PLANNING OR POLITICS THAT IS THE QUESTION

Liberals move to take politics out of planning in Tasmania

By Matt Maloney Updated July 18 2023 - 7:30am, first published 5:00am


Proposed new laws from the Liberals will give developers a choice over planning assessment.

Developers will be able to choose whether a council or an independent panel makes a decision on a particular project through proposed government legislation intended to the introduced to parliament next year.

Just two days after the government announced it would not pursue any forced council amalgamations as part of the state's local government reform agenda, Mr Rockliff announced the proposed legislation which could wrest some planning decisions away from councils.

He said the move would take the politics out of deliberation over certain development decisions and would assist in the delivery of 10,000 new affordable homes by 2030.

READ MORE: 'No forced amalgamations': Government puts issue to bed

"We will take the politics out of planning by ensuring that decisions are driven by the rules and not the vested interests or personal biases of individual councillors," he said.

"There are too many examples where critical land, housing or other projects are being stopped or delayed by ideologically motivated, party-aligned councillors and this is not good for Tasmania."

He said the legislation would not change the state's planning

"Councils will still undertake assessments and the community will still have their say, as they always have," Mr Rockliff said.

"This is simply about providing a second decision-making option."

Under the proposal, proponents would choose whether a council or a panel makes the final decision on their project.

Councils would have the option to refer a planning proposal to a panel or a planning decision to the Tasmanian Planning Commission.

Panels will be determined by the Tasmanian Planning Commission.

Mr Rockliff said the type and scale of projects eligible for the new process would be determined as legislation was development, but were expected to include housing, social housing and large-scale developments.

"A value floor will also be implemented for non-prescribed projects, including projects valued over $10 million in urban centres and over $5 million in rural areas," he said.

Draft legislation will be out for consultation later this year.

COMMENT: Remove the politics, well chance would be a fine thing. Who will it be who appoints' these "independent panels"? Upon whose expertise will these panels be relying upon? In whose best interest is the prescribed "value floor" there for? 

On one hand there is a glimmer of hope in the rhetoric but on the other once you start to drill down all you can see is 'THE BLOODY POLITICS'! 

Planning is all about PLACEMAKING and as much as that is about the creation of, and the protection os 'amenity' it also becomes 'political' when you take into account what a 'DEVELOPER' might think about amenity and the cost effectiveness involved in 'planning' for it. 

What a community seeks in the cultural landscapes, the cities, the towns, the precincts, etc. will always be at odds with what 'investment developers' seek ... PROFITS AT ALL COSTS.

It is early days and as they say in the bush 'WATCHB THIS SPACE'!

Launceston council not opposed to amalgamations but not without adjustments .... By Joe Colbrook Updated July 18 2023 - 8:03am, first published 4:30am City of Launceston councillors are not opposed to amalgamations, but there were some reservations. 

 While several regional councils got vocal on the prospect of amalgamation, City of Launceston councillors have taken a more moderate approach. ........... All councillors present at the July 13 meeting voted to approve the council's submission to the third stage of the review, which found all potential scenarios acceptable - with several provisos. ........... This continued with the recent Tasmanian Government announcement that amalgamations will be voluntary, with mayor Matthew Garwood claiming the City of Launceston was open to discussions with neighbouring councils about the future of local government in the region. ........... The current City of Launceston council area falls within the Tamar Valley community catchment outlined by the Local Government Board, who also offered four potential scenarios for local governments. ........... READ MORE: 'No forced amalgamations': Government puts issue to bed ........... In their feedback for each scenario, councillors and council officers stressed any reforms must prioritise "place-based local community representation". ........... Speaking at the meeting councillor Danny Gibson said the focus had to be on long-term goals, and called for neighbouring councils to have a full conversation about the prospect of merging. ........... "The objective of the review is to create a more robust and capable system of local government for the benefit of all Tasmanians," Cr Gibson said. ........... READ MORE: Getting to know Matthew Garwood, Launceston's new mayor ........... "We saw recently some local government council areas are putting their rates up 10 per cent. That is not going to be sustainable and reflect well on local governments into the future. ........... "Here is an opportunity for us to have a conversation. You can get hung up on the drawing of the map, or you can actually conceptualise the future of local government into the future long after we finish our roles." ........... Strengths identified in the scenarios included opportunities to better manage the kanamaluka/River Tamar estuary, better connection of metropolitan areas, and the potential to equalise funding levels in the region. ........... Downsides included a loss of representation in a larger municipality, and concerns some individual suburbs may not have their needs met by the new council. ........... READ MORE: 'No substance' to rumours of giving up health role, says Premier ........... Councillor Tim Walker was reserved in his support and said although the scenarios made sense from several standpoints, drawing new municipal boundaries would not necessarily solve existing issues. "No matter where the lines are put, (it will) create the same problems that already exist today that we're talking about trying to solve," Cr Walker said. ........... "We will just move that demarcation point further abroad. There are things that are still not addressed as much as we might like to think that we can address them." ........... Other councillors, like Alan Harris and Andrea Dawkins raised the prospect of service sharing and improved workforce resources but Cr Harris noted the support stopped shy of fully-centralising council services. ........... Mayor Matthew Garwood said conversations around the future of local government needed to be "rational and considered" as the community navigated a complex review process. ........... The mayor said the focus needed to be on ensuring local government in the state remained "representative, effective and fit for purpose" rather than simply drawing lines on a map. ........... "There are clearly opportunities for greater regional strategic planning and development, but also challenges in ensuring local voices are not lost," Cr Garwood said. ........... "The City of Launceston remains open to discussions around how it can continue to work with our neighbouring councils, the valued relationships we have and - as always - any way in which we can resource share or the like, for the betterment of our communities."