As part of the State Government’s Smart Planning Program, Amendment VC148 – reforms to the Victorian Planning Provisions (VPP), was gazetted by the Hon. Richard Wynne, Minister for Planning, on Tuesday 31 July.

The Government has touted VC148 as the biggest change to the VPP since its inception.  The amendment will integrate VicSmart and will introduce a new integrated Planning Policy Framework (PPF) which will see state, regional and local planning policies combined into a single policy source to ensure a more efficient, accessible and transparent planning system.

VC148 also introduces a number of changes that support business by removing unnecessary regulation. Key changes are:

Reduced car parking requirements

  • Clause 56.02 (Car Parking) of the VPP has been revised so that a planning permit is not required to reduce car parking requirements for new uses of existing buildings in commercial areas, provided that certain requirements are met.
  • The rate of car parking for land that is 400m away from a railway station, tram route, or a high quality bus route, has been reduced. For residential development, this means no visitor parking requirements.

Removal of permit requirements for low-impact uses

Planning permits are no longer required for:

  • Convenience shop – Industrial 1 Zone
  • Take Away food premises – Industrial 1 Zone and Industrial 3 Zone
  • Service industry – Industrial 3 Zone (subject to conditions specified in the table of uses)

Removal of outdated provisions

  • Removal of outdated provisions, which include Service Station, Car Wash, and Motor Vehicle, Boat and Caravan Sales.

For further information, please click here for advisory notes and a summary of changes on Amendment VC148.