08 April 2011
The “Ku-ring-gai Planning Panel” was yesterday abolished by the new Minister for Planning and Infrastructure, Brad Hazzard.
This panel is separate and distinct from the joint regional planning panel.
The Ku-ring-gai Planning Panel was appointed in December 2007 to carry out some of the planning functions of Ku-ring-gai Council. The panel dealt with development applications worth more than $30 million (the arrangement pre-dated joint regional planning panels with their $10 million threshold). The panel also dealt with applications that had not been determined within 90 days.
It played a crucial role in the finalisation of the Ku-ring-gai Local Environmental Plan (Town Centres) 2010 which provided for higher density development in Gordon, Lindfield, Pymble, Roseville, St Ives and Turramurra. The panel had ongoing responsibility for spot rezoning processes within those town centres. When in Opposition, Barry O’Farrell promised to give the local council the power to rescind the town centres LEP. Nothing has been said on this matter since the transition to government.
The transitional provisions are as follows:
- development applications made to the panel are now treated as if they were made to council;
- pending rezoning matters for which were vested in the panel are now the responsibility of the council, and if the process is incomplete, the council may seek to end the process.
More detail is here.