Residents and businesses in Alpine Shire now have a streamlined way to interact with Alpine Shire Council's Planning Team, thanks to the launch of a new online planning portal.
A Planning Permit is a legal document that gives you permission to use or develop land in a certain way.
It usually includes conditions and approved plans which must be complied with.
Council is responsible for deciding on Planning Permit applications in the Alpine Shire.
Click here for common reasons you will need a planning permit.
Differences between planning and building
What is the difference between a planning permit and a building permit and which one do I need to apply for?
Planning permits and building permits are different. This means that you may need one or both depending on your proposed development.
Planning
Planning considers the way land is used and developed, and how this impacts the character and amenity (liveability) of an area.
The Alpine Planning Scheme, approved by the Victorian Government, outlines objectives, policies and controls for the use, development and protection of land.
A Planning Permit is a legal document that gives you permission to use or develop land in a certain way. It usually includes conditions and approved plans which must be complied with.
Council is responsible for deciding on Planning Permit applications in Alpine Shire.
Planning decisions will take into account:
- how the development or land use will impact the environment
- how the development or land use will impact the neighbourhood and neighbours
Building
Building is concerned with safe construction practices, and considers whether the construction work and new uses conform to building regulations, the Building Code | ABCC and relevant Australian standards.
A Building Permit is a legal document, issued before construction commences, to ensure the building meets the minimum requirements for the health, safety and amenity of occupants and the public.
Building Permits are issued by a Private Building Surveyor.
If you need a building permit, head to our Building | Alpine Shire Council page.
If you require both permits, you must get the planning permit before applying for the building permit – having an approved planning permit does not mean that you can start construction without first getting a building permit.
When you need a planning permit
If you are starting, expanding or moving a business
You might need to apply for a planning permit if you are:
o starting a business
o changing the layout or purpose of your business
o changing the location of your busines
o adding a liquor license to your business
o displaying new signage.
New businesses may need other kinds of permits as well. The best way to find out the right information is through our Business Approvals process for starting a new business.
Commercial priority
If you are applying for a planning permit for a new or current business, you might qualify for commercial priority. Commercial priority is a separate stream for commercial planning applications. Commercial priority applications are assessed faster so that you can open your business sooner.
A planning application qualifies for commercial priority if it meets all 3 of the below:
o The proposal is for a new or expanding business
o The proposal is supported by Council, and
o The applicant has had a meeting with the relevant departments.
If you are renovating or extending your house
You may need a planning permit if you are renovating or extending your house. This could include:
o adding an extra room
o building a pergola or deck
o building a front fence
o installing a new driveway
o installing services like solar panels, a water tank or an air conditioner.
You won't always need a planning permit for your renovation. It depends on the zones, overlays and planning permits that may cover the property you want to renovate.
If your development has multiple units
You always need a planning permit to build more than one dwelling on a lot. A dwelling includes a house, unit or townhouse.
The number of dwellings you can build depends on the zoning of your land and the design of your development. There is no formula of dwelling numbers per lot size.
It's not about how many dwellings could fit on a lot, but whether or not the proposal meets the requirements of the Alpine Planning Scheme, including ResCode.
There are many factors that affect how many dwellings you can build, including:
o site orientation to the sun in relation to shadowing on neighbouring properties
o car parking and space for cars to turn
o windows on abutting land that are close to the boundary
o the slope of the land.
If you are looking to buy a property and would like to know what you may be able to build, you should talk to an experienced draftsperson or architect who understands the requirements of ResCode and can provide some advice.
Once you have a set of plans, you should request a pre-application meeting.
When assessing your plans, we will consider:
o the size of your development
o how it fits in to the neighbourhood (or, if in a zone for increased density development, whether it makes a positive contribution to the area)
o the impact it has on the rest of the neighbourhood
o what car parking is needed
o the features of the site.
If you are a developer or owner builder there are also important Commonwealth telecommunications rules you need to comply with. For more information visit www.infrastructure.gov.au/tind
If you are subdividing land or a building into two separate lots
If you are dividing land or a building into two separate lots, this is called subdivision. Subdivision requires a planning permit.
If you are subdividing your backyard or a vacant lot of land, we recommend that you submit a planning permit application for a multi-use development before you submit one for subdivision. This will make your subdivision application simpler.
