2016-08-09 Planning & Environment Committee Agenda

PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                      9 AUGUST 2016


1.    Implications of decision
The decision enables a private building certifier to give a development permit for building work
made assessable under the Noosa Plan (for work which does not constitute a material change of
use – i.e. extensions to a dwelling house), without any statutory input or direction from Council
unless Council is identified by the SPA regulations as a concurrence agency. Further, pursuant to
the Building Act 1975 the building certifier is only required to assess the building work solely against
the building assessment provisions which include:
    Alternative provisions under section 33 for site cover and setbacks
    A prescribed aspect such as designation of a bushfire prone area and flood hazard area.
Notably, Council currently would only be a concurrence agency in respect to the alternative
provisions for site cover and setbacks.
Unfortunately, the building certifier is not required to assess the building works against any other
part of the planning scheme and so other matters considered by the community and Council as
important locally are ineffective and cannot be enforced. The decision has significant implications
on the ability of Council to protect public safety, biodiversity, amenity and character in the shire.
The only circumstance when the Council would be the assessment manager for a building works
is when an application is made instead to Council. However, this assessment would need to be
carried out by a building certifier employed or engaged by Council and Council’s building certifier
would be similarly limited to the building assessment provisions defined by the Building Act 1975.
The decision will affect the assessment of building works that the Noosa Plan seeks to regulate in
many areas including:
    Biodiversity Overlay – extensions/additions to houses where located in the Riparian Buffer
      Area, and/or interfering with vegetation in an identified Environmental Protection Area or
      Environmental Enhancement Area;
    Heritage Overlay – extensions/additions to houses where located on a heritage site or within
      a character area or demolishing/removing a building involving a heritage site or within a
      character area.
    Natural Hazards and Natural Resources Overlays – carrying out building work in a landslide
      hazard area, acid sulfate soils area where the works involve specific earthworks or where
      the works are within a coastal protection area.
    Matters previously sought to be regulated by the Building Works Code
Notably, the Noosa Plan provisions for works which constitute a material change of use continue
to apply and so apply to new dwelling houses or works which would constitute a material change
of use (i.e. addition of a third storey to an existing 2 storey dwelling).
2.    Legislative Options
This matter has been reviewed by Wakefield Sykes, Council’s Solicitor for planning matters, to
clarify the implications of the decision and review options for Council. In discussions with Mr Sykes
the following options have been considered:
Option 1 – Take No Action
Taking no action will mean building works made assessable by the planning scheme may be
decided by private building certifiers without regard to all matters identified in the Noosa Plan.
Option 2 – Amendment of Legislation
The remedy for this matter is for amendments to be undertaken to the Sustainable Planning
Regulation 2009 to require provision for concurrence agency assessment by the local government.
This would be the simplest approach and Council would be a co-respondent in the event of any
appeal in relation to an application.


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