Thursday, August 30, 2012

Action to end housing crisis

Joint Statement:
Premier
The Honourable Campbell NewmanDeputy Premier, Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning
The Honourable Jeff Seeney

Monday, August 06, 2012
Action to end housing crisis
The Newman Government today announced decisive action to end the housing crisis in the state’s mining towns.

It will fast track land releases for housing development freeing up land held by the Urban Land Development Authority (ULDA).

Premier Campbell Newman said today there would be no more fiddling around the edges of the problem as Labor had done.

“We want real impact and we want it fast,” Mr Newman said.

Initial action will accelerate delivery of more than a thousand land allotments in Moranbah and Blackwater.

But the process will quickly expand to other central Queensland towns, Mackay, the Darling Downs, Burnett and Central Queensland coasts, Cairns and Mt Isa.

The Premier said the Government had set a new direction for the ULDA, which was being merged into Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney’s Department of State Development, Infrastructure and Planning.

“Under the previous government, the ULDA’s activity was focussed on delivering housing at the low end of the market and was limited to small releases at a time,” Mr Newman said.

“This will be totally turned around, where appropriate. Land held in Urban Development Areas by the ULDA will be released to the market for housing development.

“There has been obvious market failure in towns like Moranbah and Blackwater where there is an inadequate supply of land and therefore of affordable housing.

Our action now will change that in the shortest possible time.

“The greatest impact on the affordability of housing the Government can have is to increase land supply to the general market and deliver more lots, more quickly.”

Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney said his department would spend $15 million over the next nine months to deliver 185 housing allotments in Moranbah and Blackwater.

“That land will be available by next March,” Mr Seeney said.

“I have also tasked the ULDA transition team to work closely with Isaac Regional Council to assist it in the early delivery of its Belyando Estate which will deliver 1000 lots to the market.

“Secondly, I have tasked my department and ULDA team to collaborate with Western Downs and Maranoa Regional Councils and the Gladstone Regional Council to identify projects that they can accelerate to deliver housing more quickly in the Surat Basin and Gladstone respectively.

“The Government will work with the private sector to meet land supply demand in some communities to ease the rental pressures currently being faced.”

The Premier said the Government was also conscious that there were other issues being experienced in regional and resource centres which were impacting on the delivery of housing.

“We will work with local councils to identify roadblocks which are preventing housing outcomes as well as opportunities or actions that can deliver early ‘on the ground outcomes’ in key specific towns,” Mr Newman said.

This may involve identifying ‘lazy’ government land which could be utilised to increase housing supply.

The initiative will include a series of workshops in 11 regional centres across Queensland which will provide the team with the chance to talk to people on the ground that are involved in the delivery of housing who know the issues and also the potential opportunities.

These workshops, to be held in the coming weeks, will inform the preparation of a Resource and Regional Town Action Plan for government consideration by December 2012.

Workshops are being held mostly throughout September with the first workshop in Dalby on 29 August. They will be held in the following locations:

• Dalby (including Chinchilla, Wandoan, Miles)
• Roma (including Injune)
• Toowoomba
• Bundaberg
• Gladstone

• Emerald (including Blackwater)
• Rockhampton
• Moranbah (including Clermont, Middlemount and Dysart)
• Mackay
• Mt Isa
• Cairns

[ENDS] 6 August 2012

Media Contact:

Premier’s Office – 3224 4500
Deputy Premier’s Office – 3224 4600

Red tape cuts for development applicants

Deputy Premier, Minister for State Development, Infrastrcture and Planning
The Honourable Jeff Seeney


Thursday, August 09, 2012
Red tape cuts for development applicants
New amendments that will cut red tape and result in substantial time and cost savings for applicants for development approvals have come into effect.

Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning Jeff Seeney said amendments to the Sustainable Planning Regulation would remove a range of triggers requiring referral of development applications to State agencies.

“Removing these triggers will mean 1500 fewer referrals per year in the Integrated Development Assessment System,” he said.

