Stage 4: Town Planning
With the design locked in, it is likely time to apply for Planning Permission.
Of course, this is dependent on the location of your property, its size, what is proposed and whether your property sits within an overlay.
If you are lucky you may avoid the need to obtain planning approval or perhaps obtain this through a fast-track process. But for most clients this will be a required step in the process. Your Architect will help you to understand if this will be needed for your home.
So what’s involved?....the short answer is quite a bit.
+ Even before you reach the Planning stage of the project your architect would have been busy behind the scenes initiating contact with the Council to understand any regulations or restrictions relevant to your property, along with any unusual requirements for your proposed submission.
+ Once the design is nearing completion, your architect will arrange for a pre-application meeting with Council to review the proposal in detail. This provides opportunity to amend any issues identified by Council as contentious prior to submitting your application.
+ During the Town Planning phase your architect will assemble drawings into the format required by Council, with all notes and calculations relevant to your site as required for Rescode. This may include sun path diagrams to show over shadowing of neighbouring properties, or additional sections through the building to show a particular condition.
+ The architect is also usually required to submit a written report to accompany the drawings that outlines the existing and proposed conditions and how the proposal addresses planning regulations relevant to the site.
+ Depending on your property specialist consultants’ reports may also be required for submission for planning. Examples of some of these include arborists reports where listed or significant trees are located on or near to your property. Reports from water authorities where land inundation is problematic. Bushfire management plans where your property is located within a bushfire overlay. Or specialist heritage reports where your property is a listed building or near to a listed building.
+ Following your approval of the finalised documentation the architect will usually submit the proposal with your council on your behalf and arrange with you for any council fees to be paid.
+ Council undertake an initial review and if all required items are provided will initiate advertising. This usually involves erection of a sign on the front of property to inform your neighbours of your proposal. It may also include letters sent to your neighbours from the Council.
+ During the advertising period your neighbours may lodge an objection to your proposal. If this occurs the Council will usually inform you of the nature of the objection and provide opportunity to amend drawings if you wish to alleviate their concerns.
+ The Council will then undertake their own review of the proposal. This can take several months and can often be prolongated where many objections are lodged or if the Council is unusually busy.
If Planning Permission is granted it will be time to move forward into Contract Documentation Phase.
….what’s involved during Contract Documentation? find out in our next blog.
