Bega Valley Shire Council has unveiled a proposal to streamline approval to live in a tiny house on wheels.
The council has developed a draft new local approvals policy under their Local Environment Plan and follows a high profile fight with Coolagolite land owner, Gordon Kelly and former tiny home residents Joshua Heins and Manu Bohn, in the NSW Land and Environment Court.
The three new pathway options for tiny homes, that meet the legal definition of a caravan, have been unveiled at a public briefing session ahead of the November council meeting later this month.
Planning Director Emily Harrison told the meeting as we’ve discussed many times tiny home isn’t defined planning legislation so it’s not a term that from an approval process we use so in this context and we do have a a footnote there so it’s clear when we talk about a caravan that can include a tiny home on wheels if it meets those provisions.
Under one of the proposed pathways no DA would be required.
“In certain circumstances you could put a caravan which can include a tiny home on wheels if it meets the definition of caravan, and have it used by a separate household without needing a DA,” Ms Harrison said.
“There would still be an approval process but it would be under the local government act as a Section 68 approval so it’s a simpler process,” she said.
The new pathways takes a risk-based approach to approval. Low risk cases would mean the more streamlined process. Higher risk plans such as areas in flood and bushfire risk zones would still be required to following the existing full DA process.
Conditions under the proposal would also include a limit of one caravan (tiny home) per block and generators would not be permitted to avoid noise complaints from neighbours.
Council approval for a tiny house would be restricted to use of the land not endorsing the quality of tiny homes build and structural quality.
“We’re actually looking to facilitate three different approval pathways that will get us a number of different outcomes,” Ms Harrison said.
“There’s clarifying ancillary uses that are exempt development and that relates to clarification of the exempt development pathway relating to the ancillary use of a caravan predominantly for in conjunction with the household and then extension of the national natural disaster displacement exemption,” she said.
“It’s currently two years if you’re impacted by natural disaster we’d like to extend that to three years. There are still options for council to extend that further on a case by case basis but we believe that three years provides a better balance or starting point when we look at what recovery means and what time frames look like.
“Another part of the package which relies heavily on a Section 68 or a local approvals policy which relates to the local government act relates to providing a Section 68 approval pathway for the installation of a caravan for use as a secondary dwelling by a separate household.
“That would mean that on an existing property in certain circumstances you could put a caravan, which can include a tiny home on wheels if it meets the definition of caravan, and have it used by a separate household without needing a DA. There would still be an approval process but it would be under the local government act as a section 68 approval so it’s a simpler process.
“This change of the local approvals policy would also provide opportunities for people to live on site in a caravan while they’re building a dwelling and also has provisions for onsite workers accommodation.
“That is a time limited approval process if you want to go down the Section 68 approval pathway. If you wanted to use a structure like that as a permanent secondary dwelling then you still have access to go down the DA pathway.
“The third one is development consent which is about a new provision to allow council to accept the development application for a caravan on a vacant lot with the development entitlement there rather than a building you could use a caravan.”
Ms Harrison said the new pathways are designed to provide more housing options for residents but would not apply everywhere across the shire.
“This proposed policy package responds to rental housing and affordability and unavailability increasing homelessness uncertainty around existing planning pathways and increasing interest in mobile tiny homes,” she said.
“This has been a topic of conversation for a number of months or years now.”
Land mapped as flood zone or bushfire prone would be excluded.
This applies to certain land use zones, not to every land use zone in the Shire,” Ms Harrison said.
“In particular when we’re talking about installing a caravan we’re talking about that applying to zones that R2 low density residential, R3 medium density residential, RU 5 village, R5 large lot residential and MU 1 mixed use,” she said.
A comprehensive information package will be provided to the community if the plan is endorsed by councillors and the State Government.
“We’re trying to reduce application complexity to provide clear approval pathways, make sure it’s really clear upfront for people what the requirements are and how they can know if they comply or not and then support applicants with resources and materials,” Ms Harrison said.
But those hoping for this to occur quickly will be disappointed. The complex planning framework in place means the process will take at least a year to be completed. If the proposal is endorsed by a majority of the councillors later this month it will then need to be sent to the NSW Planning for endorsement to proceed with community consultation.
“We expect a Gateway Determination may be December/January but noting the Christmas period we don’t want to go out exhibition on this over Christmas,” she said.
“We want to wait till people are sort of back and ready so we’re thinking February/March for public exhibition, April/May evaluate feedback, July’s reporting back to council and in September we may be able to make the LEP amendment and commence the policy.”
Councillors will be asked to decide whether it is also to be a pilot or permanent policy. Staff will be recommending it is a permanent policy.
