Comment wanted on planning notice changes

Proposed changes to the way the public is notified of development applications on the Peninsula will go on exhibition following their endorsement by the Administrator of the Central Coast Council.

The latest proposals to amend Chapter 7.3 of the Gosford Development Control Plan 2013 are part of the Council's ongoing process to harmonise the development controls of the former Gosford Council with those of the former Wyong Council.

Council's administrator Mr Ian Reynolds endorsed the exhibition of a draft amended Chapter 7.3 at the ordinary meeting held in Wyong on Wednesday, April 26.

The public exhibition period will be 28 days.

Key changes include a proposal to allow a development that achieves compliance with key planning controls to be "streamlined and allowed to progress to determination without the need for public exhibition on the basis that the application has satisfied the objectives of the DCP", according to a report to Mr Reynolds from Council's Environment and Planning Department.

The amendment also "recognises that for significant and sensitive development proposals the public should be given additional time to provide submissions".

"These proposals will now be notified for 21 days where previously in most cases they were placed on notification for 14 days.

"For minor, small scale development types like single storey dwelling houses (including ancillary developments such as granny flats) which comply with building height and setback requirements, adjoining owners will not need to be notified and the DA won't need to be advertised in a newspaper.

"For larger and more sensitive development proposals such as boarding houses or significant mixed-use developments the exhibition period will be for 21 days," the report to Mr Reynolds said.

According to a table that compared the former Wyong and Gosford DCPs in relation to public notification of DAs, the new provisions strengthen those of the former Gosford Council in some areas.

For example, the notification period for a DA to build a boarding house was not specified in the existing Gosford DCP but the proposed amendments will specify that such a DA would require a newspaper notice, notice to adjoining owners and a 21-day submission period.

The Gosford DCP also did not specify notification requirements for group home DAs but the proposed amendments would require a newspaper notice, notification of adjoining owners and a 14-day submission period.

In the instance of the change of use for a property in industrial or business zones the proposed changes would require adjoining owners to be given notice which was not the case under the existing Gosford DCP.

The submission period for a child care centre DA would increase from 14 to 21 days under the proposed amendments, likewise crematoriums and cemeteries, drug rehabilitation facilities, educational establishments outside business, industrial or special use zones; land subdivisions for 10 or more lots; places of public worship outside business, industrial or special use zones; private waterfront developments; shop top housing; and pubs.

Setback variations for single-storey developments would, under the proposed amendments, need to be notified to neighbours with a 14-day submission period which was not previously required by Gosford Council.

Any other variations would be notified at the discretion of Council, according to the document.

In other areas, the existing Gosford DCP would be lessened by the proposed amendments.

For instance, the existing Gosford DCP required neighbours to be notified and given a 14 day submission period for DAs for dwelling houses of two or more storeys whether setback requirements are complied with and building height doesn't exceed 8.5 metres.

Under the proposed changes, neighbours would not need to be notified of complying two-storey developments.

Under the existing DCP, DAs for secondary dwellings where setbacks and building height requirements are complied with had to be notified to neighbours who were given a 14-day submission period.

The proposed changes would remove this requirement so granny flats, for instance, could be built without notification to neighbours.

"The amended Notification Chapter also addressed issues raised by residents and applicants in the past including: how Council will notify modified applications and application reviews; how Council will notify DAs that fall outside of the DCP such as Designated, Integrated and Complying Development; and clear guidance on the extent, type and form that notification will take."

"In accordance with the NSW Department of Planning and Environment issued Guidance for merged councils on planning functions (May 2016), Council has undertaken an analysis of the planning policies of the former Wyong Council and Gosford Council, with a review to removing inconsistencies and identifying opportunities to harmonise controls," the report said.

SOURCE:

Central Coast Council Agenda 2.6, 26 Apr 2017