Questions on Council Flexibility & Dwelling Types

Is there typically any flexibility in a council's minimum blocks sizes for a policy area?

For example if they list:

450sqm for a detached dwelling
400sqm for a semi-detached dwelling
375sqm for any other dwellings

And you have a 750sqm block (where 800sqm would be required according to the development plan). Would you be wasting your time submitting a development application for semi-detached dwellings on the block?

If you would typically need to meet the minimum and was able to find a willing neighbour to sell you 50sqm of their adjoining block to make development viable, what sort of legal/council costs would you be up for to change the plots (on top of the actual purchase price)?

What options would "other dwelling" allow you to build? i.e. could you build something similar to semi-detached that was actually completely attached (but still house like in dimensions and appearance)?

 

I've read that in some areas you can justify development if there are attributes of the site location that suit development. Examples are neighbouring or opposite reserves, proximity to shops, close to public transport.

 

Which Council?

If you go down the Merit assessment route, the Desired Character statement is the important element that Planners are assessing against - they use each of the PDC (Principles of Development Control) to help guide their decision. I've seen plenty of approvals where the density is below the PDC but other elements (such as setbacks, overshadowing, building envelope, parking) mean the application as a whole isn't seriously at variance to the Development Plan.

Most Council Planners are pretty non-committal to providing yay / nay prior to lodgement - so be prepared to have architectural plans / site plans drafted and lodged - and then maybe even traffic and overshadowing plans before you can get an answer.

Row Dwelling / Residential Flat Building / Group Dwelling are other forms - the latter might work as a hammerhead subdivision (2x 375m = 750m2) but hammerhead subdivisions are generally discouraged under most Development Plans.

 

In this case it was Mitcham (Adelaide), but I have seen a few properties which are only say a 5-7% variance from ability to build semi-detached and seems to be a very large variance in prices between blocks which are under and over the minimums, so was curious to know if there is potentially any hidden value that could be unlocked (either by getting an application through despite being under the minimum or by acquiring some extra land off a neighbour...).

 

Go to council with your arm halfway up your back. Say that you're prepared to enter into a VPA giving away 50+% of the uplift in value attributable to the uplift in value that you expect to achieve.

Not a problem.

More councils want a return for a benefit/concession that you want to be granted - ie councils aren't planning and updating LEPs to handle increased density but are allowing spot rezonings or concessions based on the community benefits that developers are going to provide.

 

What is a VPA and an LEP?

 

@Joynz

Voluntary Planning Agreement: Linky
Local Environment Plan ie the planning instrument which contains all of the planning, development, zoning requirements etc eg: Linky

 

Thanks. They have different names in Victoria.