“These referrals were mostly for State agencies to provide advice only, and were adding to the regulatory and cost burden for applicants, councils and State agencies.

“Add to that, many of the referrals applied to applications that would not otherwise have needed referral, so the potential time and cost savings from removing them are even greater.”

Referral triggers to be removed include:
• Advice referrals for conservation estate areas, cultural heritage premises, and wetlands - Department of Environment and Heritage Protection;
• Advice referral for premises affected by acid sulfate soils - Department of Natural Resources and Mines;
• Concurrence referral for particular applications for preliminary approval -Department of State Development, Infrastructure and Planning; and
• Concurrence referrals for purposes of community uses, places of worship, and education-care service premises-child care centres - Department of Transport and Main Roads.

Mr Seeney said the regulation also included an important reform that would streamline the way leases were given for housing in Indigenous communities.

“Under the new amendments, social housing tenants will be able to convert their tenancy to a long term lease without triggering the need for a development application,” he said.

“This will put them on par with people purchasing dwellings on freehold land where development approvals are not triggered by sales.”

“It is an important step so Indigenous residents are not caught up in red tape.”

Mr Seeney said the focus would now shift to expressing the State’s interest in the matters previously covered through the referrals in a more up front way.
[ENDS] 9 August 2012
Media Contact: Kate Haddan – 3224 4600

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Draftsman, Building Designer, Architect: What’s the difference

If you are looking at getting some plans drawn for your next building project it may be useful to know the difference between a Draftsman, Building Designer and Architect. They all prepare plans for building projects, and here are the key differences between them:

Draftsmen

are generally TAFE qualified, and would normally work under the supervision of an architect or building designer. Some will also produce drawings for builders. A draftsman is not licensed and therefore in Queensland is not permitted to produce plans directly for a consumer.

• Building Designers

are either TAFE or Tertiary qualified. They must be licensed in Queensland by the Building Services Authority (BSA) under the name “Building Designer”. This means that in Queensland building designers are registered under the same licensing system as all builders and building contractors. A condition of the BSA license is that a Building Designer must hold professional indemnity insurance. In Queensland there are three tiers of builing design licenses, depending on qualifications and experience. With the highest tier there is no difference in the work that can be done by a building designer as opposed to an architect. A Building Designer must be registered in Queensland to prepare plans directly for a consumer. For more information on Building Designers go to www.bdaq.com.au or www.findabuildingdesigner.com.au

• Architects

are tertiary qualified, must pass an architectural practice exam, and be registered by the Board of Architects of Queensland (BOAQ). The BOAQ is a statutory authority established under the Architects Act 2002, which also protects the title “architect” and “registered architect”. The Act makes it an offence for someone who is not a registered architect in Queensland to call themselves an architect. Architects have the training to design a wide range of building types from small dwellings to city high-rise. An architect must be registered in Queensland to prepare drawings directly for a consumer. For more information on Architects go to www.boaq.qld.gov.au or www.raia.com.au

Registered Engineers are also permitted to prepare plans for consumers in Queensland. In summary it is illegal in Queensland for someone to produce plans for a consumer and not be a registered architect, a registered engineer or a BSA licensed building designer.
To protect your rights as a consumer, make sure the person preparing your plans is a correctly licensed or registered professional.

Written by Paul Hindes, www.soulspace.com.au
Published in Sunshine Coast Daily "Homestyle" magazine May 2012
 

Monday, August 6, 2012

SUNSHINE COAST BDAQ MEETING

Wednesday, 8 August, 2012.

Location

Amber Tiles Showroom,
Cnr Third Avenue & Aerodrome Road, Maroochydore
Meeting Commences 6.00pm.

Finger Food & Beverages will be provided by Amber Tiles.

SPONSOR:

AMBER TILES –
Debbie will inform us of new and exciting products that we can possible

incorporate on our projects.

BREEZEWAY –
Tony will provide an update on the latest from Breezeway

Please remember to
RSVP by Monday 6 August and advise of any special dietary

requirements

Brad Read at brad@brdg.com.au