UDIA WA Awards for Excellence Winners’ Supplement
Saturday night’s UDIA WA 2018 Awards for Excellence received rave reviews as industry turned out in its finest to celebrate and showcase the finalists and winners. Attendees were wined and dined with a tantalising menu throughout the Awards presentations and then were entertained and danced the night away to Perth’s own Aquila Music and Daren Reid and the Soul City Groove Band.
UDIA WA congratulates all the entrants for their dedication to excellence in creating fantastic communities, places and homes for the future.
The UDIA WA Awards for Excellence Winner’s Supplement is now available on the UDIA WA website. Click here to find out detailed information and the judges’ comments on all the outstanding winners from this year’s Awards program.
UDIA WA extends our warmest appreciation to the 2018 Sponsors for their support:
- Platinum Sponsor, the Western Australian Planning Commission;
- Gold Sponsors, Longreach Recruitment Pty Ltd and Wood & Grieve Engineers; and
- Category Sponsors: Calibre Group; Lavan; Veris Australia Pty Ltd; Taylor Burrell Barnett; nbn; Water Corporation; Western Power; Cardno (WA) Pty Ltd; and Department of Communities.
Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2018
On Tuesday Environment Minister Stephen Dawson announced the gazettal of the Biodiversity Conservation Regulations 2018 (BCR). The regulations, in conjunction with the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016, will replace the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950 and the Sandalwood Act 1929 and associated regulations. The new regulations are anticipated to commence on January 1, 2019.
Changes of note include a new online wildlife licensing system and significantly higher deterrent penalties for impacts on threatened species and communities (up to $500,000 for a person and $2.5 million for a corporation) and for unlawful sandalwood trading (increasing from $200 under the Sandalwood Act to $200,000 for individuals and $1 million for corporations). Current licensing changes will not change substantially, although new arrangements will be introduced where current provisions are lacking or inadequate.
The accompanying Ministerial Guidelines for the BCR are open for comment until 30 September 2018, and comment is also being accepted on the Regulations until this time. View these items here. UDIA Members are requested to send any feedback on these items to policy@udiawa.com.au as soon as possible, to inform the UDIA submission.
Local Government Act Review Phase 2
A suite of key topics have been released for comment as part of the State Government’s review of the Local Government Act 1995. The nine key areas to be considered are based around the themes of an Agile, Smart and Inclusive local government sector, and will inform the new Local Government Act once the comment period has closed on 31 March 2019.
Specific themes cover a range of topics: Agile includes beneficial enterprises, financial management and rates, fees and charges; Smart covers administrative efficiencies – local laws, Council meetings and interventions; and Inclusive contains the areas of community engagement, complaints management and elections. Click here for more information, or to view the proposed reforms and complete the surveys.
The Department, in partnership with WALGA and Local Government Professionals (WA), will be delivering a series of workshops on the reforms during October and November. UDIA will be making a submission on behalf of members and will participate in relevant workshops and continue to keep members informed as further information is released on the reforms and the workshops.
Building Up & Moving Out
This week the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Infrastructure, Transport and Cities tabled its report on the development of cities. The report, entitled Building Up & Moving Out, calls for the development of a national plan of settlement, providing a national vision for our cities and regions across the next fifty years.
The Committee Chair John Alexander said population growth, urbanisation, the ageing of the population, and the transformation of the economy towards service and knowledge based industries are causing profound changes in Australia’s urban and regional landscapes. “These are big challenges, and they require a new understanding of our cities and their relationship with surrounding regions,” Mr Alexander said. “Managing these challenges requires a national vision—a national plan of settlement.”
To direct this process, the report also recommends the creation of a Minister for Cities and National Settlement, with responsibility for the oversight of the national plan of settlement and housing, and a National Chief Planner, to provide independent expert advice on urban and regional planning and development.
The report makes 37 recommendations addressing issues at a national, regional and local level across a broad range of subjects, including:
- Developing integrated master plans for States and Territories, regions and communities.
- Pursuing a system of urban planning which promotes: accessibility and liveability, promoting heath and quality of life; economic, social and environmental sustainability; high quality natural and built environments; access to employment; a more compact urban form; the concept of the 30-minute city.
- Developing a framework for the development of cities and regions outside the major metropolitan centres.
- Developing transport networks which allow for fast transit between cities and regions, and within cities and regions in order to foster the developments of these regions.
- Producing a cost of living index, including housing, at the scale of local communities to highlight the economic and lifestyle advantages of living in regional communities.
- Promoting freight access.
- Promoting sustainable and affordable housing.
- Establishing a national institute for cities research.
- Promoting City Deals and creating Regional Deals.
- Improving infrastructure project appraisal and procurement.
