The Draft MidCoast Rural Strategy sets out a proposed framework for clear and consistent land use planning principles to sustainably manage the use of lands and resources outside of our towns and villages.

It will be used to inform preparation of not only the new MidCoast Local Environmental Plan and Development Control Plan, but to guide well-balanced development and conservation outcomes across our rural landscape into the future.

The Strategy addresses the ways we can identify and protect productive land and water resources, provide accommodation and services for rural communities and manage development in rural environments.

Development in the MidCoast is still guided by three different planning frameworks, a legacy of the three former councils.

We are currently in the process of developing a single, contemporary set of planning controls - including a Local Environmental Plan (LEP) and a Development Control Plan (DCP) - that will cater for our community now and into the future... all the while ensuring we maintain the unique character of our existing towns, villages and rural areas.

The Draft MidCoast Rural Strategy is the final body of work to be undertaken before we start developing the new, region-wide planning controls. It aims to provide a consolidated platform for how land and water resources outside our towns and villages will be used and developed in the coming decades, and identifies circumstances or locations where extra attention may be required to balance competing environmental and development considerations.

The Draft Rural Strategy and consideration of land use and development in rural, environmental and waterway areas of the MidCoast is part of a broad strategic land use planning program that commenced in 2019, to inform preparation of the new MidCoast Local Environmental Plan and Development Control Plan.

The research undertaken to prepare a Draft Rural Strategy for all these lands across the MidCoast local government area has taken three years to review and collate into a series of background reports on key issues including housing, agriculture, tourism, waterways and paper subdivisions.

The preparation of a single Strategy document, online mapping and other resources suitable for public exhibition was completed in 2021 and placed on exhibition in August 2021.

The draft MidCoast Rural Strategy planning controls can influence:

• opportunities to diversify agricultural production on rural lands
• protection of environmental lands and waterways
• tourism-related development opportunities on rural and environmental land
• Housing and accommodation opportunities in rural and environmental areas
• Subdivision and development opportunities in rural and environmental areas

In some places the changes proposed are minimal or no change at all, while in other areas there may be a wide range of changes proposed. Changes may include:

• Land Zoning
• Minimum lot size for subdivision
• Maximum building height controls
• new local clauses that provide clear and consistent assessment of subdivision and development in our rural, environmental and waterway zones.

After reviewing the documentation, you could provide your feedback on the Draft MidCoast Rural Strategy, or any part of it, by completing the online submission form, by email, or by post. Submissions closed at 4.30pm on Friday 28 January 2022.

The State guidelines for community consultation require a four week (28 day) public exhibition period for land use planning studies, however an extended period of 22 weeks has been allowed for the draft Rural Strategy. This will ensure our community and affected land owners have an opportunity to review the Draft Rural Strategy and associated materials, schedule a one-on-one discussion with one of our Land Use Planning team and provide feedback before the closing date for submissions of 4:30pm Friday 28 January 2022.

We will continue to review the consultation program as the exhibition continues and health orders are updated.

No it is not. The current exhibition period is a ‘check-in’ with the community on the draft Rural Strategy. Feedback received and any changes proposed based on these submissions will be reported to Council for consideration and adoption, early next year.

The next stage involves drafting the new MidCoast local environmental plan and development control plan, informed by the adopted Urban and Rural Strategies. These draft plans will also be placed on exhibition for community feedback when they are available (likely to be 2023), providing another opportunity to have your say.

We recognise the draft Rural Strategy covers a lot of complex areas, and impacts everyone differently. It is important that you understand what is being proposed in your area and how it might impact your property.

Our Land Use Planning team is on hand to provide guidance and answer questions relating to your individual situation:

• email your questions, including your property address, to rural@midcoast.nsw.gov.au

• speak with a member of our team by calling 02 7955 7777 (business hours)
• book in for a 30 minute personal appointment in a location near you by calling 7955 7777 (locations and dates below)
• request a presentation on behalf of a community or interest group by emailing rural@midcoast.nsw.gov.au

Please note: While our Customer Service Officers and Land Use Planning team continue to respond to daily calls, enquiries and appointments, these relate to site-specific and individual circumstances and take time to ensure our customers are provided with the information necessary to participate in the consultation process.

