I received notification this week that “Hawkesbury City Council is exhibiting a planning proposal (LEP003/15) affecting certain land within the Hawkesbury Local Government Area.

The proposed amendments are generally procedural (housekeeping) as it relates to matters such as updating general wording and referencing; amending the LEP due to provisions of State Planning Policies; changes to minimum lot size provisions; site specific rezoning and land classifications; and correcting some minor drafting and mapping errors.

The proposed amendments also include the addition of certain land uses as permissible development in the RU1 Primary Production, RU2 Rural Landscape, RU4 Primary Production Small Lots, RU5 Village, R1 General Residential, R2 Low Density Residential, R3 Medium Density Residential, R5 Large Lot Residential and E3 Environmental Management & E4 Environmental Living zones.

Land Affected: Certain land within the Hawkesbury local government area as detailed in the Planning Proposal.

The Draft General Amendments to the Hawkesbury Local Environmental Plan 2012 (LEP003/15) is on exhibition between Friday 24 April 2020 to Friday 22 May 2020 inclusive.

A copy of the Draft General Amendments to the Hawkesbury LEP 2012 (LEP003/15) and supporting information can be viewed on Council’s website at “Your Hawkesbury Your Say”

The last day for the receipt of submissions is Friday 22 May 2020.”

This is part of several Local Council’s obligation to prepare changes to their Local Environment Plan so that they can work in with NSW Planning under the new guidelines.

One of the documents Hawkesbury City Council made reference to within these proposed amendments is the Hawkesbury Community Strategic Plan.

As I’ve shared previously, Planning NSW announced a new approach to precinct planning which places more involvement and responsibility in the hands of local councils and communities.

“Within the new approach are four pathways, as well as planning for the Aerotropolis, to progress the 51 existing precincts in Greater Sydney. The Department will support each council individually throughout the transition of each precinct into one of the four pathways.

State-led strategic planning
Collaborative planning between the State and councils
State-led zoning
Council-led zoning

As part of this new approach, local councils will be empowered to plan for their local areas because they know their people and communities best. The Department will continue to support and collaborate with each council to deliver great places while remaining focused on strategic issues and getting a coordinated approach from State agencies.”

I don’t believe that the Hawkesbury City Council have fully anticipated the population growth that will occur in and around Sydney over the next decade and the exponential growth that will occur around the fringes of the North West Growth Centre.

The groundswell of Sydney’s future expansion is on a collision course with The Hawkesbury district and it will be interesting to see how long Hawkesbury City Councils latest amendments are going to apply, especially when considering the anticipated increase in population growth of Sydney of an extra 1.5 million people from the current 5 million approx. to nearing 6.5 million by 2030.

When compared to neighbouring councils like The Hills Council, Penrith City Council and Blacktown City Council which have very deep pockets and much larger planning departments, the Hawkesbury City Council with their current financial position and conservatism will most likely put them in a position where they find the next decade very difficult for the council in its current form.

I anticipate that NSW Planning may actually step in and make some state-based decisions that are going to be beyond their control.

It will be very interesting to see how this all plays out, but one things for sure after tuning into last week’s online Council Meeting, there seemed to be way too much time spent patting themselves on the back for my liking, but then again what could one expect, it is a Council election year after all.

If you’d like to check out the proposed amendments and have your say, visit the link here

Regards

Greg Vincent