New Planning System for NSW White Paper - Until 30 June 2013

The White paper

Some Implications for Redfern - Waterloo

The main change for most residents in the New Planning System is that it aims to remove the ability for people to comment on around 80% of all DAs. In its place it proposes a combination of Community Engagement in upfront Strategic Planning setting planning controls and a wider range of set planning codes which if followed will exempt a development from exhibition of their DA. Both these reforms pose big questions for local communities. Normally people don't have a great interest in planning until a new development goes up near them and then they want a say. There is a lot of work to be done so that people become involved long before their is a proposed development if people are going to accept the system and the resultant developments in their area.

One of the other issues for Redfern Waterloo is that our location next to the CBD on one of the main transport corridors means there is a lot regional plans potentially impacts on what happens in our neighbourhood. You get an idea of what that means by looking at what is proposed for our area in the Draft Metro Strategy Exhibition - until 28 June 2013. 

Decisions about our local area are proposed to be made in City wide documents like the Metro Strategy for Sydney and in Subregional Development plans which in our case cover 17 councils reaching from Hunters Hill and Mosman to Botany and from Ashfield to Woollahra. 

This also has implications for community groups like REDWatch. You can see a presentation Geoff Turnbull did recently to a forum at Sydney University about this in REDWatch on the New Planning System Challenges

Useful Overviews

The articles below provide an overview of some of the issues raised by the White Paper:

• Clover Moore's Planning White Paper in Plain English from clovermoore.com.au
  
• Geoff Turnbull's Planning – a new approach? and Growth targets inner city in South Sydney Herald

Better Planning Network Comments

REDWatch is a member of the Better Planning Network (BPN). You can see their comments on the White Paper and their initial media statements at Better Planning Network Comments on New Planning System

BPN ran a forum at Parliament House and below you can find links to the presentations and the panel discussion on YouTube:

•   22:09 Better Planning Network Forum - Marcus Ray presentation on White Paperby BetterPlanning
•   45:01 Better Planning Network Forum - John Mant presentation on White Paperby BetterPlanning
•   36:25 Better Planning Network Forum - Wendy Sarkissian on community engagement in planning by BetterPlanning
•   29:56 Better Planning Network Forum - Panel Discussion on the NSW White Paperby BetterPlanning

BPN are also produceing some fact sheets on key issues. As the are avaailable from BPN or other organisations they will be added below:

• BPN Factsheet on Ecologically Sustainable Development, Sustainable Development and the NSW Planning Reforms.

Issues Guides from Other Concerned Organisations

A number of organisations have produced submission guides and online information resources (including video's of presentations). You can see some of these below:

• The Environmental Defenders Office
  
• The Nature Conservation Council
  
• The Better Planning Network. 

The Draft Metropolitan Strategy for Sydney to 2031

The Strategic Planning Framework in Chapter 5 of the White Paper makes reference to the Metropolitian Strategy being the Regional Growth Plan for Sydney under the New Planning System. The major problem however is that the Draft Metro Strategy is currently being exhibited prior to the new planning system being in place. Under the new system there is supposed to be a legislated Community Participation Charter, and the "community is involved in the setting of the priorities and targets for the growth  for the region, including planning for major infrastructure". The Draft Metro Strategy is being exhibited before this new community participation in strategic planning has been put in place.

It is important then in commenting on the White paper that you understand what the Draft Metropolitan Strategy for Sydney is currently being put together without the guarantees of the New Planning System for NSW and that it will set in concrete broad requirements for the Planning System without the promised upfront Community Engagement. We strongly suggest that any comments you make regarding Strategic Planning and Community Engagement reference this problem and that your comments on this are also submitted to the team co-ordinating the Metropolitan Strategy Consultation scheduled to end on 31 May 2013. For more information on this problem and the Draft Strategy see our overview on the Metro Strategy at Draft Metro Strategy Exhibition - until 28 June 2013.

REDWatch Online Petition

REDWatch has launced an online petition / submission to allow people to easily protest the ongoing exhibition of the Metro Strategy and to ask for it to be re-exhibited under the New Planning System. You can sign this petition at Please Exhibit Metro Strategy for Sydney under the New Planning System!.

White Paper Documents

The Department of Planning has a set up a website for the White paper under A New Planning System for NSW. The Department have placed the White Paper and draft Legislation on Exhibition simultaneously. There have been a number of reports that there are significant differences between the White Paper and the Draft Legislation so to be on the safe side do not assume that what the White Paper says is reflected in the Legislation.

As the Department Website does not provide details on the different sections of the report we have provided the links below with the comments.

• White Paper - A New Planning System for NSW - Executive Summary (45.6MB)
• White Paper - Introduction and Chapter 1 (3.7MB)
• White Paper - Chapter 2 - The New Planning System (1.5MB) 
• White Paper - Chapter 3 - Delivery Culture (3.1MB)
• White Paper - Chapter 4 - Community Participation (5.0MB)
• White Paper - Chapter 5 - Strategic Planning Framework (4.5MB) (Please also see not below about Draft Metro Strategy)
  
• White Paper - Chapter 6 - Development Assessment (1.9MB)
• White Paper - Chapter 7 - Provision of Infrastructure (7.0MB)
• White Paper - Chapter 8 - Building Regulation and Certification (3.3MB)
• White Paper - Appendices & Glossary & Index (151KB)

Two Exposure Bills to implement the legislative framework for the new planning system are proposed:

• Exposure Planning Bill 2013 (902KB) establishes the key provisions for the new system (Exposure Planning Bill 2013 Summary (223KB))
  
• Exposure Planning Administration Bill 2013 (342KB) provides for the establishment of planning bodies and other procedural matters (Exposure Planning Administration Bill 2013 Summary (87KB))

There are a range of other guides, Q&A sheets and Other Language information sheets that can be found on the website for A New Planning System for NSW.

Find Out More About the Proposed Planning System through Info Sessions

A number of community meetings are being arranged that will provide opportunities for the community to find out more about the New Planning System and how the Government expects residents to be involved up front in Strategic Planning in return for losing the right to comment on up to 80% of DAs that go up in their area.

• The Department of Planning and Infrastructure is presenting a small number of free Metropolitan and Regional Discussion Sessions on the White Paper – A new planning system for NSW. For our area this is  at the ATP on Wednesday 15 May 2013. The session for the general public is from  06:00 PM - 07:30 PM. You can register at http://events.planning.nsw.gov.au/Public/SelectEvent.aspx. It is expected this session will fill up quickly.
• City of Sydney LGA Resident Groups briefing on White Paper – Wednesday 1^st May from 6pm – 8pm at Sydney Town Hall (Treasury South Room) – check if there is space with Irene Doutney idoutney@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au
• Better Planning Network – NSW Parliament Theatrette Macquarie St, Sydney Monday 20^th May 2013 10am – 3pm - check if there is still space with bpnforum@hotmail.com
• Chippendale – Focus on implications for Mixed Zones like Chippendale - Monday, 13 May at 7pm at the Pine Street Centre
• REDWatch and ARAG have been discussing putting on a session for our area. We will advise when details are known. If you can help organise, leaflet for this then pleased let us know as we need all the help we can get.

Updated by REDWatch - 17 June 2013