David Carey

A common question is whether it is possible to extend a development consent before the expiry date. There have been many changes to the...

Our at times dry landscape and the risk of bush fires means that planning for bush fire protection has been integrated into the NSW...

There are a few loopholes in the NSW planning system that allow a developer to gain a greater yield for a site than would otherwise by...

Since the late 1990s, most approvals from state government agencies required to perform a type of development have been integrated into...

There are a few loopholes in the NSW planning system that allow a developer to gain a greater yield for a site than would otherwise by...

Quite often, someone will receive approval for a Development Application and will need to modify it. The modification may be the result...

In my post on zoning, I explained how zoning in NSW can restrict the type of development that is allowed on a parcel of land. Zoning is a...

A major amendment to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 came into effect earlier in 2018. A number of commonly used...

The Local Government Act 1993 has a requirement that land owned by a Council is categorised as either "community land" or "operational...

A common question is how long does a Council have to determine a Development Application in NSW before the applicant has the option of...

Changes were made to State Environmental Planning Policy (Affordable Rental Housing) 2009 that came into effect on 1 June 2018. These...

There are currently a total of 128 local government areas in NSW, following a series of recent mergers, bringing the number down from a...

I currently prepare Statement of Environmental Effects documents and lodge Development Applications for a number of different clients. A...

The traditional form of obtaining approval for a Development in NSW is to lodge a Development Application with the Local Council....

An important control in the NSW planning system is floor space ratio (FSR). It has become increasingly important in recent years, as all...

One area that a lot of owners are unsure about is what type of development they can do on a property that is heritage listed. Does...

One of the most simple ways to avoid delays in getting a Development Application approved is providing the Council all of the information...

A key feature of the NSW planning system are Development Control Plans, which are usually referred to be their abbreviation DCP. A...

Almost all land in NSW has been designated with a "zone" under a planning instrument. These are typically a Local Environmental Plan (LEP...