The Hawkesbury Local Planning Panel (HLPP) has sent the promoters of the controversial Belmont Park development back to the drawing board, dismissing the proposal as premature with a laundry list of objections including deficiencies about flood access and poor alignment with a range of regional housing policies.

“The Planning Proposal is considered premature pending necessary strategic evaluation at a district and regional level concerning whether further housing development is to occur in North Richmond, particularly in light of flood-related isolation risks,” HLPP said in a Report for Advice issued after its April 18 meeting. The Post has learned that the HLPP took less than an hour to dismiss the proposal.