State Government planning reforms and their impact on Willoughby
Last modified on 02 December 2024
Updates
2 December 2024
Crows Nest Transport Orientated Development (TOD) rezoning and pathway changes finalised
The NSW Department of Planning Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) have announced that the Crows Nest Transport Orientated Development (TOD) rezoning came into effect on 27 November 2024.
The State development approval pathway changes to support Transport Orientated Development (TOD) also came into effect on 27 November 2024.
With regards to the Willoughby Council local government area, the changes involve one site referred to as Lot 4B Herbert Street adjacent to the North Shore Hospital, and opposite St Leonards Station. The site has been rezoned to MU1 Mixed Use, broadly as per the changes that were exhibited by the State Government earlier this year, including:
- Increased height to RL 283 AHD to facilitate a 62 storey building.
- Increased floor space ratio to 14.3:1, involving approximately 620m2 of non-residential land use and 46,300m2 residential land use.
- An affordable housing contribution rate of 15%.
The total number of dwellings added to Herbert Street is approximately 448.
Further information can be found at the bottom of this page.
20 August 2024 update
Willoughby Council submission
Council’s submission in response to the exhibition of the Crows Nest TOD reforms and pathway changes is found towards the bottom of this page. This submission was endorsed at the Council Meeting 12 August 2024.
18 July 2024 update
Crows Nest (St Leonards) Transport Oriented Development Program (TOD) rezoning proposal exhibition
The Crows Nest (St Leonards) Transport Oriented Development Program (TOD) rezoning proposal has been placed on public exhibition by the Department of Planning Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) until 5pm Friday 16 August 2024. On 9 August the exhibition period was extended until 5pm Friday 30 August 2024. Further information can be found towards the bottom of this page.
4 July 2024 update
New Dual Occupancies SEPP Amendment
On 28 June 2024, the State Government published the State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) Amendment (Dual Occupancies and Semi-detached Dwellings) 2024 (SEPP Amendment), which commenced operation today, 1 July 2024. These “Stage 1” changes do not change the current controls restricting dual occupancies to appropriate sites in our R2 zone. The changes introduce duplexes as permitted development to R2 zones in other Council areas where they were not previously permitted. The State Government has foreshadowed that further changes will be made later this year. The exact timing and nature of these changes is not yet known. Council will continue to update this webpage as more information comes to hand. For further details and updates, please refer to the NSW Government’s planning website, and the new SEPP Amendment can be found on the NSW Legislation webpage.
Introduction
In December 2023, the State Government released proposed changes to planning legislation that would override Council limitations on the type of development allowed in its suburbs and around local centres.
These changes have the potential to transform the character of local streets, increasing the number of duplexes and terraces in our suburbs and increasing the scale of residential flat buildings located around local centres and stations.
The reforms will override Council’s planning controls to allow:
- More dual occupancy developments (i.e. duplexes) on smaller lots across most of the LGA, including in heritage conservation areas.
- Introduction of medium density multi dwelling housing development, such as terraces, villa developments, and two storey residential flats into currently low density areas.
- Taller and denser apartments and mixed use development in medium density areas within 800m of stations and local centres (for example, North Willoughby, Castlecrag, Naremburn).
- Rezoning of land within 1,200m of Crows Nest Station which includes significant portions of Naremburn and St Leonards.
While Council supports and encourages strategically located growth to deliver sufficient and diverse housing for its growing community, the proposed changes do not strategically locate capacity for growth and will potentially result in overdevelopment.
Council is also concerned that the proposal will reduce the quality of development outcomes; the proposal includes various non-refusal standards that will override stricter Council controls.
The NSW Government’s public exhibition period closed on 23 February 2024, for details and updates please refer to the NSW Government’s planning website.
For information on the current zoning of a parcel of land, please check NSW Planning Portal Spatial Viewer.
Online information session
On 15 February 2024 Council held an online information session to help explain the potential impacts of the reforms in Willoughby.
The summary presentation on the reforms is available here: Getting up to speed on the State Government's planning reforms presentation(PDF, 2MB).
A video of the presentation is available here: Getting up to speed on the State Government's planning reforms webinar.
How is Willoughby affected?
Map 1: Low-rise housing
Note: The map above is indicative only. The purpose of this map is to indicate the proposed changes at a high level and it should not be used to assess impacts on individual properties. The areas proposed for new planning controls are shown on the map for simplicity, but may differ if implemented.
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In areas without shading there are no proposed changes to existing planning controls.
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Under the proposal, lots in the R2 low-density residential zone, with a minimum lot size of 450 square metres and a minimum site width of 12m, will be eligible for dual occupancy development up to 9.5m high and floor space ratio 0:65:1. Developments may be eligible for approval via a complying development certificate issued by a private certifier (without the need for an application to Council).
