The review of the ACT Planning System has now reached the stage of requesting public comment. Council is still working through the documentation, but preliminary comments are:
- Council agrees the Planning system very much needed to be reformed and welcomes the consultation
- Significant work has been undertaken to make the legislation easier to read, and Council believes the drafters should be congratulated for their efforts
- We note the proposed removal of the “call in powers”, and will be watching the discussion carefully
- We note the proposed removal of the pre DA lodgement consultation provisions and are keen to know the community’ view before forming a definite position
- We support the proposed codification of decision-making powers, but note the absence of words about decision makers being required to consider human impacts of a proposed development
- We are alarmed that the proposed law does not provide for consultation on developments with incorporated community groups, including your Community Council
- We are concerned that too much of the policy is going to be included in regulations, rather than the primary legislation. This approach is partially why the previous law was such a mess to navigate
- We are concerned on the proposition that the regulatory aspects are likely to be become the responsibility of Access Canberra, and will be seeking further information on how these will be operationalised
- The District Strategy has yet to be developed, making fullsome comments somehwhat difficult
Council encourages everyone to at least read the summary and consider how the changes might impact on them. Council will be making a formal submission on the proposal and is happy to receive commentary. The documentation can be found at https://www.planning.act.gov.au/planning-our-city/act-planning-system-review-and-reform