Building Resources

Territory Plan - Technical amendment 2009-09

Last Updated on Wednesday, 03 June 2009 20:00 Written by Alan Kerlin Wednesday, 03 June 2009 19:51

The Gungahlin Community Council made the following submission on the ACT Government's proposed Technical Variation V2009-09.

This amendment proposes to remove the CZ4 Local Centre Zone from the block at the southern end of th Flemington Rd corridor in Harrison. This block was intended to serve as a service station, with adjacent park'n'ride facilities. We recognise that with adjacent houses this may not be the best site for such a use.

However the proposed amendment argues that appropriate zoning is available further to the north. The concept planning for those areas though envisages them as quite densely developed, with heights to 4 and 6 storeys, making them also inappropriate for a service station use, which involves lighting until late at night, noise, traffic and generally a single storey structure.

Flemington Road is a major commuter thoroughfare, and would be ideal for a service station. This would take pressure off Ginn St in the town centre, where the location of two major service station chains (plus a major fast food outlet) opposite each other has resulted in chronic traffic congestion at peak times. It would also aid price competition in our area.

Therefore we contend that if the zoning of this block of land is to be downgraded, then ACTPLA should identify an alternate location along Flemington Rd where a service station would be appropriate, and undertake required rezoning of that site.

We have argued in the past that the large and usually unused carpark to the north side of EPIC should be used as a major park'n'ride, as it would also capture NSW commuters rather than leaving them to rat-run through the suburban streets of Watson, Hackett and Ainslie. A service station in that general locality would 'hook' well with a major parking facility, while having no adverse residential impacts.

Sustainable home design resources

"How, after two millennia of building houses in cool, winter climates could we possibly think of designing them with no windows on the sunny side? We must somehow drag the housing industry into the 21st century." - Renowned architect Derek Wrigley.

"It's not hard - that way's north." - Deemro Homes Builder Peter Jacobs.

Your Home
A comprehensive general and technical guidelines resource to help you design a sustainable home.

Selecting a greener, better house
A checklist for choosing a low-energy, more self-reliant home. - the hard work has been done for you.
Selecting a house that has a useful degree of low-energy living and also of self-reliance is not an easy task, calling for a good working knowledge of the science of building and in particular, some knowledge of the way in which solar, electric and hydraulic energies can improve or reduce the occupants' quality of life.
These complex, interacting forces have been simplified and reduced to a list of simple questions about any house that the potential buyer might be interested in. You'll also need to consider external factors such as locality, transportation, schools, shops, etc.
The home that GCC President Alan Kerlin designed scored 20 out of a potential 26 points using this list (with questions over the four of the missed points!).

ACT Greywater guide
Guide to greywater use in ACT.

Waterwise gardening
Tips for creating a Waterwise garden in the ACT.

Rainwater tank guide
ACTPLA's updated guide to rainwater tanks.

Flora for Fauna - bring your garden alive!
Attract native birds, butterflies and other fauna to your garden.

Your development
A resource from the CSIRO - more for developers of new suburbs to help them design sustainable suburbs.

Amazing water-saving shower system
If you're building a new home, want to build sustainably, but love long showers, check out this shower system.

Development assessment resources

Last Updated on Sunday, 23 March 2008 08:22 Written by Alan Kerlin Sunday, 23 March 2008 08:17

ACTMAPi
ACTMAPi is a web-based tool for viewing maps and geographic information about Canberra and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It allows you to view, interact with and query a range of different types of information in graphic form.

Public DA Notices
Current and recents developments open for public submissions.

Development application notification
Advice on ACT Government requirements for advertising development applications.

Lease and development conditions
Known as L&Ds, these are the conditions that apply to your block of land. NB: they are to be superceded when the 2008 ACT Territory Plan takes effect on 31 March 2008.

2008 ACT Territory Plan

Last Updated on Sunday, 11 May 2008 17:00 Written by Alan Kerlin Sunday, 23 March 2008 08:03

2008 ACT Territory Plan legislation
The new territory Plan takes effect from 31 March 2008.

Introduction to Planning System Reform - Development Assessment
ACTPLA has developed this guide to accompany new planning system training for both industry representatives and ACTPLA staff as well as for applicants and registered, licensed or accredited professionals for the purposes of making a development application in the ACT from March 31, 2008 onwards. This guide contains information about the key components of reform and the new development assessment model.

ACTPLA has also produced a number of newsletters about the new Territory Plan:

2002 ACT Territory Plan

Last Updated on Sunday, 23 March 2008 08:35 Written by Alan Kerlin Friday, 21 March 2008 16:00

2002 ACT Territory Plan
The main website for the ACT Territory Plan valid from 2002 to 31 March 2008.

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