After 3 years of block-by-block research and extensive consultation, the City of Sydney has adopted the Central Sydney planning strategy.
This gives us a long-term vision that will help us promote jobs and grow the economy while protecting the inner-city’s heritage and public spaces.
The plan paves the way for new skyscrapers and ensures sunlight will still shine on our much-loved open spaces.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore described the policy as a blueprint for planning done well.
“This is about strengthening public open space, accessibility and connections to make moving around the city easier and more enjoyable for workers, residents and visitors,” the Lord Mayor said.
“The strategy uses extensive evidence-based work and considers the current and future needs of our city.
“It will also help us lay the foundations for the city’s recovery from the devastating economic and social impacts of the coronavirus and maintain Sydney’s status as an attractive place for business investment.
“We want to strengthen public open space, accessibility and connections to make moving around the city easier and more enjoyable for workers, residents and visitors.”
After community and business feedback, we made changes to the planning framework including:
- phasing out an incentive extra floor space for residential development over two years
- saving time by allowing a project to proceed to a stage 2 detailed design development application based on the approval of the concept design
- excluding the north part of the Kent Street tower cluster around Gas Lane, which is a transition area between the residential character of Millers Point and the commercial centre
- removing the proposed extra 30 metres in height control in the same northern Kent Street area
- updating guidelines for site-specific planning proposals in central Sydney to allow landowners to lodge planning proposals.
We'll ask the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces to amend the regulations to allow for a contributions levy of up to 3% to apply to new development. This will help ensure local infrastructure keeps pace with growth.
This increased levy will fund new infrastructure to support the increase in floor space in the planning proposal. It will also ensure Central Sydney remains an attractive place for investment.
Other elements of the strategy include supporting emerging designers and architects and promoting more women into design leadership roles.
Published 21 December 2020, updated 19 March 2021
