Tweed Urban and Employment Land Release Strategy 2009 - … · 2013-10-11 · The Tweed Shire Urban Release Strategy revises current proposals for urban growth and development and

Extract from Report to Planning Committee of 22 April 2008: Tweed LEP 2000 Review: Tweed LEP 2008 PART C TWEED URBAN RELEASE STRATEGY Introduction This report presents the findings of the Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Strategy and recommends that the Strategy be placed on public exhibition for community comment. Background In 2004 Tweed Futures identified the need to guide sustainable growth and change, and to safeguard the Tweed's quality of life and environment. Through the implementation of this goal Council will need to revise its strategic directions for urban growth in the Tweed. The current Urban Release Strategy was adopted by Council in 1991 and presented a clear road map for urban growth in the Tweed. However with current trends there will be a likely shortage of urban land within the Shire within the next two decades. The Tweed Shire Urban Release Strategy revises current proposals for urban growth and development and presents an urban growth strategy for the next 25 years. Urban Land Release Strategy Council resolved last year to proceed with the engagement of GHD Pty Ltd to prepare a Strategy that would guide the release of urban land in the Tweed until 2031. The purpose of the Tweed Shire Urban Release Strategy is to ensure there are adequate supplies of urban land to accommodate future urban growth by up to 2,000 new residents per annum. To achieve this, the Strategy has identified several ‘greenfield sites’ across the Tweed. These sites have been selected due to their minimal environmental impact and location to existing urban infrastructure. The Strategy has discounted the release rate to accommodate areas of land already zoned for residential purposes which have not yet reached the market. A major portion of this land is located at Kings Forest and Cobaki Lakes. Figure 1 below identifies that the existing residential zoned land can accommodate an additional 46,247 persons. This Strategy recommends a land releases program which will replenish the stocks of zoned land to ensure a continuous and long term supply. It is not appropriate that all areas identified in this strategy proceed to rezoning at the same time as Council does not have the resources to undertake this, nor is it desirable for the market. Only those areas sequenced within the identified time frames will be considered by Council. In the preparation of this Strategy two significant NSW State Government documents need to be considered, these are detailed below. Urban Release Program

To determine the amount of residential land that is required this Urban Release Strategy has undertaken an assessment of all existing residential zoned land within the Tweed. Two categories of land were identified in determining their availability to the market and subsequently their contribution towards the supply of residential land. These categories have been based on whether, or not, the area has been granted subdivision approval. Achieving subdivision approval can substantially delay the time it takes land to get to the market. Figure 1 below summarises the status of several of the larger subdivisions within the Tweed. These subdivisions represent a total current residential land supply of 1,913 ha. At current rates this residential land supplies is anticipated to run out before the end of this Strategy.

Urban Release Area Approx. area zoned residential that

remains vacant (ha)

Approx. Max. No. Dwellings

Approx. max. No. Persons

Residential Land Zoned with Approval for Subdivision Cobaki Lakes 350 5,500 12,000 Pottsville (Seabreeze) 16 170 450 Pottsville (Black Rocks) 11 90 250 Casuarina / Salt / Seaside City

41 750 2,000

West Murwillumbah 10 80 200 Cudgen (Heights) 8 125 290 Sub Total 436 6,685 15,137

Residential Land Zoned Yet to be Subdivided Approx. area zoned

residential that remains vacant (ha)

Approx. Max. No. Dwellings

(1)

Approx. max. No. Persons

Tanglewood 78 650 1,500 – 3,000 Kings Forest 495 4,500 10,000 West Murwillumbah / Keilvale

170 2,500 3,900 (2)

Bilambil Heights 370 2,500 7,500 (3)

Area ‘E’ (Terranora) 188 1,600 4,000 Kunghur (Nightcap Village)

43 400 – 450 (4)

750 – 1,200

West Kingscliff 47 1,375 (5)

3,460 Other Lands Discounted Discounted Discounted Sub Total 1,477 13,525 31,110

TOTAL 1,913 20,210 46,247 Figure 1: Residential Zoned Land Not Yet Developed

Notes: 1) Land zoned but not yet subdivided has been discounted by 20% for infrastructure unless

otherwise known. 2) Architectus, 2007 3) Darryl Anderson Consulting, 2007 4) Nightcap Village et al, 2006 5) Darren Gibson Planning, 2008

The Strategy has identified nine (9) new sites which proposes a total 981 hectares of additional residential land. These sites range from new ‘greenfield sites’ to extensions to existing residential areas. Figure 2 below identifies the location and size of these sites. More detailed maps of these sites can be found within the Strategy which is attached to this report.

Location Gross Potential Area (ha) Comment

East Keilvale (Area 1) 370 Located east of and adjoining the Kielvale Village zone.