As well as our planning process requirements, to subdivide you will need:
o to make an open space contribution
o to complete any necessary public works
o water sensitive urban design techniques to meet targets for stormwater quality and discharge
o to create an owners corporation. You can find out more about owners corporations at the Consumer Affairs Victoria - Consumer Affairs Victoria.
If you are developing a property with a heritage overlay
If there is a heritage overlay on the property, you must get a planning permit for all external changes. This includes if you want to build a front fence or install solar panels and other services. It may also include if you want to paint your property or remove or prune trees.
You will need a planning permit for whole or partial demolition of any building or structure.
Guidelines for heritage areas
We have the following guidelines to assist in altering or changing houses in heritage areas:
Wandiligong Heritage Guidelines
The Dinner Plain Planning Provisions
Heritage Victoria has information about heritage places and what heritage listing means for landowners.
Protection of heritage places
Local heritage places are protected in the Alpine Planning Scheme through heritage overlays, which require a planning permit to alter a heritage place.
A heritage overlay conserves and enhances heritage. An overlay shows how your land can be used and developed. All heritage overlays are recorded in the Alpine Planning Scheme. Importantly, the heritage overlay does not stop development, but it helps ensure that any new works don't affect the heritage significance of the place. Heritage sites are protected in one of two ways:
1. Heritage overlays applied to an individual site, building or object
Individual heritage overlays can have controls that require you to get a planning permit to paint a building, make changes inside a building, and remove, destroy or prune a tree on the site. A place with its own heritage overlay is an important heritage site.
2. Heritage overlay applied to a broader area
Most heritage sites do not have their own individual heritage overlay. Instead they are identified and protected within a heritage overlay control that applies over a wider area, which may include all the houses in a street or group of streets. This is called a heritage precinct overlay.
A heritage precinct overlay can include places with no heritage value. These places have a heritage overlay so that new development does not have a negative impact on the heritage significance of the whole area.
You can find a list of all individually listed heritage sites and all properties in a heritage precinct overlay at the Alpine Planning Scheme. You can also check the Victorian Heritage Database if your property is in a heritage overlay and you want to know more.
If you are developing a property with a Bushfire Management Overlay
Please download the BMO guidelines document for all required documentation.
The purpose of the Bushfire Management Overlay (BMO) is to:
- ensure that the development of land prioritises the protection of human life and strengthens community resilience to bushfire.
- ensure that the location, design and construction of development appropriately responds to the bushfire hazard.
- ensure development is only permitted where the risk to life, property and community infrastructure from bushfire can be reduced to an acceptable level.
- specify location, design and construction measures for a single dwelling that reduces the bushfire risk to life and property to an acceptable level.
The BMO requires a planning permit for certain developments and subdivision, bushfire hazards to be assessed and implementation of bushfire protection measures. See the Bushfire Management Overlay for types of development and subdivision that require a planning permit.
You can find out if your property is covered by Planning Victoria home page (planning.vic.gov.au) for instructions.
Further information for land owners can be found here BMO-LandOwners-July2019-v2.pdf (planning.vic.gov.au)
What do I need to provide with my planning application?
Particular documents are required with each type of planning application. Please see the links below, to the Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning website for BMO document requirements.
Click on the type of development you are undertaking in the BMO:
· Outbuildings, sheds and similar works
· Single dwellings in a BMO schedule (planning.vic.gov.au)
· Single dwellings in an existing settlement (planning.vic.gov.au)
· All other single dwellings (planning.vic.gov.au)
· All other development (excluding single dwellings) (planning.vic.gov.au)
· Subdivision in the Bushfire Management Overlay (planning.vic.gov.au)
· Other development including unit development, commercial, retail.
You may need to engage in a qualified professional to undertake some of this work.
Please visit Planning and Bushfire Management Overlay on the CFA website for Help and Advice, there is a link to a list of accredited Bushfire Planning and Design Practitioners (BPAD).
If you are running a business from home
If you are running a business from home, you might need to get a planning permit.
You will need to apply for a planning permit for a home-based business if:
o there are more than 2 people who do not live in the home working at the business at the same time
o the total floor area used for the business is more than 200 square metres, or more than one-third of the whole house
o more than one commercial vehicle is present on site.
Other requirements for permits for businesses at home
There may also be other requirements that you will need to meet if you want to run a business from home.
If you have read the above and believe you need a planning permit, visit our Planning Application Portal to get started.
How to start your planning permit process
If you have read the above and believe you need a planning permit, visit our Planning Application Portal to get started.
