The Local Government Association of South Australia (LGA) has stated renewed concerns about the significant planning reforms that are currently being debated in the State’s upper house.
The LGA President Mayor Dave Burgess said that recent discussions have been productive, but the association would be pushing for further changes.
“The LGA is pleased that many changes have already been made to the Bill and we have received five further packages of draft amendments that go some way to addressing concerns about consultation and accountability,” Mayor Burgess said.
However, the LGA has stated specific concerns over the fact the Bill does not provide a role for appropriately skilled and knowledgeable elected members on Development Assessment Panels (DAPs).
The Centre for Housing and Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Adelaide was recruited by the LGA to provide objective advice on the issue.
The resulting report, authored by Professor Andrew Beer, suggested that removing elected members entirely would result in a “democratic deficit”.
Currently, no Australian state excludes local governments from the development assessment process entirely, with both NSW and WA including elected members of local government in their regional development assessment panels.
The LGA raised its concerns in a statement: “The Government’s position that development assessments be undertaken by fully independent, professional assessors would inevitably result in higher charges.
“These additional costs would be passed onto those looking to undertake developments, and ultimately add to the price of land, housing and commercial properties.”