West Murwillumbah (Areas 2 and 3)

73, 13 One area along North Arm Road and one area along Tyalgum Road, both in proximity to existing residential development. These areas provide logical extensions to the west Murwillumbah growth areas.

West Kings Forest (Area 4) 214 A large area located west and adjoining the existing Kings Forest residential zoned land.

North of Seabreeze Estate (Area 5)

27 Adjoins the northern edge of the existing residential zoned Seabreeze Estate near Pottsville. Provides a link between Seabreeze and Koala Beach estates.

West of Seabreeze Estate (Area 6)

3 Small area adjoins the western edge of the existing residential zoned Seabreeze Estate near Pottsville.

Dunloe Park (area 7) 224 Large area in a rural location west of Black Rocks Estate near Pottsville.

Burringbar (Area 8) 11 One area located immediately adjacent to the residential zoned land north of the railway line at Burringbar.

Mooball (Area 9) 46 Adjoins the southern boundary of the Mooball Village.

TOTAL 981 Figure 2: Potential Residential Areas – Tweed Shire

Far North Coast Strategy The Far North Coast Regional (FNCR) Strategy was adopted by the New South Wales Government in 2006 as an all of government policy document. The purpose of the FNCR Strategy is to manage anticipated population growth within the Far North Coast region. Their growth management model balances environmental assets, cultural values and the natural resources of the region. The Strategy also identifies the boundaries of existing towns and villages as well as future urban release area already identified in approved residential release strategies. Any significant residential development outside of these approved areas must be identified in a new document, a Local growth Management Strategy. These documents are to be produced by Councils. This Local Growth Management Strategy needs to be approved by the State Government before they will consider any request to zone land for urban purposes outside of any approved area. The Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Strategy has been prepared in accordance with the FNCR Strategy guidelines. It is therefore recommended that the Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Strategy, in association with the Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy, be presented to the Department of Planning as an appropriate for the Tweed.

North Coast Regional Environmental Plan The North Coast Regional Environmental Plan (NCREP) is a regional plan in force under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act. Clause 38(1) of the NCREP requires that;

38(1) The council should not prepare a draft local environmental plan which permits development that, in the opinion of the council (subject to the directions given by the Director), constitutes significant urban growth unless it has adopted an urban land release strategy for the whole of its local government area.

The Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Strategy has been prepared with due regard to the NCREP and the requirements it specifies for Councils prior to undertaking any zone changes within a Local Environmental Plan. It is recommended that when the Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Strategy has been adopted it be forwarded to the Department of Planning as an Urban Land Release Strategy in accordance with Clause 38 of the NCREP. Summary of Strategy Findings The findings of this report have been based on the Urban Release Strategy which recommends the following implementation program. Areas that are already zoned for residential development will continue to supply land to the market over the life of this strategy. The intention of the strategy is to replenish these stocks of zoned land to ensure a continuous and long term supply. It is not appropriate that all areas identified in this strategy proceed to rezoning at the same time and Council does not have the resources to do this. Only those areas within the identified time frame will be considered by Council. The strategy will be implemented by the rezoning process. It is Council’s decision as to whether a rezoning should proceed, but in the first instance an interested landowner will need to contact Council to confirm the timing of the proposed rezoning and whether Council has the resources to proceed. Council will need to advise on the type and extent of studies required to support a rezoning and whether Council wishes to undertake this work (at the applicant’s expense). Each potential land release area (or group of areas) will require an amendment to the Tweed LEP, and may require Development Control Plan provisions, a Section 94 contributions plan and/or a planning agreement with Council. A local environmental study may be required by the NSW State government. All investigation areas identified in this Strategy need to be designed to maximise the density yield of the land. It is expected that greenfield sites located in the more remote rural areas, such as Burringbar (Area 8), Mooball (Area 9), and West Murwillumbah (Area 2 and 3), will achieve a net density between 7 – 13 dwellings per hectare. In the areas of Kielvale (Area 1), Seabreeze (Area 5 and 6), and Kings Forest (Area 4), the expected density is 10 – 15 dwellings per hectare, whereas Dunloe Park (Area 7), is expected to yield 12 – 18 dwellings per net hectare.

