Victoria Planning System: How Does It Impact Your Project?

All of the local councils in Victoria have different local planning policies in place. If you are involved in a development project, you’ll need to be aware of what local policy is applicable to you as it will have an impact on your building. Fortunately, you don’t have to keep a constant eye on every single policy and procedure linked to planning but it will help to have an overview of town planning in Victoria.

Strategic Planning

The strategic arm of the Victoria planning system looks at what sort of a model is required to house, educate and care for the residents within the local area. Therefore, planners have to be aware of a number of elements that factor into this model such as:

• the best way to distribute the different land uses.
• the best way to meet the challenges of population growth and population density targets (both at government and local level) including social housing.
• the best way to protect the cultural and environment heritage of the land and buildings.
• the best way to ensure the health and well being of the population included retrofitting housing, having recreational areas, medical practices and educational premises.

To decide whether or not any of these factors are going to impact the project, you will need to speak to those who keep up to date with all of the strategic overview, i.e. reputable planning consultants.

Planning Overlays

Establishing if your project requires a planning application depends on whereabouts the property is established, the type of dwelling you want to build and the features of the land along with features of the surrounding areas. A number of areas are also subject to planning overlays and these are related to certain aspects on the land such as erosion, risk of bushfire and vegetation. The Victoria Land Data website will show if any planning overlays impact on your proposed property development.

There are several different planning overlays in Victoria but the main ones to consider would be:

• Environmental and landscape
• Land management
• Heritage and Built Form

Environmental and landscape overlays apply to land or locations that has significant amounts of vegetation that must be preserved and protected. If you own such land and are looking to redevelop your property or to build a new one, then you will need a permit that allows you to remove any such vegetation. A land management overlay relates to the site conditions of the property. This means any erosion of the land, or bushfire risk or risk of flooding. You will need to provide, in most cases, a report from a qualified specialist outlining recommendations for compliance with the planning requirements and this has to be submitted with your planning application. The Built Form and Heritage overlay concerns any heritage or preservation areas, any neighbourhood character values and design and future use of the property. If any overlay applies to the property or project you are looking to develop, it is highly likely that you will need to apply for a planning permit.

What to Do Next?

The most important thing is to speak to your local town planning services. They can assist with providing support and advice for your project. They can review the project from the outset to see if it meets the Councils requirements for the land and to check against the zoning laws to ensure your proposal is suitable.

They will also be able to guide and help in submitting the correct documentation, including ensuring all relevant plans are in place and up to date and any planning overlays have been taken into consideration. They can assist with document tracking and survey information as well as support you when dealing with VCAT decisions. They can read through your proposal and makes sure you have fully understood and aligned your project to the Council policies to give you an increased chance of success.

The Victoria planning system has a great impact on what you are planning but unless this is part and parcel of your daily business it can be hard to understand and see how this affects you – fortunately, this is where the professionals come in, so contact them today.