The Business VPA – Steering a way through a disrupted planning landscape

from VPELA Revue (March 2021)

People Planning & the obligation to integrity: Reflections on local government

As we move into 2021 we are all no doubt making plans while also wondering when and how they might be disrupted! For the VPA, this will be a year in which we continue to prioritise our role in supporting economic recovery, but also a year in which we look to our future strategy and pipeline in shaping urban Victoria.

Our business plan for this year – the timing of which has been impacted by our COVID response and the recognition that the VPA’s resources have been overwhelmingly focused on our priority Fast Track program – has now been approved by the Minister for Planning, Hon Richard Wynne MP. It sets a work program that will see us double down on delivering priority projects and starting a limited number of new projects while also working on our forward pipeline for the years ahead.

We are planning for a residential market that, despite some pessimism last year, looks remarkably strong as does the broader economy in our state. Land markets in the regions and greenfields Melbourne appear particularly resilient, no doubt responding in large part to COVID-driven lifestyle choices as households find themselves less tethered to one specific work location.

In our new Business Plan, eight Precinct Structure Plans (PSPs) in Melbourne’s greenfield growth corridors have been identified in our new ‘pre-commencement’ gateway phase for preliminary investigations prior to planned transition onto the program in a future year (pending future decision making processes), with five of these new PSPs to be trialled through our new Partnered Delivery Pilot – which will be testing a new alternate PSP delivery pathway.

We will also be continuing our push to improve planning outcomes and increase residential densities in outer Melbourne (by finalising and delivering our new PSP Guidelines), to streamline our process (using our PSP2.o methodology and the new VPA Projects Standing Advisory Committee) and to improve infrastructure coordination across Government.

Stuart Moseley CEO, Victorian Planning Authority

We will also be starting work on a new volume of our Small Lot Housing Code, aiming to streamline approvals of more innovative and better designed micro-lot products. We will be preparing a manual and automated template to streamline delivery of infrastructure contributions plans (ICPs) in outer Melbourne, and we will be automating our GAIC staged payment system.

In the regions we will continue to prioritise Fast Track projects in Ballarat, Wonthaggi and Bannockburn. We will also continue our work on supporting the rollout of ICPs to suitable regional settings and partnering with Councils to deliver a range of projects funded under the Government’s Streamlining for Growth Program.

Beyond this, we will be working with the key regional cities and peri-urban towns to understand where the supply of land is under particular pressure and identify where and how the VPA can play a role in unlocking land for housing and jobs.

The vibrancy of the outer suburban and regional markets highlights the challenge of achieving the Plan Melbourne ambition of “getting to 70%” of Melbourne’s growth in established areas. While there is a pronounced slowdown in the apartment market, COVID-driven localism is underpinning still-healthy levels of demand for mid-rise suburban living – the challenge will be where and how to unlock this growth in ways that communities support.

This year we have important projects to complete in established Melbourne – supporting redevelopment at Arden, PMP Printing site, Preston Market and more. While we continue to report to the Minister for Planning, we also now have a relationship with the Minister for Business Precincts, the Minister for Transport Infrastructure and the Minister for the Suburban Rail Loop, enabling the VPA to help identify and help deliver planned change in transport precincts and business precincts. We will also be evaluating what increased role there could be for targeted growth in activity centres more broadly.

Gerhana Waty - Hansen Partnership Director

With over 15 years experience, Gerhana is a highly sought after urban designer who has led award winning transit oriented development and public realm improvement projects.

Gerhana is available to provide expert witness services for VCAT and Planning Panels. Specialist areas include built form reviews, structure plans, strategic planning and public realm oriented urban design. Contact Gerhana at gwaty@hansenpartnership.com.au or 03 9654 9841

And underpinning all this will be the opportunity – which we share with all contemporary organisations – of transitioning to a post-COVID future working environment.

Perhaps the most enduring legacy of COVID 19 for the planning fraternity will be the ability to work from anywhere enabled by the use of digital communications and engagement platforms that have been around for years now but never truly tested as an alternative to the office.

For anyone wanting to be an “employer of choice”, 2021 will be the year in which we will need to make the most of the COVID “work from anywhere” legacy. 2020 has proved that the vast majority office-based work can be done remotely – and there will be no return to pre-COVID normality.

We will be investing in the people, tools, technology and skills we need to ensure we can do business remotely as well as reinstating face-to-face engagement for the functions and tasks that require it.

We are mindful too that the urban implications of COVID will become clearer during 2021. Some will be positive – vibrant regional towns, thriving suburban centres, more “living locally”

– while some will be challenging – in particular, working for the recovery of our CBD.

Transport choices are also changing. The implementation of more bike lanes by councils for active transport and State Government incentives to encourage off-peak commuting through the public transport fare structure are already in place.

The Victorian Planning Authority, as the lead agency for planning designated urban growth areas across Victoria, will be at the forefront of mapping these changes into place – giving effect to State Government policy in real places where people can live, work and play.

Stuart Moseley has more than 30 years’ of experience in urban management and project delivery, and has held senior positions in three State Governments, the private sector and local government. Stuart is a reformer and a strong advocate for outstanding urban environments and practical planning solutions. In his VPA role he has driven the repositioning of the Authority as a broad-based State-wide growth planning agency and is now working to deliver the organisation’s largest-ever project portfolio.

Nat Anson Urbis

Claire Betteridge Urbis

Jackie Bernoth City of Moreland

Matthew Butler Clement Stone Town Planners

Christopher Cawkwell Tract Consultants

Peter Cybula University of Melbourne

Julia Duffy Corrs Chambers Westgarth

Jessica Greenwood Urbis

Amber Hille* Student

Michael Hurst* Student

Tarquin Leaver Pace Development Group

Andrew Low Arnold Bloch Leibler