Currently, we have four Local Environmental Plans (LEPs), and four Development Control Plans (DCP’s). One for former Manly (MLEP 2013) and Pittwater (PLEP 2014); and two for the former Warringah (WLEP 2000 and WLEP 2011), each with their own Development Control Plan (DCP).

Changes to the Environmental Planning & Assessment Act (1979) in March 2018 require all Sydney Councils to review their Local Environmental Plans to give effect to the new District Plans and to implement Council’s new Local Strategic Planning Statement – Towards 2040.

The review process provides a great opportunity to create a new planning vision for the Northern Beaches - a roadmap for managing the way we evolve, in a consistent, sustainable and coordinated way, over the next 20 years and beyond.

A Local Environmental Plan (LEP) is the main tool used to control development of land in a local government area.

It does this through zoning and development controls, which provide a framework for the way land can be used.

An LEP is prepared by Council but must be approved by the NSW Department of Planning and Environment.

A Development Control Plan (DCP) provides detailed local planning and design guidelines to support the planning controls in a Local Environment Plan (LEP). 

The DCP includes controls for things like building design, building setbacks, landscaping, privacy, car parking, and waste management for all the different types of development.

DCP provisions are prepared by Council and approved by Council following public consultation.

Currently, we have four Local Environmental Plans (LEPs), and four Development Control Plans (DCP’s). One for former Manly (MLEP 2013) and Pittwater (PLEP 2014); and two for the former Warringah (WLEP 2000 and WLEP 2011), each with their own Development Control Plan (DCP).

This means that there are four different approaches to planning across the Northern Beaches. This is inconsistent, confusing and unsustainable in the longer term.

Changes to the Environmental Planning & Assessment Act (1979) in March 2018 require all Sydney Councils to review their Local Environmental Plans to give effect to the new District Plans within 2-3 years.

The Community Strategic Plan (CSP) is a long term strategic plan that all councils must develop on behalf of their communities in accordance with the requirements of the Local Government Act 1993. It is a shared vision of what the Northern Beaches community values and aspires to for the next ten years.

The Local Strategic Planning Statement (LSPS) sets our land use vision, and planning principles, priorities, and actions for the next 20 years.

The statement will be the main way to express the desired future direction for housing, employment, transport, recreation, environment and infrastructure for the Northern Beaches LGA as a whole, and guides the content of Council’s Local Environmental Plan (LEP) and Development Control Plan (DCP).

As a minimum the LSPS has to contain:

• Our LGA context & background
• Land use vision
• Planning priorities
• Actions
• Implementation and monitoring

The LSPS has to be consistent with the Greater Sydney Commission’s North District Plan and Councils Community Strategic Plan (CSP). It must be approved by the Greater Sydney Commission and must be considered in the preparation of LEPs, DCPs & LEP and DCP amendments. It may also support Council’s consideration and determination of development applications.

The LSPS is focused on land use; the CSP is focused on the direction of all of Councils functions.

A Local Housing Strategy (LHS) is a document prepared by Council to identify our current and future housing needs and to set down how we intend to accommodate future housing growth to meet those needs. 

The Greater Sydney Commission has established housing targets for Councils under the relevant District Plan. Council must prepare a LHS in order to address these targets.

The LHS provides an opportunity for Council and the community to influence how and where we will grow.

A series of technical studies will be completed to help inform decisions made about a range of planning matters that ensure decisions made as a community are supported by expert evidence.

Council is planning to undertake the following studies that will be used to develop the LEP and DCP:

• Demographic Analysis
• Employment Study
• Housing Study
• Social Infrastructure Study
• Transport Investigations
• Local Character Study
• Environment Study

Additional studies or investigations will be undertaken as and where required.

Towards 2040 sets out the community’s ambitions for a Northern Beaches that is ready to adapt to, or mitigate the effects of, a changing climate.

No single element of the proposed new framework will address this issue; rather, the new LEP and DCP will together work with other policies, strategic planning and statutory planning to meet the objectives of Towards 2040.

Towards 2040 acknowledges that the LGA is particularly vulnerable to natural hazards including bush fire, flooding, landslip, coastal erosion and storms.

As the climate changes, exposure to natural hazards such as heatwaves, heavy rainfall, severe bush fire conditions, storm surges, sea-level rise and flooding will only increase.

The planning framework can support overall efforts to increase resilience in the community and natural and built environments. It can also support measures to reduce carbon emissions and increase efficiencies in managing energy, water and waste.

A range of technical studies are being prepared to support the new planning framework and to guide the development of the LEP and DCP. These studies will address a number of environmental matters including biodiversity, estuary management, geotechnical issues and bush fire management, and will consider future changes during their preparation.

The Greater Sydney Commission is the statutory body responsible for planning for the future growth of the Sydney Region.

They produced the Sydney Region Plan and the North District Plan, with which Council’s plans must align.

The North District Plan is the Greater Sydney Commission’s plan for the North District. 

The North District covers City of Ryde, Hornsby, Hunters Hill, Ku-ring-gai, Lane Cove, Mosman, North Sydney, Willoughby and the Northern Beaches.

It is a 20 year plan to manage growth and covers economic, social and environmental matters of the North District. It is the plan we must give effect to, which means our strategic planning must align with this plan.

The plan includes actions and priorities around four themes of liveability, productivity, infrastructure and environment. Some of these actions include targets for housing, employment and the environment.

The NSW Government and the Greater Sydney Commission directed all Councils, through amendments the Environmental Planning & Assessment Act (1979), to make sure their plans align with their District Plan and the Sydney Region Plan.