By NOEL MURPHY
BUILDING permit delays are usually due to application errors, mayor Darryn Lyons has said following industry claims Geelong has millions of dollars of investment tied up in red tape.
“Any delay in getting a permit is usually because applicants haven’t provided the correct information,” Cr Lyons told the Independent.
“Recent statistics show our permit application approvals and responses are well-within suggested state response time guidelines with response times showing a reduction in recent months.
“At the end of last year 83 per cent of applications were processed within 60 days. Geelong has gone above and beyond the state VicSmart planning system, introducing 10-day turnarounds for an additional seven types of planning applications in central Geelong.”
Other municipalities poaching Geelong planners could also be contributing to the problem, Cr Lyons suggested.
Delays were cited last week by local building industry figure Pat Sgro who told last week’s Independent that a planning department bottleneck was throttling the city’s domestic sector.
“The people who’re longing for the build of their home, the people who are actually paying money, are so completely over it and at their wits end – but why?
But City Hall said Mr Sgro “appeared to have confused planning permits and building permits”.
“Planning permits are issued by local government, while building permits can be issued by local government but are more-frequently issued by building surveyors.”
Cr Lyons said that when he became mayor he asked City of Greater Geelong planning chief Peter Bettess “to make our planning department the best in the state”.
“And full credit to Peter and his team, they’ve done that. Our planning department has gained an enviable reputation and, as a result, our planners are being poached.”