Currently the minimum lot size is 700 square metres for attached dual occupancies and 900 square metres for detached dual occupancies in Willoughby.
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Under the proposal, lots in R2 low-density residential zones and within 800m walking distance of Willoughby’s railway stations or a local centre*, will be eligible for multi dwelling housing (terraces and townhouses) development up to 9.5m high and floor space ratio 0.7:1, and manor houses (two storey apartment blocks) up to 9.5m high and floor space ratio 0.8:1. The proposal also includes other design and landscaping requirements, see the Explanation of Intended Effect for full details.
Multi dwelling housing (terraces and townhouses) and manor houses (two storey apartment blocks) are currently prohibited in the R2 low-density residential zone.
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Heritage conservation areas are not exempt from the proposed changes. |
Map 2: Mid-rise housing
Note: The map above is indicative only. The purpose of this map is to indicate the proposed changes at a high level and it should not be used to assess impacts on individual properties. The areas proposed for new planning controls are shown on the map for simplicity, but may differ if implemented.
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In areas without shading there are no proposed changes to existing planning controls.
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Medium density residential:The proposal seeks to over-ride Council’s development controls in the R3 medium-density zones that are within 400m and 400 - 800m of Willoughby’s railway stations or a local centre* as follows: |
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Lots in the R3 medium-density residential zone, and within 400m walking distance of Willoughby’s railway stations or a local centre*, will be eligible for residential apartments and shop-top housing development up to a maximum height of 21m (approx. 6 to 7 storeys) and a maximum floor space ratio of 3:1. |
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Lots in R3 medium-density residential zones, and within 400 - 800m walking distance of Willoughby’s railway stations or a local centre*, will be eligible for residential apartments and shop-top housing development up to a maximum height 16m (approx. 4 to 5 storeys) and a maximum floor space ratio of 2:1.
Currently, in the R3 medium-density residential zone, Council permits development up to a maximum height of between 9m and 12m (approx. 3 to 4 storeys) with maximum FSRs of between 0.7:1 and 0.9:1.
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* The NSW Government’s proposal considers local centre precincts to be:
- within 800m walking distance of commercial centre (Zone E2)
- within 800m walking distance of the local centre (Zone E1) or mixed use (Zone MU1), but only if the zone contains a wide range of frequently needed goods and services such as full-line supermarkets, shops and restaurants.
The map above provides an indication of how this may apply only, noting this may change as further details of the proposal are released. Council will be requesting greater clarity on how the proposed changes will be implemented, particularly with respect to the definition of ‘wide range of frequently needed goods and services’.
Example of low-rise housing
Example of mid-rise housing
On 25 March 2024 Council endorsed our submission to the reforms.
The submission is available here: Low and Mid Rise House Reform –Willoughby Council Submission(PDF, 4MB).
Transport Oriented Development Program (TOD)
In addition to the above changes, the State Government has also indicated that it will be pursuing a Transport Oriented Development Program.
Part one of the program involves a state-led rezoning within 1,200 meters of eight (8) ‘Accelerated precincts’ within walking distance of priority high-growth areas near transport hubs in Greater Sydney. Crows Nest Metro Station is identified as one of the accelerated precincts, and the southern part of the Willoughby area is within the 1,200 metres radius as shown below.
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Willoughby LGA boundary.
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1,200m radius from Crows Nest Station. |
The State Government intends to complete the proposed rezoning by November 2024, with an exhibition of draft amendments anticipated in April 2024. To facilitate the rezoning process, the State Government will undertake master planning for each precinct, which will determine the changes to be undertaken.
Limited detail has been provided to date; updates will be provided as more information is made available.
Council’s submission to the State Government detailing our concerns can be found here:
Submission to the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure(PDF, 421KB)
How to make a submission
The NSW Government’s public exhibition period closed on 23 February 2024, for details and updates please refer to the NSW Government’s planning website.
The Crows Nest (St Leonards) Transport Oriented Development Program (TOD) rezoning proposal has been placed on public exhibition by the Department of Planning Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) until 5pm Friday 16 August 2024. On 9 August the exhibition period was extended until 5pm Friday 30 August 2024.
Exhibition details
The exhibition period is from 16 July to 30 August 2024.
All documentation for this exhibition is found on the NSW Planning Portal.
All submissions should be directed to DPHI.
To make a submission, use the abovementioned link, and click on the ‘Make a submission’ tab at the bottom of the page.
The Department is also holding a webinar on 30 July 2024 and Drop in Sessions on 1 and 6 August 2024, details can be found via planning.nsw.gov.au
DPHI webinar
Webinar registrations can be made online.
