Page 1582 - Week 05 - Tuesday, 31 March 2009
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We are getting there. Of course, where applicants make sure they have provided the required documentation up-front, they can have their application assessed in a much shorter time frame—simpler, faster and more effective; practical and innovative reform.
On top of these processes, a significant number of development proposals in residential areas have been exempted from a requirement for a development assessment application. Over the last 12 months, around 1,000 developments were newly exempt from the requirement to lodge a development application. Only a building approval was required in these cases.
The number of exemptions will continue to rise over time as the full effect of existing exemption regulations is realised. We will also look for new opportunities to remove classes of minor development from the DA system. For instance, it is now no longer necessary to lodge a development application for home businesses, sheds, roof slope changes, skylights and demolitions. And the list of building approval exemptions has continued to grow. A range of minor works are now exempt, including fences, walls, retaining walls, portable pools and pool fencing, garages and other class 10 structures, water tanks, doors, windows and the like—simpler, faster and more effective; practical and innovative reform.
Perhaps the most difficult element of any planning system is balancing the rights of the community with the rights of the individual in notification, consultation and appeals. A key feature of the new planning system is the focus of public consultation on the development of the territory plan and related codes. This is designed to make the system fairer on everyone by engaging the community in setting the planning rules, rather than on individual developments.
Third party appeal rights over development decisions are appropriate in specific circumstances. However, such appeal rights should never be abused by unscrupulous commercial rivals or by politically motivated actions. This has happened in the past in Canberra and it has slowed down the planning and development system. The new act reconfigured third party appeal rights so that they are actually stronger, but only where people can demonstrate that they would suffer material detriment if a new building were approved.
Public notification of high-impact development applications is continuing to be improved to ensure the community has reasonable notice of and access to information. Bigger signs on proposed development sites and better information in the Canberra Times notices as well as on ACTPLA’s website are all initiatives aimed at making the process more transparent and accessible.
The broader community interest has been further protected through significantly increased penalties for offences of developing without approval or contrary to the conditions of an approval. The public interest has also been protected through a new statutory process for making and responding to complaints. And formal procedures have also been put in place in relation to the referral of complaints to other agencies for their action—simpler, faster and more effective; practical and innovative reform.
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