Page 670 - Week 02 - Thursday, 17 February 2005

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Development—dual occupancies
(Question No 64)

Mr Seselja asked the Minister for Planning, upon notice, on 9 December 2004:

(1) How is it that a fourth house out of five in Cox Street, Block 17, Section 22, Ainslie is about to undergo dual occupancy development when you made a commitment to reduce the number of dual occupancies approved.

(2) Is this a high number of homes in one area to be approved for dual occupancy development;

(3) How are you ensuring that (a) neighbourhood amenity is not impacted in light of these developments and (b) the heritage precinct of the area for example around Wakefield Gardens / Corroboree Park is being preserved.

Mr Corbell: The answer to the member’s question is as follows:

(1) In response to a Government election commitment Draft Variation (DV) 192, released in December 2001 put a limit of 5% on the number of dual occupancies in any one section as an interim measure whilst a more comprehensive policy framework was developed. The more comprehensive policy was delivered by way of DV 200 that was gazetted in August 2003. DV 200 was introduced as a further response to the Government’s commitment to put in place policies to protect the unique character of Canberra’s suburbs and to better manage the process of residential development and change. It establishes the concept of Suburban Areas where dual occupancy development is much more tightly controlled than in the Residential Core areas that are principally around commercial centres. The controls in Suburban Areas include restrictions on consolidation or subdivision, including the unit title of blocks, and stricter height and plot ratio controls. Section 22 Ainslie is located within a Suburban Area. The development application for Block 17 Section 22 Ainslie was submitted on 13 February 2004 and complied with the new policies.

(2) The Government’s policy has significantly reduced the number of dual occupancy approvals from ten (10) in 2000/01 to one (1) in 2004/05 to date in Ainslie. DV 200 established a strategic framework for managing residential redevelopment focusing on the opportunities for providing more housing close to shopping centres. The policy provides greater opportunity for redevelopment within the Residential Core Areas (A10), however it does not prohibit dual occupancy development in those areas provided the more stringent controls of the Territory Plan are satisfied. These controls ensure that redevelopment is sympathetic to and protects the residential amenity of surrounding areas.

(3) (a) All dual occupancy Developments Applications in Residential Areas are assessed against the requirements of Residential Land Use Policy and Appendix III.2, Design and Siting Code for Multi-Dwelling Developments of the Territory Plan. Proposals must also meet the requirements of the pre-lodgement validation process including a Design Response Report that outlines how the proposed development relates to the existing streetscape and neighbourhood character. Each proposal is considered on its merits and against the site specific considerations as part of a performance based assessment;

(b) DAs for redevelopment on blocks listed under the Heritage Places Register or Interim Heritage Places Register are assessed against a specific Heritage Citation for the area,


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