25 October 2012
The new bill introduced into the parliament by Minister Hazzard makes Development Control Plans advisory only and this will help stimulate quicker approvals, says the Urban Taskforce.
Since around 2003 the Land and Environment Court has been giving greater credence to Development Control Plans which often contain local micro controls that frustrate development, says Urban Taskforce CEO Chris Johnson. Coincidently since 2003 the NSW building output has dropped below that of Victoria and Queensland on a per capita basis.
Local councils, often encouraged by consultants eager for work, have become more and more involved in developing their own versions of planning rules and adding many quirky requirements that overly control the outcomes.
We now have vast volumes of micro rules developed at the local level that have become increasingly adhered to despite their lower status than the Local Environmental Plan (LEP).
It is pleasing to see that the minister is clarifying that DCPs are less important documents in the planning system and must not be used to frustrate development that is consistent with the LEP.