GRANNY flats will not be allowed in front yards but there will be more dual occupancies and basement car parks in future development across Sutherland Shire.
These are features of the Sutherland Shire draft development control plan (DCP), which gives planning and design guidelines to support the shire's new Local Environmental Plan (LEP) expected to be gazetted this month.
The most significant change for dual occupancies is the removal of the minimum lot size requirement, allowing many new sites to be developed for dual occupancies that were previously prohibited.
But Councillor Phil Blight had concerns about aspects of the draft DCP.
"There is no plan to improve parking with all the massive residential towers and increase in dual occupancies in our suburbs," he said.
"The DCP is made to facilitate the over-development of the shire coming with the new LEP."
Under LEP 2006, dual occupancies had to be built side-by-side. Under the new LEP it will also be possible to build one above the other and one behind another.
Dual occupancies will not be permitted in foreshore areas or bushfire prone places.
Other features of the draft DCP include:
Developments of 20 or more dwellings will have a minimum of 100 square metres of communal open space.
Lot sizes for residential flat development should be at least 26 metres, a reduction of 30 metres on the existing LEP.
Proposed rear and side boundary setbacks aim to reduce the level of overshadowing, the DCP will have provision to reflect cases where ‘‘strict compliance would be unreasonable’’.
Basement car parks will be allowed for houses in the R2 zone only in cases where they sit comfortably in established streetscapes and in high-density zones.
Two indigenous trees must be planted near the front boundary and two near the rear boundary to grow up to four metres when a block is redeveloped.
Development must be designed so that it fully or partly maintains existing view corridors but more focus is placed on ‘‘balancing the amenity of the neighbouring public and private property with the amenity afforded to the new development.’’
Last week the council endorsed the draft DCP to go on public exhibition for 28 days.
What do you think of the new shire DCP?