The Department of Planning, Industries and Environment (DPIE) has announced a new Planning Delivery Unit (PDU) to work with Government Agencies to unblock planning projects stuck in the system.
Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, Rob Stokes said the Unit would focus on resolving issues in major development applications (DAs), State Significant Developments, planning proposals and precincts so decisions could be made faster.
“An efficient planning system has proven vital in our work to get the State back on the road to recovery post-pandemic,” Mr Stokes said.
“The new PDU is the new central point of escalation, complementing our Planning System Acceleration Program and keeping transparency, timeliness and certainty at the heart of our system,” he said.
“The PDU is led by former Liverpool City Council CEO Kiersten Fishburn and will comprise a team of up to 30 staff, including a number of senior specialist case managers.”
Mr Stokes said the Unit had been instructed to prioritise an initial four projects including the Parramatta Road Corridor Strategy; St Leonards Crows Nest 2036 Plan; Glenfield Precinct; and Marsden Park North.
Treasurer, Dominic Perrottet said PDU would also prioritise project delivery in regional NSW by directing planning panels to determine projects, where necessary, if a decision hadn’t been made within 120 days.
