22.08.2019Planning and Building Approvals Process Review

Can Victoria’s planning and approval processes be streamlined to improve efficiency and reduce delays?  The Committee thinks so, and sees a direct link between these processes and housing pipelines and affordability.

The Victorian Red Tape Commissioner has been tasked by The Minister for Planning and The Treasurer to review processes around building and planning approvals in Greater Melbourne to find opportunities to improve the process to make it easier for municipalities and developers to reduce delays.

The Committee for Melbourne’s submission to the Review notes that delays can have a negative effect of housing pipelines, which may contribute to affordability issues. Our submission focusses on two main areas:

The possibility of Fast-Tracking affordable housing developments

Collaboration and governance arrangements to streamline the planning process

While not in the scope of the review, the Committee has also suggested that reviewing third-party appeal rights to further streamline planning processes is worthy of consideration.

We encourage you to read the full submission here

In the process of the review, the Committee deferred to our Metropolitan Collaboration Taskforce and Housing Mix Taskforce to provide key insights. Should you wish to be more involved in either taskforce or have comments on the submission please contact Leanne Edwards.