ATM wanted to create a 58-lot residential subdivision, using four hectares of its 15ha land, but almost $1600 spent on planning applications with Wangaratta Council over three years has ended in disappointment.

The Environment Protection Authority warned last year that future residents would be “adversely affected” by odours from factories just 10 metres away.

EPA guidelines called for a 250 to 500-metre buffer.

But administrators pushed on with the plan, going against recommendations from council officers.

The Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning finally refused the proposal on July 22 this year.

“The council has not prepared a satisfactory strategic assessment to sufficiently address the impacts of the loss of vacant serviced industrial lands in the Rural City of Wangaratta,” DELWP stated.

The council’s development Services director Barry Green again advised administrators to abandon the plan.

Administrator Rodney Roscholler told Tuesday’s council meeting everything possible had been done to support the proposal because jobs and economic growth were the municipality’s top issues.

“When we saw this proposal, we were really keen to try and support it because it helped protect jobs,” he said

“Unfortunately, at the end of the day, we’re not able to achieve all the planning benchmarks that are required.”

Wangaratta Council was presented with an alternative the option to continue analysing the ATM land and find a way to satisfy the concerns of both DELWP and EPA.

But administrators accepted the decision “with regret”.

“These are just hurdles that we couldn’t overcome and we’re disappointed that it’s happened, we would have preferred it to go well,” Mr Roscholler said.

“Who knows what’s going to happen in the future, but that’s it for now.”