Developers are faced with greater choice when it comes to getting their projects over the line.
Planning pathways have been a point of contention for developers and the community over many years.
Unsurprisingly, then, recent changes to Western Australia’s planning system, initially designed to boost housing supply, have generated widespread discussion within industry.
Today, developers have more options than in the past to get their projects over the line, and many are taking the opportunity to utilise different strategies to achieve their goals.
The Significant Development Assessment Unit pathway was launched in 2020 to expedite shovel-ready projects while the state’s economy was affected by the pandemic.
The Western Australian Planning Commission-led unit was initially dubbed a temporary option but was made permanent this year.
Before this, the main choices for developers were local government approvals or joint development assessment panels.
JDAPs were introduced in 2011 as a way to distance local governments from larger projects and include specialist members and local government representatives.
Under the SDAU, now referred to as the Part 11B Significant Development Applications pathway, more than $3.5 billion of projects have been approved to date.
The planning route was made permanent on March 1 this year, as the DAPs were consolidated from five to three and the mandatory minimum threshold of $2 million for DAPs was abolished.
Some developers have jumped at the chance to switch pathways.
Pete Adams utilised the SDAU to get PARC Developments’ $24 million hotel over the line. Image: Harris Jenkins Architects
Roshana Care Group withdrew its JDAP proposal for a four-storey aged care facility in Victoria Park in 2021 to instead lodge the application with the SDAU.
In March 2023, aged care services provider Hall & Prior withdrew its $90 million East Fremantle facility plan from the JDAP.
The development application was lodged with the SDAU and approved in December.
The state government’s previous requirement to have projects over $2 million be considered by the DAP enabled Seacrest Homes to lodge its 32-apartment application with the City of Wanneroo.
This meant the local government was decision maker over the Alkimos project, which was approved last month.
Taylor Burrell Barnett managing director Samantha Thompson said she couldn’t identify a clear trend of a preferred planning route, but the industry had generally welcomed the reforms.
“We have some clients who will go out of their way to opt for the DAP process over the local government process,” Ms Thompson told Business News.
“The DAP pathway provides greater confidence that the application will be determined within the statutory timeframe.
“Local governments, even though they don’t admit this or aren’t saying it, do prioritise DAP applications and they will ensure they meet their referral and response timeframes without unreasonable delay.
“The DAP really provides a cost-effective and efficient method of resolving those disputes when compared to presenting to a council or having to go to SAT (state administrative tribunal). So that mediator role is also quite a benefit.”
Industry approach
PARC Developments founding director Pete Adams, who also founded Fremantle’s Yolk Property Group, has utilised a mixture of planning pathways.
For Yolk’s $13.5 million timber office proposal, approved in 2019, the company took its development application to the City of Fremantle.
“We went down a local path for the approval of our six-storey development at 12 Josephson Street in Fremantle because we felt we could talk directly to the planners at the City of Fremantle and we were not asking for any major departures from the town planning scheme,” Mr Adams told Business News.
“It can be a more efficient path going through the city, as you can get early feedback from the city planners and elected members and also work through the local Design Advisory Committee to get an outcome that is favourable to all stakeholders.”
Pete Adams says going through local government can provide a more efficient process. Photo: Michael O’Brien
In the case of PARC’s $24 million hotel on Fremantle’s cappuccino strip, however, local authorities recommended the company go through the Western Australian Planning Commission’s pathway, which was then called Part 17.
“Following an early meeting with the city on our 100-room hotel at 65 South Terrace, we were recommended by the councillors and planners to go down the SDAU route for the hotel as they knew there was an approval pathway through the state,” Mr Adams said.
“It was acknowledged that the development was meeting a requirement for the city that the local town planning scheme had not kept up with.
“We prefer to go down the city route when we can as we believe... good communication with the city can save time over going to the state.
“However, we also believe the SDAU and more recently the Part 11B Significant Development Pathway play a very important role in dealing with the demands of a rapidly growing state.
“They give an increased certainty for development approvals that have a community net benefit and provide more confidence for investment in the state.”
East Victoria Park developer Celsius Property Group opted to circumvent the DAP process and take its $60 million Elysian project straight to the WA Planning Commission pathway.
