Hi Jason,
In Byron Bay, a private organisation has leased a section of railway land from the middle of town to the entrance of a resort for the purposes of a light rail service (a few km’s and yes the rail company set up is part of the company that owns the resort). Obviously a business venture but gets tricky as Council is also involved due to the “community benefits” and precinct improvements also realised. Most of the land has “rail infrastructure” on it (i.e. disused rail lines) even though they are building platforms (which I believe are not defined as rail infrastructure). It is owned by Transport for NSW. As you point out, the exemption under section 555g is based on ownership and a lease is irrelevant (even though the Valuer General will provide a valuation due to the lease). As a result, we have determined the land to be exempt as it’s dominant rail infrastructure and owned by TfNSW.
Cheers
Steve A.
