darwin's Lee Point are coming under more intense pressure to stop the controversial development from cabinet colleagues.

Defence Housing Australia is building 200 defence homes and 600 housing lots for private sale on the site in the city's northern suburbs, in a development that has attracted large public protests and dozens of arrests over the past four years.

The cabinet pressure and lobbying from Territory Labor has exposed deep divisions within Darwin's Larrakia Indigenous community about whether concerns about sacred sites should kill the project.

While many Larrakia people oppose the development, custodian Helen Secretary has now spoken out to support it.

Ms Secretary has accused opponents of the Lee Point development of unfairly trying to kill the project on the basis of protecting sacred sites.

"The sacred and recorded site Binybara is a reef at the tip of Lee Point," she said, pointing out to sea.

"The story of Binybara is that that was Dariba Nunggalinya, Old Man Rock's wife.

"Where Defence is doing the clearing, there are no sacred sites within that area of land, so don't use sacred sites to stop development."

Ms Secretary said she and other Larrakia people have been working with Defence Housing Australia to ensure no culturally important places are interfered with.

"Why I'm speaking out is that Defence have been consulting with Larrakia people, we've been working well together under the cultural heritage monitoring," she said.

The 2024 Country Liberal Party candidate said she was also concerned to see the NT Labor Opposition change its position to oppose the Lee Point development, after supporting it while in government.

"I'm for development, we need more housing. Darwin is a city now, we don't live in a time capsule and development is going to happen," she said.

The custodian said she hopes her work with Defence Housing could eventually help deliver benefits to her community.

Defence Housing Australia told the ABC it has "undertaken extensive consultation" with Larrakia people and would "continue to do so as the project progresses".

Ms Secretary's view is diametrically opposed by Larrakia custodian Lorraine Juwayning Williams, who said the development would impact a sacred area.

"This entire area is actually sacred to us, this area of land is a women's site, and I haven't even spoken about it to the Aboriginal Areas Protection Authority, because even in giving that information, culturally, we're in conflict," she said.

"I feel really sad that Larrakia now, they're almost pushed into being pro-development."

Another Larrakia custodian Tibby Quall forced a pause on the clearing for several months this year by arguing in the NTCAT tribunal that Indigenous stone tools should not have been removed during land clearing.

Defence Housing Australia told the ABC the stop work order has since been lifted.

After four years of protesting at Lee Point, Ms Williams said she has lobbied Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy by telling her the bush site's secret story.

"I said: 'One on one, Aboriginal woman to Aboriginal woman, I'm going to tell you what this is about, you need to understand it, and then make a decision based on that'," Ms Williams said.

Complaints about environmental offsets

The Friends of Lee Point community group has also increased its campaign to stop the development on environment grounds.

The group's convenor Ian Redmond wrote to the National Environment Protection Agency complaining that the federal government's plan to ensure it does not break biodiversity law by threatening the endangered black-footed tree-rat population appeared inadequate.

He said the plan to provide the animals with another adjacent area nearby to live in appears to have offered inferior alternative habitat.

"Nearly 14 out of the 22 hectares is monsoon forest without large trees for den hollows, so it doesn't work, the black footed tree rat would be worse off," he said.

Defence Housing Australia said: "The nominated site for protection of black-footed tree-rat habitat associated with the 2CRU development site was accepted through the Commonwealth's environmental approvals."

Bird researcher Dr Amanda Lilleyman said she doubts there will be enough suitable land for a similar endangered Gouldian finch.

"We have not seen the Gouldian finch offset plan and we have questions about whether it will provide appropriate habitat," she said.

Defence Housing Australia said it has lodged a Gouldian finch offset plan with the federal environment department which will be published once approved.

Political lobbying steps up

Last month, Northern Territory Labor Opposition MLA Ed Smelt joined the lobbying effort to stop the development by taking one of the federal government ministers responsible, Katy Gallagher, out to see Lee Point.

"I pointed out the issues about outstanding cultural and environmental heritage; she accepted what I was saying and she understood the concerns that constituents have," he said.

He and other opponents have appealed to the federal government to build its contested 110-hectare Lee Point housing estate on the 123 hectares of surplus land that it plans to sell off for development at Defence Berrimah.

"The Defence Establishment Berrimah is a fantastic site and a terrific opportunity," Mr Smelt said.

Asked by the ABC whether she thought the housing estates should be built at Berrimah instead of Lee Point last week, Ms McCarthy said that question was one for Senator Gallagher to decide.

"But … I have advocated as the senator for the Northern Territory for Senator Gallagher to look at all of those issues," she said.

Ms Secretary said she hoped some Defence Berrimah land could go to the Larrakia.

"There's certain areas of land that Defence have been discussing with us to give back to the Larrakia people in the future; this isn't about that at the moment," she said.

Ms Gallagher's office did not answer questions about whether the government would consider stopping or moving the Lee Point development.