The apartment development, approved in mid-2021, is set for completion in October this year.
Celsius Property Group, which includes Andrew Peirce and Travis McKenzie among a handful of directors, indicated the history on the site had informed the company’s decision to go via the SDAU.
“We chose the SDAU pathway for this project as previous planning applications on the site had failed due to some highly localised opposition to redevelopment of the property,” Mr Peirce told Business News.
“The SDAU presented an approval pathway that allowed the council to make comment on the application based on its planning merits, but they did not form part of the approval panel as they would on a DAP panel.
“In our view, this gave the application a better chance of being assessed purely on its planning merits, [by] removing local politics from the decision.”
Andrew Peirce (left), Elysian JV partner Windsor Knight managing director Greg Pearce, and Travis McKenzie. Photo: Celsius Property Group
Mr Peirce added that the SDAU was by no means a free kick for developers and involved a stringent design review process.
“This process looks critically at the proposal to ensure it is delivering design excellence against seven design principles, which includes its impact on local context and character,” Mr Peirce said.
“These judgements are made by an expert panel of architects, planners and urban designers, which we believe ultimately delivers better design outcomes for the community.”
He said while the size of the company’s developments often dictated the planning route taken, Celsius generally preferred to utilise either the DAPs or SDAU rather than a local path.
Mr Peirce said the belief that approvals granted outside of local planning schemes led to significant monetary gains for developers was untrue.
“In the past eighteen months, there have only been a handful of projects successfully launched due to construction costs rising at a far higher rate than unit prices,” he said.
“Approvals that achieve design excellence and are approved with density bonuses are required just to make a project viable.”
Planning view
Ms Thompson emphasised that choosing a particular pathway depended on the project.
For example, she said a complex project that required multiple agency referrals would be best suited for Part 11B.
“For that reason, the DAP can’t necessarily satisfy that requirement and the local government pathway is not going to achieve the outcomes necessary for those complex and significant projects,” Ms Thompson said.
“The regulatory and statutory process through the local government is, of course, still very relevant for many applications and can be quite quick and efficient.
“If the local governments have adequate delegated authority, and the proposal is consistent with the planning framework, we’ve been opting for local government determination … because it’s been quite time effective and obviously, therefore cost effective.”
Celsius’s $60 million Elysian apartment project in Subiaco. Image: MJA Studio
She said cost and certainty were two significant factors influencing the decision.
“In terms of the statutory timeframes and having a specialist independent decision maker associated with the DAP, that really provides a level of certainty and consistency for the development sector which is quite attractive,” Ms Thompson said.
“Those are the things that the development industry is looking for. You also have the independence of the DAP, which takes the political uncertainty out of that process as well.
“At the end of the day, with the current economic climate and the housing supply issues, our clients are looking for the most streamlined process with the greatest level of certainty.
“Because of that, it’s beneficial that we do have multiple pathways to choose from.”
Element Advisory planning principal Daniel Lees said the state government had been rolling out its planning reform agenda at a rapid pace.
“It’s really about understanding the nuances of each of the different pathways,” he said.
“Whether you seek a planning approval from a local government, from a DAP, or from the WA Planning Commission through the significant development pathway.”
Mr Lees echoed Ms Thompson’s comments, doubling down on certainty as one of the key factors in choosing the pathway.
“To use the adage that you don’t use a sledgehammer to crack a walnut, it’s about truly understanding the client’s needs and project objectives and then providing advice as to the ideal pathway in the circumstances,” Mr Lees said.
“I wouldn’t say it’s always the case of advising clients towards DAP or SDP/WAPC. There are times when there might be a particular local issue with a political angle to it that might warrant playing that card.
“Some in the industry might say, ‘Well, you would always go to the DAP’.
“Yes, the DAP has some great attributes to it, but based on the circumstances of your particular client or proposal, there certainly are instances where we might advise to go through a council decision process rather than a DAP process.”
Talking about local politics at play, Mr Lees gave an example of tackling a good news project that had planning challenges through interacting with the council.
Mr Lees said there was a human element with all projects and connections with planning assessment and decision-making bodies.
However, being able to present to the council and interact with elected members over these projects was a valuable form of engagement, he said.
