‘Taking the piss’: Calls to get tough with slack councils

Some councils are taking more than a year to assess development applications, which is why some industry experts think its time harsher penalties need to be brought in.

• Thousands of DAs in limbo

Councils that drag their feet on approving new housing developments need harsher penalties, say industry experts.

With many councils taking more than a year to assess development applications (DAs), and with many still being rejected that are later approved by the courts, the Minns government is under pressure to punish NIMBY councils.

Urban Taskforce chief executive Tom Forrest said the government needed to get more serious about penalising intransigent councils.

“(Councils) need to have that stick hanging over their head – it’s almost like they’re taking the piss – on the one hand they’re taking the government to court while on the other hand they’ll come up with what seems like a sham proposal just to kick the can down the road,” he said.

“The government has not talked about a stick, it’s talked about carrots and offering rewards but some councils in the eastern suburbs and Willoughby council and Ku-ring-gai council are still manifestly opposed to housing supply targets.

“Those that are doing the right thing need to be acknowledged and rewarded and those that do not need to have powers taken away from them.”

Planning Minister Paul Scully said he already had a number of poor-performing councils on a “watchlist”.

“I’m getting fed up with some councils who just don’t seem to get it,” he said.

“New councillors have been on notice since their election in October that they had to improve performance – We already have a number of councils on our watchlist because they don’t appear to be getting any better.”

Paul Scully already has a ‘watchlist’. Picture: NewsWire / Nikki Short

Mr Scully said councils on the watchlist who don’t improve could be issued with Performance Improvement Orders to make sure they meet their targets.

Urban Development Institute of Australia chief executive Stuart Ayres said while some councils needed to improve, the state government needed to ensure that DAs that had been approved would be issued with a construction certificate.

“A lot of the housing that is held up is not waiting for a DA, it’s waiting for a construction certificate,” he said.

“This is because a state government agency has not delivered a piece of infrastructure like sewage connections to allow the dwelling to be built.

“If you can’t flick a light switch on or go to the toilet you can’t build a home.”

11 major issues blocking housing supply

1. Slow development application assessments: Slow councils are taking more than a year to approve development applications, with wait times blowing out for both lodgement and assessment days.

2. Too many councils happy to go to court: Some councils will often reject DAs, knowing they will later be taken to the Land and Environment Court, where the rejection will be overturned. This way councils are not required to make hard decisions about developments instead leaving it up to the courts at considerable expense on time and the taxpayer.

3. NIMBY councils not wanting new development: Sometimes councillors beholden to local groups who wish to limit higher density in their areas, will actively fight against new developments, resulting in more rejections.

4. Development feasibility: At a time of high inflation, many developers say it costs more to build new apartments than the price they can sell it for, which results in some developers choosing not to build due to a lack of feasibility.

5. Lack of skilled labour: NSW is experiencing a shortage of skilled builders to produce the housing needed. The NSW Productivity Commissioner warned last month that many of the skilled labourers in the state were busy working on public infrastructure projects.

6. High interest rates: Reduces the purchasing power of homebuyers, creating a feasibility issue with developers.

7. High cost of building materials: Adds to feasibility issues.

8. Lack of enabling infrastructure: Often new homes can’t be built even with a DA because there are no sewage, water or electricity connections.

9. Biodiversity constraints: New housing especially in greenfield sites are often held up due to biodiversity considerations.

10. Ambiguity around flood planning levels: Ambiguity in state guidelines over an acceptable level of flood risk has seen developments stalled in areas of low risk.

11. Planning Portal bottlenecks: Developers argue the online Planning portal used to lodge applications is complicated and often slows the process down.