It’s hard to believe it’s the middle of the year already and we are now planning into the second half of 2019 which is looking to be a busy one. There are a number of advocacy projects we are working on together with the Illawarra Committee, we have some great events and member briefings coming up over the next few months, including our very first event in Nowra, so keep your eye out for these.
Our next Illawarra Business Lunch event to be held on Friday 9 August will focus on City Deals and discuss the likelihood of a city deal for Wollongong and what the next steps are for us. We are lucky enough to have Geoff Roberts AM, Deputy Chief Commissioner of the Greater Sydney Commission as our keynote speaker, who will share his experiences with regards to city deals and his role as Chief Coordinator of the Western Sydney City Deal.
Geoff will be joined by an excellent panel of speakers including Greg Doyle – GM, Wollongong City Council, Debra Murphy – CEO, RDA Illawarra, Lindy Deitz – GM, Campbelltown City Council and our very own William Power – NSW Deputy Executive Director who will be moderating the panel. It is sure to be a very interesting and insightful discussion, so we would love to see you all there!
On the advocacy front, the Illawarra Committee has been busy taking part in several local council sessions and providing input to the Shellharbour City Council Draft Housing Strategy and the Wollongong City Council’s West Dapto Contributions Scheme. These strategies are vital to the future planning of our region – providing information and advice on behalf of the property industry to local councils to assist them in their planning is essential and we are actively involved in this process.
If you have any feedback on the above strategies or any other matters, as always please feel free to reach out to me at [email protected]
Draft Housing Strategy
Shellharbour City Council has released a Draft Housing Strategy which looks at the demand for housing in the local government area over the next 20 years and the need for greater housing diversity, more affordable housing and public housing in their local communities. Their main goal is to ensure that there continues to be a sufficient and appropriate supply of housing in the future.
This ongoing strategy includes providing an evidence-base for any potential housing related changes to the Shellharbour Local Environmental Plan 2013. The three main zones that they are focusing on as part of the strategy are Albion Park Rail, Oat Flats and Shellharbour Junction.
The Draft Shellharbour Housing Strategy is on public exhibition between Wednesday 10 July and Tuesday 6 August 2019 and is available on Council’s website, you can make a submission and share your feedback on their website here.
Local strategic planning statement (LSPS) consultation
Shellharbour Council has advised that they will be commencing consultation on their Local Strategic Planning Statement (LSPS) which is due for completion in 2020. The LSPS is a new strategic document which will guide the future of planning in local government areas and is linked to local council’s Community Strategic Plan.
The LSPS will identify and prioritise planning related matters such as housing, transport, education, employment, infrastructure, community services, as well as cultural and environmental needs.
The LSPS will also aim to unify state, regional and local planning priorities and identify actions to implement this work and the planning vision for the future of Shellharbour.
Potential outcomes that the LSPS will set out include:
- Twenty-year vision for land use in the local area.
- The special characteristics which contribute to local identity.
- Shared community values to be maintained and enhanced.
- How growth and change will be managed into the future.
Consultation on the LSPS will be ongoing as the document is developed. Shellharbour Council are currently undertaking the initial stage of consultation which seeks input into priorities and visions for planning over the next 20 years. Their website provides information, FAQ and even survey upon planning priorities from the public, more information can be found here.
Draft West Dapto Development Contributions Plan (2020):
In late June 2019, Council resolved to exhibit the Draft West Dapto Development Contributions Plan (2020) (the Draft 2020 Plan) to enable community comment.
The Draft 2020 Plan provides an important mechanism to levy development toward the cost of providing local infrastructure.
The key changes to the contribution scheme as part of this review include:
- Updating legislative references to reflect the amended Act.
- Updating infrastructure items to reflect the revised Structure Plan and West Dapto Vision Ordinary Meeting of Council 24 June 2019.
- Updating the cost of land and works based upon revised estimates, actual cost or indexation and indicative delivery timeframes
- Clarifying the development to which the Draft 2020 Plan, reference to both development applications and complying development certificates.
- Several other minor changes, including structural and formatting of the Draft 2020 Plan to improve readability and clarity, to better link schedules and maps.
- The apportionment of costs between residential and non-residential land has been based on an adjusted land area for non-residential development to reflect the varying levels of demand on infrastructure and a more equitable distribution of costs.
The West Dapto Development Contributions Plan is a key document for the Urban Release Area as it provides the mechanism to collect development contributions to fund the local infrastructure required to support new development in the future communities.
The plan will be updated to incorporate any relevant post exhibition amendments and submitted to IPART for review. The outcome of this review will be in the form of recommendations to the NSW Minister for Planning.
The Draft 2020 Plan is on exhibition from Saturday 29 June 2019 to Friday 2 August 2019. For more information please visit Wollongong Council’s website here.
New member – Herron Todd White
Herron Todd White have recently joined the Property Council as NSW Members and we spoke to Tim Stevens, Director NSW and ACT to find out a bit more about who they are, the services they provide and what they pride themselves on. Read more in the interview below.
Who are Herron Todd White and what are the services you provide?
Since 1968, Herron Todd White has been assisting their clients to make the most of their property assets. As specialists in independent valuation and Advisory services, our extensive experience, robust systems and absolute professionalism are second to none.
Our qualified and experienced people work in the property market every day and provide professional services for all classes of property from individual residences and major development projects, to commercial, rural and agribusiness properties and corporate and government portfolios.
By being able to draw on their depth of experience, knowledge and insight to interpret data from our national property database and up to the minute research, we can give you a real edge in your property decisions.
Where are your offices located and what do you specialise in?
We have offices in every capital city and most regional centres, and right across rural Australia. So, no matter where you are, there is a Herron Todd White office nearby.
Our valuation services are utilised for a variety of purposes, including:
- Mortgage security
- Pre-purchase and pre-sale
- Stamp duty, depreciation & accounting purposes
- Capital gains tax – current and retrospective market value
- Superannuation
- Sinking fund forecasts
- Portfolios
- Insurance (replacement value)
- Rental assessments
- Plant & Equipment
- Legal support
- Family Law & Litigation
- Compulsory acquisition
- Statutory land value advice and assessment
We also prepare a free monthly property report (available by email subscription) , the Month in Review which summarises the latest movements and trends for property markets across Australia.
What types of projects are you currently working on in the Illawarra?
Our projects cover a whole range of services and activities across the region and vary from private client property Valuation and Advisory, to Institutional Developer benchmarking advice to Planned and staged Estates, to working with Federal, State and Local Governments in servicing their Real Property requirements.
What are the key priorities for your organisation? What makes you different?
Our clients receive:
- An experienced property consultant that matches the task at hand.
- An office support network that can manage the process with the highest degree of professionalism and sensitivity.
- Comfort that matters of compliance have been addressed.
- Prompt and timely responses.
Our real point of differentiation is “We are where you are”. We have a national presence and local knowledge with our people “living, learning, working and playing” in their local communities. For our clients and our people, we believe this is one of the key drivers in our business.
What is the best thing about working at Herron Todd White?
Our national presence, market leadership and financial strength make Herron Todd White the employer of choice for many. We are able to provide the benefits offered by a large organisation, with the agility and personal touch of a small company.
We embrace, encourage and support a range of activities for our people to grow in their chosen vocation including both internal and external training programs. The collegiality across our teams and the connectivity with our local community is one of the best things about working at Herron Todd White.
The trust and connection that we build with our clients is an integral part of the culture of our firm and is so rewarding watching that continually grow and develop across Herron Todd White.
For more information about Herron Todd White, please visit their website here.