News - Planning & development

On 6 March 2008, the ACT Government passed a planning legislation amendment that in part removed height limits from commercial land in the Gungahlin Town Centre. Our responses to media enquiries were based on the Planning Minister's media release, which referred to "lifting" height limits. Only afterwards did it become clear that this was intended to mean "remove", rather than "increase".

The executive of the Gungahlin Community Council wish to make it known that at no time has it advocated the total removal of building height restrictions for new developments within the Gungahlin Town Centre to either the ACT Minister for Planning, his office or the ACT Planning and Land Authority. The spectre of ugly, imposing skyscrapers like Woden's Sky Plaza is something we would never endorse for Gungahlin.

To the contrary, GCC has actively and consistently lobbied both the Planning Minister, his office and ACTPLA for an increase in the allowable heights for new development in the (revised) Commercial Core (C1) and Business (C2) zones of the town centre to be no more than a maximum of eight stories, with appropriate transitioning of the building height to be sympathetic with surrounding residential development.

The requests to increase in permissible building heights to a maximum of eight stories is intended to ensure effective use of remaining scarce land resources and to permit the establishment of larger office developments that would attract major prospective employers.

To quote from GCC's formal submision on the revised Draft Territory Plan:

'C1 - Core Zone
...
Gungahlin C1 shows the maximum height as four stories. This is not adequate to ensure a sufficient employment base in Gungahlin and therefore reduce transport demands on city-bound arterial routes. The maximum height in the Gungahlin town centre should be increased to eight stories, with appropriate provisions for scaling back of the height as it nears existing residential development with height maximums of two and three stories.'

and

'C2 - Business Zone
...
The additional area allocated to C2 zone adjacent to the Gungahlin town centre is strongly supported and welcomed. It is an opportunity to address the chronic undersupply of land for office accommodation developments to provide a sustainable employment base.
...
Gungahlin C2 shows the maximum height as four stories. This is not adequate to ensure a
sufficient employment base in Gungahlin and therefore reduce transport demands on city-bound arterial routes. The maximum height in the Gungahlin town centre should be increased to eight stories, with appropriate provisions for scaling back of the height as it nears existing residential development with height maximums of two and three stories.'

GCC has been taken by total surprise at the nature of the recent announcement given that we:

• believe that the matter of development in the town centre and associated height restrictions, diverging from the original planning intent for Gungahlin is a matter that needs to be handled with care and sensitivity. There is a community expectation that any potential variation from the original Gungahlin planning intents will be sympathetic to, and avoid developments that detract or vary greatly from, Gungahlin's unique Town Centre character. GCC continues to advocate that the Gungahlin Town Centre MUST be capable of  providing infrastructure, facilities and an employment base comparable to any other Town Centre in the ACT
• have previously enjoyed a close consultative dialogue with both the Minister's office and ACTPLA and would have reasonably expected to have been consulted or suitably briefed prior to any significant announcements that are at significant variance to prior discussions and dialogue.
• note that in October 2007 the Planning Minister announced a $200,000 study to examine the amount of commercial and community land in the Gungahlin town centre and review the town centre's planning controls and infrastructure needs. This review was going to lead to an indicative land supply strategy and capital works program as well as possible changes to the planning controls for the town centre to broadly guide future development. As part of community consultation ,an issues paper was anticipated to put out by ACTPLA for public comment in early 2008 as the first of several phases of community consultation. At time of writing, the issues paper has not yet been released to GCC or the wider public. 

Until such time as the full details of  the proposed amendments to the applicable legislation, planning controls and directly implications with respect to the Territory Plan for the Gungahlin Town Centre are fully known, the Gungahlin Community Council can not endorse the changes to unlimited height restrictions as they have been currently reported in the media.

Story as reported by WIN News (Canberra)

Story as reported by ABC News (Canberra)

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