26 September 2011

An appeal right for rezoning applicants is a key interim reform strongly sought by industry.  An applicant should be entitled to make, and have determined, a development application (including a ˜concept staged development application) even if the development is prohibited by a statutory plan.

26 September 2011

A under the current policy settings, it seems more likely that the Standard Instrument will be used to entrench the micro-regulation of land use across NSW. This was never the original intention of the Standard Instrument process.

20 September 2011

The planning principles should be directed to employment lands generally, which should
include land uses associated with the largest share of employment in our economy - retail and
office premises.

11 August 2011

Identifying the problems in and proposing solutions for the NSW planning system. Initial submission by the Urban Taskforce to the preliminary stage of the Planning Review.

Download Hansard transcript here

A more comprehensive summary of the changes to the Act is here

11 August 2011

Land use planning failures are risking the Lower Hunters future as NSWs economic power house. If things keep going as they are, the Lower Hunters future growth will look more like Launcestons instead of an economic success story like Geelong.

24 June 2011

A permanent solution to this problem is essential and urgent. We ask the government to complete the review as quickly as possible, whilst still proving an opportunity for industry, including ourselves, to participate in the process.

26 May 2011

There is no obligation on the NBN Co to respond to requests for the issue of a statement about the non-installation of optical fibre lines. Even if a statement is formally refused, the NBN Co is still not compelled to actually deliver an optical fibre line.

07 May 2011

The forthcoming National Urban Policy should be an opportunity to fix our cities once and for all, with a strong program of Commonwealth infrastructure investment and the microeconomic reform of Australias tired land use planning laws

28 April 2011

Any policy, regardless of how well intentioned, should not introduce more complexity, confusion or uncertainly to an already crippled planning system.

01 March 2011

Levy amounts, as presented, are too high but the Departments definition of net developable area make them utterly indefensible. Crucial information has been omitted from the exhibition documents. The Hunter Expressway should not be included.Industrial land includes a wide range of non-industrial land uses. The exemptions from the levy defy logic and must be broader. Deed of charge may conflict with landowners obligations to their first or second mortgagees. Requiring a deferred payment to be made 21 days before settlement will create financing problems.