Council receives over 700 submissions on draft planning scheme

More than 700 submissions were officially received during council’s draft regional planning scheme public consultation period.

Toowoomba Regional Council received a total of 704 submissions throughout the six-week consultation period, including 191 submissions that were made online.

The public consultation period for the draft scheme, which allowed the public to view the scheme and have their say, closed on Friday September 2.

The following is a breakdown of the most common issues identified from all of the submissions:

1. Zoning change request    188 submissions (27%)

2. Charlton Wellcamp          136 submissions (19%)

3. Heritage and Character     98 submissions (14%) (including 10 seeking removal of specific properties from the Heritage Overlay and 19 seeking removal of the Neighbourhood Character Overlay from properties within Millmerran)

4. Mining                               88 submissions (12%)

5. Future rail line                   24 submissions (3%)

These five categories account for 534 (76%) of all submissions.

The other 170 submissions are spread over 57 other categories with no other category having over 10 submissions (32 categories have only 1 submission).

The planning scheme website recorded 9610 hits (average of 228 hits per day) over the same period.

Other facts and figures:

• 70,000 general letters sent to all ratepayers (including non-resident ratepayers)
• 1500 letters sent to residents living in heritage and neighbourhood character areas
• 78 letters sent to residents living in the Charlton Wellcamp buffer zone
• 160 letters sent to residents living in a Hospital Precinct
• During the six-week period, there were 143 formal appointments, attended by some 160 people. However as there were large numbers of walk-in appointments it is estimated the official number of appointments was in excess of 300.
• 183 residents attended open house sessions held in Pittsworth, Millmerran, Oakey, Kingsthorpe, Goombungee, Clifton, Cecil Plains, Highfields, Cambooya, Crows Nest and Yarraman.
• 293 residents attended information meetings held in Pittsworth, Oakey, Highfields and Toowoomba.
• A rotating team of 29 planning staff attended each information meeting and open house and all up council staff travelled 1400km.

Planning and Development Services portfolio leader Cr Peter Marks thanked all those who took the time to prepare a submission on the draft planning scheme.

‘I am sincerely thankful for those who took time out of their busy lives to prepare their submissions,’ he said.

‘It’s not only time but money that is required to make a thorough submission and I am truly grateful we have received so many submissions - it shows how much our community cares.’

Council will now review each submission and highlight all the issues raised. Recommendations are then made to address each particular issue.

Council then considers each issue separately and makes a decision on what the final outcome will be.

Council must give the Minister for Local Government and Planning written notice containing a summary of matters raised in properly made submissions and stating how council dealt with the matters.

After considering the submissions council may make changes to the proposed planning scheme to address issues raised in a properly made submission.

Caption: Principal Planner Heath Martin and Councillor Anne Glasheen talking to a resident about the draft regional planning scheme in Clifton during the public consultation period.