Council improves DA processing but still Sydney’s slowest
Image: Leichhardt Council says the area's complicated heritage restrictions contribute to slow DA processing.
Leichhardt Council has responded to being named Sydney’s slowest, saying it has reduced Development Application processing times by 70 days over the past six years.
The 2010-11 Local Government Performance report, released by the planning minister Brad Hazzard, found Leichhardt Council took an average of 115 days to process DAs, behind only Boorowa and Tweed Shire local governments. Mosman Council followed just behind, averaging 114 days.
Leichhardt has a history of long wait times for DA approval, but not because it has an overwhelming number to process. Leichhardt did not place in the top 10 LGAs based on number of DAs approved in 2010-11, although several councils ranked among Sydney’s fastest did, such as Warringah and the City of Sydney.
The Mayor of Leichhardt, Rochelle Porteous, said she presided over one of the most complicated development environments in Australia.
“As the fourth most intensely developed LGA in Australia with some of the smallest lots and highest land values in Sydney, achieving quality outcomes takes time,” she said.
The approval process is further hindered by the fact that 70 per cent of the LGA falls in to a Heritage Conservation Zone, which is difficult to reconcile with the proportion of high-density development in Leichhardt.
But Leichhardt Labor Councillor Darcy Byrne blames The Greens.
“I’m sure the Council will give a range of excuses for this disappointing result but the buck does stop with the Mayor,” he said. “The fact that Leichhardt is the slowest in the State is symptomatic of this Council’s inability to get anything done.”
“The Greens Party-controlled Council has dropped the ball.”
Meanwhile, the Greens state upper house member David Shoebridge used the report to blame state government intervention for slow processing times.
“These figures show that it is the State government, not local councils, that is dragging the chain onplanning approvals,” he said. During the period covered in this report, the previous government’s controversial Part 3A law was still in place, giving the state planning minister the responsibility to approve major projects.
The O’Farrell government rolled back Part 3A but Mr Shoebridge insists there is more to do.
“The take home message from these figures is that a centralised planning system doesn’t deliver,” he said. “The test for real planning reform for the O’Farrell government will be if it re-empowers local communities so they can make decisions about their own backyards.”
The report also highlights the continued decline in development application approvals across NSW. While the report notes: “The effects of the global financial crisis continue to be felt”, the data indicates a steady decline in development activity since 2003-04. In that year, 131,532 DAs were approved statewide, which has fallen to 66,109 in fiscal year 2010-11.
Leichhardt Council believes it has further reduced DA processing times in the latter half of 2011, which will be reflected in next year’s report. It says the average during that period was only 84 days. Despite continuing to improve its process, the Mayor said Council would not prioritise swiftness alone.
“Too much focus on complying with timeframes could come at the cost of quality outcomes for both applicants and objectors,” Cr Porteous said.
