Planning Panels now law
Legislation to make planning panels in Wollongong and metropolitan Sydney mandatory this month passed the NSW parliament. The legislation passed with amendments from the Labor Party to exclude developers or real estate agents from siting on the panels.
The introduction of mandatory planning panels in Sydney and Wollongong fulfils almost two decades of advocacy by the Property Council to improve the development assessment process by depoliticising decision making.
The announcement cements the implementation of best practice principles identified by the Development Assessment Forum, of which the Property Council was a founding member in 1998.
It also marks the NSW Government’s acceptance of a recommendation made by former Reserve Bank Governor Glenn Stevens as part of his affordable housing report in June to introduce mandatory planning panels in urban parts of NSW to improve housing affordability.
And, it comes off the back of recent polling by Newgate Research, commissioned by the Property Council which found high levels of community support for the introduction of planning panels to depoliticise the development assessment process; 81% of respondents agreeing that large planning decisions should be made by experts.
Details of the announcement are:
- Planning panels will be mandatory across all Sydney councils and Wollongong City Council and decide development applications for projects valued between $5M-$30M (above $30M will be decided by regional panels);
- Panels will comprise four members;
- The chair will be chosen by the Planning Minister, will have the casting vote and must have expertise in law or government;
- Three panel members must have planning expertise (and drawn from a pool of experts assembled by the Department of Planning and approved by the Minister);
- Councils will choose two experts to sit on the panel;
- The Planning Minister will choose one expert on each panel; and
- A fourth ‘community representative’ panel member will be chosen by council (and live in the ward in which proposed development is to occur).
- Councillors and mayors will not be allowed to be on a panel in their local government area;
- Panel members will sit for three years, and up to a maximum of six years on the same panel.
Councils will focus on strategic planning, setting the rules for new development in their area, but will be required to seek a panel’s advice on ‘planning proposals’ valued between $5 million and $10 million.