Following community consultation on the ‘Inquiry into the Territory Plan and other associated documents’, submissions from the Dickson Residents Group (DRG) and others have been formally accepted and uploaded to the ACT Government website.
The DRG response focused on 5 points:
- The risks associated with using discretion rather than rules-based decision making, and the need to mitigate those risks. This includes a systemic risk from climate change and more frequent natural disasters.
- The need for a broad foundation of trust for effective, durable planning.
- The possibility of the new system being embraced should it have qualities such as: accurate information with adequate oversight and checks; consistency; and community minded approval times and appeal mechanisms.
- The importance of clarifying for decision makers on what grounds an outcome ought to be assessed.
- Concerns over the minimal weighting in the new system on Living Infrastructure (etc.,) targets, which exposes the city to unacceptable long-term environmental risks.