Calls, appointments and presentations will continue to depend on availability and the team will assist wherever possible.

Public health orders may require limited group numbers, wearing of masks, and proof of vaccination at appointments and presentations.

Personal appointments are available at any time between:

• Tea Gardens, 1 – 6pm on Tuesday 9 November
• Bulahdelah, 1 – 6pm on Wednesday 10 November
• Pacific Palms, 1 – 6pm on Thursday 11 November
• Wootton, 1 – 6pm on Tuesday 16 November
• Krambach, 1 – 6pm on Wednesday 17 November
• Gloucester, 1 – 6pm on Tuesday 23 November
• Stroud, 1 – 6pm on Wednesday 24 November
• Mondrook, 1 – 6pm on Tuesday 30 November
• Coopernook, 1 – 6pm on Wednesday 1 December
• Mitchells Island, 1 – 6pm on Thursday 2 December

By following this page (click the +Follow button at the top of the Know Your Rural Zone project page) you’ll be added to our email distribution list to receive updates as we move through the stages to implement the new region-wide planning controls. Everyone who makes a submission will also be notified as the project progresses.

Generally, across NSW, there are no height controls applied to waterways, rural or environmental lands. By removing height controls in these zones, a greater degree of flexibility is possible and can facilitate increased agricultural productivity and a diverse range of structures that enable new opportunities to access and appreciate our environmental areas.

Instead of fixed height controls, the Draft MidCoast Rural Strategy proposes a draft local clause that will provide a merit-based (or case-by-case) assessment of new buildings and structures in all areas where there is no fixed building height.

The changes proposed in the Draft MidCoast Rural Strategy would only apply to development applications lodged after the new MidCoast Local Environment Plan is made into legislation by the Minister for Planning, which may not be until 2024 or 2025. The new MidCoast Development Control Plan is expected to come into force with the new local environmental plan.

No. If a zone changes, the land use can continue as an “existing use”. However, a future application for a land use that is prohibited would not be possible once the new planning controls are in place.

In areas with a larger group of dwellings, applying a village zone can provide an opportunity for residents to create self-sustaining centres with a range of community services, shops and industry that service the needs not only of village residents, but visitors and surrounding rural land holders.

Some smaller settlements currently in an historic village zone have no services or facilities suitable for this zone – these landowners can continue to occupy and use their land in the same way, in the new rural zone.

Most land in paper subdivisions has always been in a rural or environmental zone and the individual properties have been too small to meet the minimum lot size requirements for a “dwelling entitlement”. Most paper subdivisions also have no services, facilities or infrastructure available to support development. In some areas the land is also heavily vegetated and does not have publicly constructed or maintained road access.

A review of these constraints in each paper subdivision area leads us to our proposed approach, which aims to provide greater certainty for landowners of the future of these lands:

• There are no paper subdivisions where existing individual lots can be rezoned to allow each existing lot to be developed
• Most paper subdivisions require existing lots (commonly between 600sqm and 2ha in size) to be consolidated to 10, 20 or 40ha to balance the impact of development with the environmental, infrastructure and servicing constraints of the location
• Landowners would need to work together to decide who gets to build and how the costs of planning assessment processes are covered
• For landowners that cannot afford the time or costs of consolidating or pursuing a development outcome, land can be transferred into public ownership at no cost, and will be maintained for environmental and community purposes.

The aim of the Paper Subdivision Analysis Report was to determine if any paper subdivisions in the MidCoast could be rezoned for residential and other urban development as part of our broad strategic land use planning program.

The Report identified the extent of each paper subdivision for the first time and involved a high-level review of environmental constraints, road access, services, infrastructure, on-site sewage management and bushfire hazard classifications affecting land within each paper subdivision.

The review found that there were no paper subdivisions where current lots could be rezoned to allow a dwelling house on each existing lot, given the relatively small lot sizes and site constraints.

The report recommends lots be consolidated to balance the impact of development with the environmental, infrastructure and servicing constraints, and that the zone of the land be changed from rural to environmental, as most properties are too small to accommodate commercially viable agricultural production which is currently permitted in the rural zone.

