Draft Major Planning Scheme Amendment 7 - Business Improvement and Innovation
Council is proposing an amendment to the Central Highlands Regional Council Planning Scheme 2016 to support business improvement and innovation.
What are the changes included in the amendment?
Draft Major Planning Scheme Amendment No. 7 – Business Improvement and Innovation incorporates a broad suite of improvements to and in support of innovation in the areas of tourism, agriculture, emerging technologies, mapping, reduction of red tape to support new or expanding businesses, improving urban amenity, updating outdated references. The proposed amendment includes five main themes, being:
- Theme 1 – Promoting Tourism
- Theme 2 – Nurturing Agribusiness
- Theme 3 – Red tape reduction and improving clarity
- Theme 4 – Keeping our towns beautiful
- Theme 5 – Mapping and administrative changes
Public Consultation
Council completed public consultation for draft Major Planning Scheme Amendment No. 7 (Business Improvement and Innovation) from 10 February 2023 to 28 April 2023. The overall purpose of this formal public consultation was to engage with the Central Highlands community and other key stakeholders regarding the draft amendment and their opportunity to be informed and involved.
Information about the amendment and how to get involved was communicated via multiple mediums including newspapers, online notices and radio advertisements, social media posts, online information, this "Have Your Say" page, the eplan (an interactive electronic planning scheme platform), public information sessions and consultation events, personalised letters, emails to individuals who had registered their interest and multiple opportunities and ways to speak to a subject matter expert.
Council received 44 submissions regarding the amendment. Of the 44 submissions, 32 submissions (72%) were primarily in objection to the proposed tourism and ecotourism precincts.
The Public Consultation Report (Part 1) summarises the activities and outcomes of the public consultation.
How has council responded to community feedback?
In response to the submissions received during the public consultation period, various revisions have been made to the proposed amendment, including removing the proposed Tourism and Ecotourism precincts. The revised amendment continues to balance numerous different interests across the region including supporting both tourism and agriculture through a number of avenues.
The revised amendment package is compiled of the following documents available from this webpage.
- Appendix A – Public Consultation Report (Parts 1 and 2)
- Public Consultation Report (Part 1)
- Summarises the activities and outcomes of the public consultation
- Outlines the matters raised in submissions
- Public Consultation Report (Part 2)
- Summarises the matters raised in submissions about the proposed amendment
- Provides additional details and excerpts from submissions on key matters where necessary
- Explains how council has addressed the various matters raised in the submissions
- Public Consultation Report (Part 1)
- Appendix B – Post consultation changes to the proposed amendment (track-changed document and summary of changes)
- Appendix C: Track-changed version of the post-consultation proposed amendment
- Appendix D: “Clean” version of proposed amendment (consolidated version with changes from pre and post consultation versions)
- Appendix E: Full set of maps (final version including revised maps)
- Appendix F: Revised SPP Alignment and further statement addressing Schedule 2 of the Minister’s Guidelines and Rules (Determining if a proposed local planning instrument is significantly different).
On 13 December 2023, the revised amendment package was presented at the General Council Meeting and Central Highlands Regional Council resolved to:
- Endorse the Public Consultation Reports (Part 1 and 2) and in accordance with section 18.4 of the Minister’s Guidelines and Rules, authorise its publication on the Central Highlands Regional Council’s website and for a link to it to be provided together with a letter to submitters and affected landholders.
- Endorse the final draft of the proposed Major Planning Scheme Amendment No. 7 (Business Improvement and Innovation).
- Authorise council officers to, in accordance with section 21.1 of the Minister’s Guidelines and Rules, give notice to the Minister and request approval for to adopt the proposed amendment.
- Authorise the Chief Executive Officer, on the provision that the Minister does not apply any conditions, to undertake all steps identified in section 22 of the Minister’s Guidelines and Rules, to enable the adoption and commencement of the proposed amendment in a timely manner.
- Approve the repealing of Temporary Local Planning Instrument (TLPI) 02/2022 - Operational work involving vegetation clearing within the Carnarvon Gorge area at the time of the commencement of the planning scheme amendment.
2023 / 12 / 13 / 005 Carried (7-0)
A copy of the meeting minutes will become available from this location in the next week or you can view the livestream recording via Utube.
This PowerPoint was presented in the general council meeting and summarises what occurred during and post consultation.
What will happen next?
Council officers posted a personalised response to every person who made a submission on 15 December 2023. Landholders who were affected by a proposed change to a zone or introduction of a precinct will also receive a letter (via Australia Post) advising the outcome for their specific property. Keep an eye on your mailbox for these!
The revised amendment package was submitted to the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Planning on 18 December 2023.
Within 40 business days of receiving the proposed, the Minister must give council a notice stating—
- if the proposed amendment may be adopted; and
- the Minister’s conditions, if any, that apply to the proposed amendment; or
- if the proposed amendment may not be adopted, and the reasons why it may not be adopted.
How to view the amendment
You can view the amendment by reviewing the document library on this page.
If adopted, you will also be able to view the proposed amendment online in our eplan .
For enquiries, please contact council's Strategic Land Use team (details on the side of the page or bottom of the page on a mobile device).
Private appointments can be arranged by contacting council's Strategic Land Use team on 1300 242 686 or via an email to planningscheme@chrc.qld.gov.au.