Draft MidCoast Rural Strategy

Locally, Council have also engaged in an extensive and comprehensive strategic work program, endorsed by the Department of Planning, Industry & Environment, to inform development of the MidCoast LEP and DCP. In 2018 Council commenced a comprehensive review of land use zones and development standards applying to land within our towns and villages. Housing, Employment (Business and Industry), Recreation and Infrastructure (Special Purpose) zones were considered and an Urban Land Monitor prepared for the whole of the MidCoast local government area. The findings and recommendations of the reviews were presented to the MidCoast community as part of the Urban Zoning In on our Future program between February – April 2020. Council’s strategic program supplements information in the Hunter Regional Plan, which identified Strategic Centres and Centres of Local Significance identified in Table 2, providing additional information on each of these locations and connectivity between these settlements. Table 2. Strategic Centres and Centres of Local Significance, Hunter Regional Plan 2036

STRATEGIC CENTRES

CENTRES OF LOCAL SIGNIFICANCE

Expected to accommodate the highest-order of housing, services and employment associated with regional-level growth. Directions for planning in these areas may be heavily influenced by State and Regional policy, including the Hunter Regional Plan.

Also expected to experience growth and change in housing, services and employment needs, but to a lesser degree than regionally relevant centres. Directions for planning in these areas is more heavily influenced by Council policy.

Taree and Forster-Tuncurry

Bulahdelah, Diamond Beach, Gloucester, Hallidays Point, Harrington, Nabiac, Old Bar, Stroud, Tea Gardens–Hawks Nest and Wingham

Critically, Council’s program identified other settlement types within the MidCoast that contribute to the lifestyle and development options available to our existing and future residents including our villages and rural residential areas. Villages are considered in greater detail within this strategy. Based on the land use and development standards established with adoption of the Housing Strategy (2020), villages were reviewed, to determine the capacity of these smaller settlements to provide services and facilities to local residents and increase the sustainability of rural industry and lifestyles across the MidCoast. In comparison, the analysis and identification of ‘additional’ land suitable for rezoning to the R5 Large Lot Residential zone is outside of the scope of this Strategy. However, as a result of the public submissions received during the Urban Zoning In engagement program, additional investigation was undertaken to examine the diverse range of “rural living” zones across the MidCoast. In this regard, land in the R5 Large Lot Residential zone was compared to land in the RU5 Village, E4 Environmental Living and RU4 Primary Production Small Lot zones to determine how the use and occupation of these areas may be addressed in the future MidCoast Council planning framework.

Draft MidCoast Rural Strategy

Articles inside

Table 10. Recommended E3 Environmental Management Zone Criteria

Table 9. Recommended E2 Environmental Conservation Zone Criteria

Figure 18. NSW Planning Legislation Framework

Figure 17. Current Planning Controls, from Local Strategic Planning Statement

Figure 16. Coastal Zone of the MidCoast, Coastal Management SEPP 2018

Figure 15. Priority Drinking Water Catchments and Aquifer Catchments in the MidCoast

Figure 14. Broad Catchment Areas of the MidCoast from the Rural Waterways paper

Figure 13. Hunter Regional Plan 'Proposed Biodiversity Corridors'

Figure 12. The MidCoast LGA - Location, Infrastructure and Natural Assets

Figure 11. Location of MidCoast centres, from Local Strategic Planning Statement

Figure 10. Experiences available across the 'Green Grid' of the MidCoast

Figure 9. Destination Barrington Coast, statistics from December 2020

Figure 8. Our Growing and Changing Population, from MidCoast Housing Strategy

Figure 7: Typical mine or quarry project life cycle

Figure 6: Location of underground resources in the MidCoast

Table 8. MidCoast Tourism Destination Management Plan SWOT of Rural Tourism

Figure 5. MidCoast contribution to NSW economy by agricultural industry (ABS 2011

Table 7. MidCoast LSPS Planning Priorities relevant to the Rural Strategy

Table 6. MidCoast 2030 Goals and Actions relevant to the Rural Strategy

Table 5. NSW Government Priority Actions relevant to MidCoast Rural Strategy

Figure 4. Location Quotients and Employment Growth for MidCoast Industries

Figure 3. Strategic Actions for Priority Growth Industries in the Hunter

Figure 2. Hunter Regional Development Investment Prospectus, Local Government Areas

Table 4. Data Gaps identified in Background Reports to Rural Strategy

Table 1. Non-Urban Zones from the Standard Instrument Principal Local Environmental Plan available to use across the rural landscape of the MidCoast Local Government Area

Table 2. Strategic Centres and Centres of Local Significance, Hunter Regional Plan 2036

Table 3. Major legislation, policy and strategies influencing the Rural Strategy

Figure 1. Rural, Environmental and Waterway zoned land considered in the Rural Strategy

1 Strategic Goals and Local Planning...................................................................................64

1 Data Gaps – Challenges and Opportunities......................................................................19