The review has been done at a high-level and has considered all land within the mapped extent of each paper subdivision equally. This means that wherever possible, a single consistent zone and lot size has also been proposed for each paper subdivision.

More detailed site specific zones and lot sizes on individual lots is not possible through this review and would only be possible through other processes outside of the scope of the Draft Rural Strategy.

The proposed changes will not remove any existing camping or dwelling entitlements for land owners in paper subdivisions. The information on our website is still relevant and should be reviewed to confirm what you can do on these lands - Non-Urban Land - MidCoast Council (nsw.gov.au).

Please note, a dwelling entitlement can only be confirmed by submitting a Dwelling Entitlement Information Request. There is a fee for this search to be undertaken and the form is available on our website - Non-Urban Land - MidCoast Council (nsw.gov.au).

While the Paper Subdivision Analysis Report and Draft Rural Strategy cannot include specific information about costs, the Report does identify where additional costs may occur in the processes required to consolidate land or follow the State Guidelines for Paper Subdivisions.

The proposed change from a rural to an environmental land use zone, does not have the intent of removing land owners rights to camp on their land or cancel any existing dwelling entitlement that may exist over a property. This change does, however, reflect that these lands are also generally unsuitable for commercial agriculture due to the small lot sizes and site constraints.

Council is not in the process of purchasing or resuming land in paper subdivisions.

The Paper Subdivision Analysis Report does, however, include information on the Local Government Act provision that allows land owners to transfer land to Council in lieu of rate debts when faced with financial hardship.

Council will not undertake this process. The Paper Subdivision Analysis Report outlines the:

• range of infrastructure and site constraints that affect land in paper subdivisions;
• factors that would require not only a redesign of the existing subdivision pattern, but identification of environmental off-set areas, bushfire asset protection requirements, redesign of road reserves to accommodate infrastructure services, and the identification of potential locations for water and sewage facilities;
• existing examples from across NSW where the State process has achieved a development outcome, the timeframes to undertake this work, information regarding development credits and compensation between land owners based on who gets the right to build etc; and
• potential land owner management and funding agreements that would be required to commence this process.

The scope of work including costs and commitments required prior to starting the State process are beyond the capacity of Council.

It is important to note that the activities and uses allowed on properties in paper subdivisions is a planning matter that is separate from property rates, and that the process of applying a property rating category has limited reference to the zoning of land.

Council is required, under the Local Government Act 1993, to levy rates on all rateable land, whether it can be built on or not and as such the land in a paper subdivision is not exempt from rates.

A new harmonised rating structure was introduced to apply across the MidCoast from 1 July 2021, a legislative requirement for all merged councils. In some paper subdivisions the impact of this has been minor, while other landowners in paper subdivisions have experienced an increase.

The “Farmland / Non Urban” rating category for paper subdivisions has not changed through rate harmonisation, and therefore no change to rates has been brought about through the re-categorisation of your property.This represents a status quo position with the only increase being the 2% rate peg.

The second component in calculating rates is the ad-valorem amount, which is calculated by using the value of the property and multiplying this by a rate in the dollar. This means, properties that are assessed by the Valuer-General as having a higher land value within a category or sub category, will also pay higher rates.

Council does not influence how land values are assessed but must use this information to calculate and distribute rates. Additional information on Land Values and the Valuer General is available at Home - Valuer General of New South Wales (nsw.gov.au).

Find out more about how rates are calculated here.

An environmental zone may be applied to your property if it:

• Has been identified and protected by State plans, like coastal wetlands and littoral rainforests
• Is part of a court determination, rezoning or development process, as a rehabilitation site, conservation area, development off-set or native set-aside area
• Contains or is near a significant natural feature or resource which requires protection from potentially damaging land use activities, such as aquifer catchments that supply drinking water
• Is located in an area where a pattern of subdivision and development on rural land is identified as not suitable or intended for agricultural purposes.

This zone applies in areas where rural land has been subdivided and developed in sensitive environments or catchments, and where further development could have significant impacts on the environmental value of the site or surrounding areas of national park, protected wetlands, sensitive waterways or the like.

This zone will also replace rural zones in urban areas, where intensive agriculture and rural industries would not be appropriate.