- Developing a system of value capture as an organising principle of infrastructure planning and procurement.
A copy of the report can be obtained from the Committee’s website here.
Water Corporation Advice Transition from ARR1987 to ARR2016
Following UDIA’s request for clarity as to how the Water Corporation will be applying the recently released, “Australian Rainfall and Runoff – A Guide to Flood Estimation” (ARR2016) the Water Corporation has advised that its interim position is that;
The Water Corporation will use the ARR2016 methodology from mid-2019 onwards for any new planning or review of existing planning. As of now, the Water Corporation has thousands of model runs of its 75 urban drainage systems reflecting existing, interim and ultimate scenarios as well as consideration of various options. All these models have been built over a period of about 30 years using the guidance provided in ARR1987. Any existing ARR1987 compliant model that is not due for a review will not be converted into an ARR2016 compliant model. As such, there will be a significant number of ARR1987 compliant models for a few years, but they will be progressively changed over to ARR2016 compliant models over time.
Any developer and/or their consultant undertaking any drainage work within a drainage catchment that needs endorsement/approval from the Water Corporation should check with the Water Corporation which ARR technique should be followed. The Water Corporation will advise the developer/consultant of the status of the modelling review of the overall catchment and the ARR edition that would need to be followed.
It is important to note that this is an interim Water Corporation position and a joint DWER/WC position will be published later this year. UDIA will keep members informed of progress.
Planning for Entertainment Noise in the Northbridge Area
An entertainment noise consultation paper has been released by the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage for comment which aims to maintain Northbridge’s unique nightlife culture through proposed amendments to the Environmental Protection (Noise) Regulations 1997 and the establishment of a Special Control Area under City of Perth’s City Planning Scheme No 2. The amendments are anticipated to provide greater protection for venues, as well as clear and consistent development guidelines for new developments in the area. Submissions are open until 26 November, 2018. More information is available here.
Indicative BAL ratings in bushfire risk assessments & Bushfire construction details for housing
The Building Commission has produced two new industry bulletins to provide guidance on bushfire requirements. The first provides general guidance on the use of indicative bushfire risk assessments under the building approval system (available here) and the second provides general guidance on typical bushfire construction details to be included within plans and specifications listed in a certificate of design compliance (available here). The complete list of Building Commission industry bulletins can be viewed here.
WA Heritage Bill 2017 passed
The Heritage Bill 2017 has been passed in Parliament, replacing the 28 year old Heritage of Western Australia Act 1990, and bringing WA legislation into line with that of other States.
Key changes will include streamlined processes for entering a place in the State Register; owner certainty for development of heritage places; increased transparency; and greater protection for State registered places through incentives including grants and technical assistance access.
The new Bill will be applied following development of the accompanying regulations, in consultation with stakeholders over coming months. UDIA will keep members updated as further details are released.
We want your feedback!
UDIA is currently working on several submissions on behalf of members. We encourage you to forward any feedback to these items to policy@udiawa.com.au.
The Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 – Biodiversity Conservation Regulations are out for comment with submissions due by 30 September, 2018. More information here.
The discussion Paper on cost recovery for the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation is out for comment and submissions are due by Thursday 1 November, 2018. More information here.
The DPLH and DWER joint discussion paper on Planning for Entertainment Noise in the Northbridge Area is out for comment. Submissions are due by 26 November, 2018. More information here.
The next stage of the Local Government Act Review has been released for comment, with submissions closing 31 March, 2019. More information here.
Baldivis Children’s Forest: Environmental Education Centre development launch
UDIA members are invited to attend the official launch of the Baldivis Children’s Forest’s (BCF) development of a new Environmental Education Centre (EEC) on Tuesday 2nd October, 5.30pm-7.00pm. The BCF provides educational opportunities for children and the wider community which promote biodiversity, conservation, sustainability, and Aboriginal cultural values and perspectives at the Children’s Forest. Attendees will see design plans for the EEC and hear about opportunities to contribute to the project. Special guests will include Hon. Peter Tinley MLA and Reece Whitby MLA. For more information and to RSVP contact admin@baldivischildrensforest.org.
Waste Authority Infinity Awards 2018
Nominations are now open for the Waste Authority WA’s Infinity Awards 2018. The awards serve to recognise the achievements of Western Australians employing improved waste practices and innovative waste solutions to create a better waste future. Nominations close Tuesday 9 October, 2018. View more information here.
Subiaco Business Conference 2018
The City of Subiaco will be hosting the Subiaco Business Conference 2018 at the Subiaco Arts Centre on 11 October 2018. The event will feature an exciting line up of speakers and workshops to support any industry. All small businesses and business owners interested in learning new skills, hearing from business experts and making new connections are welcome. More information is available here.