DPHI drop in sessions
Drop in session bookings can be made here: DPHI is also holding in-person drop-in sessions on 1 and 6 August 2024, bookings can be made online.
Additional information on the Crows Nest TOD can be found via planning.nsw.gov.au
Willoughby Council submission
On the 12 August 2024, Council considered and resolved to endorse a draft submission on:
The endorsed final submission was forwarded to DPHI on 19 August 2024 and is available to view online(PDF, 2MB).
Council has identified a number of concerns and issues which are summarised in the Executive Summary.
Council requests that the matters raised be addressed by DPHI prior to the finalisation of the rezoning proposal and pathway changes.
Crows Nest Transport Orientated Development (TOD) rezoning and pathway changes finalised
The affected Crows Nest TOD precinct is shown in pink in the image above, with the majority being located in North Sydney Council and Lane Cove Council local government areas.
All information regarding the Crows Nest TOD rezoning is found here: Crows Nest state-led rezoning | Planning Portal - Department of Planning and Environment
The information includes the:
The submissions received during the exhibition are discussed in the Finalisation Report (Section 4 ‘Community Engagement’, page 14, Section 5 ‘Assessment of Issues’, page 16, and Section 6 ‘Post-Exhibition Amendments’, page 33)
The above link also lists all submissions (redacted as required) and the information exhibited.
With regards to the Willoughby Council local government area, the changes involve one site referred to as Lot 4B Herbert Street adjacent to the North Shore Hospital, and opposite St Leonards Station.
The site has been rezoned to MU1 Mixed Use. Other changes include:
- Increased height to RL 283 AHD to facilitate a 62 storey building.
- Increased floor space ratio to 14.3:1, involving approximately 620m2 of non-residential land use and 46,300m2 residential land use.
- An affordable housing contribution rate of 15%.
The total number of dwellings added to Herbert Street is approximately 448.
The building envelopes approved in the TOD (across all three affected Local Government Areas) are approximately indicated in the image below. The Lot 4B Herbert St site is the translucent blue indicative envelope in the foreground. Please note, the changes made by the State Government have not approved the construction of the buildings, and landowners will need to make development applications (which may be assessed by the State Government and not Council depending on the size of the application). The future development applications will specify the designs and details of each building and will be assessed against the controls and design guides implemented under the TOD. It is anticipated only some of the sites will be developed in the short to medium term, as not all landowners will be in a position to develop their sites.
While the changes within the Willoughby LGA are limited to the Herbert St Site, the changes within the adjacent North Sydney and Lane Cove LGA’s will result in significant density increases in the precinct. DPHI described the exhibited Crows Nest TOD rezoning as providing:
- capacity for 5,900 new homes
- capacity for up to 2,500 new jobs
- affordable housing contributions of between 3% to 18% for all new residential development in the precinct
- more public parks and open spaces
- better walking and cycling connections to the Metro and rail stations
- more trees to maintain the leafy character of the St Leonards and Crows Nest precinct.
DPHI has further explained that following consideration of submissions received during exhibition, several changes were made to the rezoning. These included:
- capacity for up to 2,600 more homes in key areas and more affordable homes
- more public open spaces
- more flexible planning controls for key sites to encourage faster development
- provisions for potential future delivery of a pedestrian tunnel to the Metro Station.
There was no further increased density within the Willoughby LGA beyond that which was exhibited.
What happens next
In regards the Crows Nest TOD, amendments will now be made to the Willoughby Local Environmental Plan 2012 (WLEP), North Sydney LEP 2013 and Lane Cove LEP 2009 and new planning controls will come into effect.
In regards the pathway changes, the amending instrument is found here: State Environmental Planning Policy Amendment (Crows Nest Transport Oriented Development Precinct) 2024
Infrastructure provision
The increase in density needs to be accompanied by appropriate infrastructure provision, with particular regard to the embellishment and provision of open space and through site links. The State Government has allocated $520m to the 8 accelerated TOD precincts, including Crows Nest, for supporting infrastructure; however, details of the projects to be funded within each precinct are yet to be announced.
Council will continue to advocate for investment in the precinct to address the needs arising from this State led rezoning.
Available information
Information on the Crows Nest TOD, including Frequently Asked Questions and a Submissions Report, is found here: Crows Nest TOD rezoning | Planning
Information on the pathway changes to support Transport Orientated Development (TOD) is found here: Pathway changes to support Transport Oriented Development | Planning Portal - Department of Planning and Environment
Updated general information on the TOD Accelerated Precincts is found here: Accelerated precincts - Transport Oriented Development | Planning