Monday 19 August 2024
MEDIA RELEASE
365-day assessment timeframe for most VIC retirement villages
A new report card reveals two thirds of retirement village development applications in Victoria take more than 365 days to be assessed, despite the state’s ageing population and housing supply crisis.
The Retirement Living Council (RLC) has released its national planning report card – called Retirement ready – which ranks state-based planning systems and recommends a suite of practical reforms.
The report card has been prepared together with leading national urban consultancy Urbis and has made the following key findings:
- 67 per cent of development applications for retirement village take more than 12 months to receive a determination, while 23 per cent take more than two years.
- Victoria ranks fourth on the national leaderboard with a score of 45.8 points out of 100, trailing SA, NSW and the ACT but ahead of QLD, TAS and WA.
- There is a perceived over-reliance on the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) for decision making on development applications. This adds unnecessary costs and delays, sometimes more than 12 months, where councils should already be able to assess these projects without issue.
In addition to key recommendations for all states – including the establishment of minimum land allocations for retirement communities and providing additional floor space and height bonuses – the report puts forward three recommendations to make Victoria’s planning system ‘retirement ready’ to provide more age-friendly housing supply for its ageing population.
- Provide the option to consult with the State Planning Minister’s Office or VCAT during a stalled planning application, not after local government decisions.
- Review the Development Facilitation Program to improve access and relevance for industry. As retirement units are already 48 per cent more affordable than equivalent housing in metropolitan Melbourne, there is no room within development feasibilities to hand over 10 per cent of product to affordable housing, nor make an in-lieu cash contribution.
- Include retirement living units in state housing targets.
Comments attributable to RLC Executive Director, Daniel Gannon
“We are in a race to house the nation. Governments at all levels need to ensure they are ‘retirement ready’.
“We now know that 67 per cent of retirement village development applications take more than 365 days to complete assessment, while 23 per cent take more than 730 days.
“Given Victoria’s over-75s cohort will increase by 83 per cent over the next decade and a half and retirement villages are effectively operating at full capacity, this is alarming and unacceptable.
“Like the rest of the country, Victoria is ageing, housing supply is in deficit and the aged care sector is breaking under the weight of increasing demand.
“Governments are crying out for more housing supply while at the same time holding it back. You can’t make this stuff up.
“Consistent industry feedback throughout the reporting process indicated that councils were abrogating their responsibilities as planning authorities and leaving it to VCAT to make the tough decisions. This is not how you increase housing supply during a crisis.
“If retirement village operators were afforded the same planning incentives as residential developers and included in state targets, the government’s goal of building 800,000 new homes over the next decade might be closer to reality.
“More red tape and complexity in planning systems won’t help build the homes that older Australians need, but they can dampen supply very easily.
“Given the proven benefits that age-friendly communities deliver for older Australians, governments should be throwing the kitchen sink at approving more of them – and fast.”
Comments attributable to Ryman Healthcare Australia CEO, Cameron Holland:
“What happens all too often is we lodge an application in line with the local planning scheme, the council’s planning team supports it and recommends to councillors that they approve it.
“Councillors then decline the application to appease local objectors, knowing their decision will be overturned by VCAT on appeal, which is invariably what happens.
“While local communities should absolutely have a voice in planning decisions, we have a planning scheme for a reason. When development applications that tick all the boxes are turned down by councils, it adds time, cost, and stress for everyone involved in the process.
“The biggest losers are ultimately older local people eager to move into a village, many of whom have health needs and who can’t afford to wait for the tailored accommodation and care our villages provide.
“Australia is facing an aged care and housing crisis that requires a wholesale policy response from every level of government. Unfortunately, that response won’t even go close to fixing the problem if the planning settings are not right.”
Comments attributable to Urbis Associate Director, Kylie Newcombe:
“Retirement living plays a crucial role in providing age-friendly housing, enabling older residents to remain integral parts of their communities.
“Planning is a critical enabler for delivering the housing that the retirement living sector provides for older Australians. However, a significant 70 per cent of the industry feels let down by the system, citing that authorities have a ‘poor’ understanding of retirement living.
“As our ageing population continues to grow, it’s more important than ever that retirement living is addressed in strategic plans and policies by state and local governments.
“A promising starting point could be setting explicit targets for retirement living, backed by a consistent set of controls and design guidance for application across the state.”
ENDS
Media contact: Joe Schwab | 0402 687 890 | [email protected]