Background
Today the new Territory Plan (Plan) was released by the ACT Government, following public consultation on the earlier draft Territory Plan. The new Plan is not yet effective and will commence ‘on a day fixed by the Minister by written notice.’ The Government has said it is likely that the Plan will commence on 27 November 2023, which is when the Plan is expected to have passed through the Legislative Assembly Planning, Transport and City Services Committee (Committee) and be approved by the Legislative Assembly.
Next steps
Inquiry process
The Minister for Planning and Land Management must now provide the Plan to the Committee. The Committee will then make a decision on whether or not to hold an inquiry into the Plan. In this regard much will depend on the Chair of the Committee, Ms Jo Clay MLA, who is a member of the ACT Greens.
If an Inquiry is held, then the Committee will need to provide a report to the ACT Government within six months of the start of the Inquiry.
Interim Plan
After the Plan is provided to the Committee, the Legislative Assembly must then decide whether Plan will have interim effect. An interim Territory Plan means that, from the commencement day, the Plan is treated as in force and development applications need to comply with it.
After Inquiry Process
At the end of the Inquiry process, the interim Plan may be updated in response to any recommendations made by the Committee. The Legislative Assembly may decide to approve an amended version of the Plan, or agree to no changes being made to the Plan.
Once the Plan is approved by the Assembly following the Inquiry process, it is no longer an ‘interim Plan’ and is the finalised Territory Plan.
What you need to know
We will be providing a commentary on the new Territory Plan in the coming weeks which will go into more depth about the Plan and how it changes the old Plan.
If the Government has its way on the timing of the Plan coming into effect, Development Applications submitted before 27 November 2023 will be submitted through the outgoing system and assessed under that system. Proponents will not need to resubmit their application or redesign for it to meet the requirements of the interim Plan. Applications submitted on or after 27 November 2023 (subject to final determination) will be assessed under the new Plan.
Some Key changes
Some of the key changes include that:
- Residential blocks in RZ1 zones over 800m2 will be able to accommodate dual-occupancy developments with separate titles. Criteria apply, including that one dwelling must be 120m2 or less
- New supporting material such as design guides and planning technical specifications have been introduced; and
- Various policy changes have been introduced, relating to definitions, uses permitted in zones, and planning requirements.