SMBI Housing Applications Now Approved Faster

Around 25 per cent of development applications for houses on the Southern Moreton Bay Islands are now decided by Redland City Council within five days, thanks to a new accelerated approval process.

Last month, the south-east Queensland Council of Mayors launched the T5 (Target 5 Days) initiative, a federal government-funded project aimed at reducing application assessment times.

Redland City Council was among councils that were early adopters of the process reforms, and had already achieved a significant reduction in development assessment timeframes, particularly on the Southern Moreton Bay Islands.

Redland City Mayor Melva Hobson said before the new process was introduced, standard housing applications on the islands took around 30 days to be approved, on average.

“Today, a quarter of applications are now decided within five days – that’s a reduction in waiting time of more than 80 per cent, which is an excellent improvement,” the Mayor said.

“Even for those not eligible for the accelerated process, we have sped up the approval time.

“Around 85 per cent of all other housing development applications are decided within 40 days, and of that number, about 40 per cent are decided within 20.

“These improvements mean it is quicker and easier to have housing development applications approved on the islands.”

To be eligible for the accelerated process, applicants need to comply with the design criteria outlined in the Accelerated DA kit, available online at www.redland.qld.gov.au (click on “Planning and building”, then “Development”).

For more information, phone 3829 8546.