Voluntary Planning Agreements

A Voluntary Planning Agreement (VPA) is an agreement between a planning authority (such as Council) and a person or developer.

On 28 March 2022, Council resolved to adopt the Planning Agreement Policy and the Procedures Manual which effectively repeals the Voluntary Planning Agreement (VPA) Policy 2013.

The Planning Agreement Policy(PDF, 360KB)  and its Procedures Manual(PDF, 6MB)  set out the updated guidelines and processes on how a VPA might be entered into with guidance on the different types of agreements that may be offered to applicants, proponents and Council for consideration. The guidelines also present a more transparent process for accepting, negotiating and valuing public benefits.

Under this updated Policy and chapter 5 of the Procedures Manual, a new funding scheme called the Community Infrastructure Contributions (CIC) mechanism had also been adopted which is represented by a fixed $ per m² rate applying to the Chatswood CBD area, a rate that is based on the apportionment of expenditure on public infrastructure works needed for Chatswood.

For a record of the executed planning agreements that apply to the Willoughby City Council area, see the Voluntary Planning Agreement Register(PDF, 173KB).

See guideline(PDF, 210KB)  on how to structure your Letter of Offer for a Planning Agreement.

Download a template(DOCX, 92KB) for drafting a Planning Agreement.