Statutory Planning in Victoria

Please note: we recently published a new work The Victorian Planning System: Practice, Problems and Prospects by Stephen Rowley dealing with the same subject matter which is more up to date. We continue to make this book available as people will find this a valuable resource.

The fourth edition of Statutory Planning in Victoria provides a comprehensive description and analysis of the planning regime in Victoria. It contains considerably more detail than earlier editions on:

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• the processes of planning scheme amendment;
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• the consideration and determination of planning permit applications; and
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• review of decisions on those applications by VCAT (the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal)
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It also includes up-to-date information about:

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• amendments to the Planning and Environment Act 1987 and related legislation and regulations, including the Planning and Environment (Development Contributions) Act 2004 and the Planning and Environment (General Amendment) Act 2004;
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• ResCode and its application to subdivision, the development of one dwelling on a lot, and development of medium density housing proposals;
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• Melbourne 2030 - the Victorian Government's planning strategy for the metropolitan area, the metropolitan growth boundary and the green wedge zones; and
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• key decisions of the Supreme Court and VCAT since 1999.
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Reviews of the 3rd edition: This comprehensive book strips away much of the complexity and offers an insight into the world of planning law. In doing so it will enable citizens and businesses - and those advising them - to better understand the system that controls the use and development of land in Victoria. Occasionally I am asked by those interested in understanding Victoria's statutory planning system: Where is the best place to start? For this purpose legislation can be intimidating, planning schemes can be confusing and commentaries can be selective. What is needed for this purpose is a comprehensive and readable work, which covers the whole system. This is such a work. One of the outstanding features of the book is the way the authors have explained the evolution of Victoria's planning system. The authors are experienced academics, with a long history of university research and teaching. But they have also had hands-on experience by sitting as tribunal members and engaging in the cut and thrust of everyday planning decision-making. This special combination of theory and practice shows up, time and again, in this work. It means that the book will be suitable for the student, the practitioner and the ordinary citizen. - Stuart Morris, President of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal [The book] provides a hearty and approachable overview of statutory planning (a term which the authors note is normally used to refer to the formulation and administration of controls on the use and development of land) in Victoria. It is evident to the reader that the authors have had wide experience in the field. The book provides a good balance of history and current practice. Various cases are referred to as examples, but these are not presented in a burdensome manner. - Australasian Journal of Environmental Management Vol 14, December 2007

Des Eccles is a former Member in the Planning and Environment List of Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. He was also formerly an Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Social Inquiry and Community Studies at Victoria University of Technology. He has 30 years experience as a planning practitioner and University lecturer in urban and regional planning. He is a Life Fellow of the Planning Institute of Australia.

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