In order to achieve the best development outcome for the site and its surrounds and so as to ensure the full utilisation of the land, each area must have a Master Plan / Concept Plan prepared for the entire investigation area and must address all facets of the urban layout, mix and design. Council will work to produce a development control plan for each Master Plan at the cost of the proponent. It is recommended that Council review the strategy every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand or services and infrastructure. Conclusions Although the general findings of the Strategy are supported one component that is not fully investigated is the impact that urban consolidation may have on the rate of release of new greenfield sites. At Section 11.6 of the Strategy there is however a reference for "Council to consider reviewing the density of key urban areas in order to ensure a variety of housing forms, and to revitalise its urban centres and provide for good urban design outcomes. Any density increases will also supply additional dwellings to the residential land market." Urban consolidation proposes an increase of either population or dwellings in an existing defined urban area and among other things provides for: - • Improving opportunity for living and working within the same locality, • Increasing economic activity across the board, but, in particular within the

private public transport sector; • Decreasing dependency on car ownership as the primary means of

transportation, • Providing greater justification for greater expenditure and provision of social

infrastructure, • Reducing land take-up for urban purposes, and • Reducing the impact on the environment as a consequence of all of the above. Subject to resolving the matters referred to in Part B of this report, Tweed Heads and Tweed Heads South would be key areas for urban consolidation. As well as this there may also be opportunities to increase densities in the proposed Cobaki Lakes and Kings Forest areas. In light of the above, it is recommended that the principles of urban consolidation should form the basis for land-use policy development and decisions within Tweed. It is therefore recommended that Council endorse Section 11.3 of the Strategy as its preferred option to deal with growth and change in the short to medium term. Section 11.3 is as follows: -

"11.3 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas and Increase the Density of Development in Key Urban Areas This option would see Council maintain the existing residential zoned lands subject to a review of residential density in key urban areas such as Tweed Heads Town Centre, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff through a process of locality planning. This would likely involve increasing the height limits in these areas to accommodate the additional expected population.

The advantages of this option would be that it could be used as a tool to revitalise these centres (especially Tweed Heads) and bring investment into these areas that can also contribute to public infrastructure. It would also increase the likelihood of these centres achieving higher order social and infrastructure services (eg health and education) commensurate with the larger population. Given the existing level of unit production in Tweed Shire is around 35% of new dwellings there is scope to increase this to the 40% target suggested by the State government in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy. However, higher densities often lead to increased social issues (this would need to be carefully monitored) and would change the social fabric of these areas as they evolve and grow. It would also have immediate visual impacts as taller buildings appear and the urban form changes. Traffic and public transport issues will increase in importance as density increases and congestion problems occur."

It is therefore recommended that the Tweed Shire Urban Release Strategy be publicly exhibited with Section 11.3 nominated as Council's preferred growth option. It is further recommended that the Strategy be referred to the Department of Planning for their consideration. PART D TWEED EMPLOYMENT LAND STRATEGY Introduction This report presents the findings of the Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy and recommends that the Strategy be placed of public exhibition for community comment. Background In 2004 Tweed Futures identified the need to generate more local jobs, tackle youth unemployment, offset the decline in rural industries, and balance the population mix by attracting residents in the 30-55 age groups. It also identified the importance of linking economic growth with environmental protection and education. One of the key outcomes for implementing the Vision of Tweed Futures was preparing the Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy. This Strategy has been prepared in two discrete components, each relating to different types of employment land, industrial and commercial. The Strategy does not consider the future demand and supply of land for retail developments, this is covered independently by Council’s Retail Development Strategy. The Employment lands Strategy has been prepared to guide and manage industrial and commercial land supply in the Tweed until 2031. The findings of the Strategy present a land release program which aims to replenish the stocks of zoned land to ensure a continuous and long term supply. It is not appropriate that all areas identified in this strategy proceed to rezoning at the same time and Council does not have the resources to do this. Only those areas within the land release program will be considered by Council for future rezoning. The Tweed Economy

The Tweed economy is at a cross roads. It is critical that all available avenues to assist the Tweed economy to mature and diversify must be pursued. Otherwise stagnation and unemployment will follow unsustainable economic growth which is primarily backed by urban development. The Strategy identifies that the Tweed economy in 2004/05 generated an estimated $1.2 billion, this represents 0.4% of the New South Wales gross regional product. In the same year the value adding per capita in the Tweed was $15,200 compared to a state average of $43,600. The main reasons for this difference are;

• Lower labour participation rate in the Tweed, • Net outflow of resident workers for employment, and • Lower value adding activities undertaken by Tweed industries.

Figure 1 below shows the industry structure of the Tweed in relation to NSW and Australia.

Figure 1: Tweed Industry Structure; ; Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy.

The Tweed economy has a strong reliance on;

• Property and business service sector (14% GRP), • Retail trade (13% GRP), • Health and community services (11% GRP), • Construction (11% GRP),

• Manufacturing (9% GRP). The economic drivers behind these industries are rapid population growth or growing tourism sector in the Tweed. The industries identified above generally demonstrate low productivity and limited opportunities to move up the value adding chain. Diversification of the Tweed’s economic base, needs to be driven by a reduction in the vulnerability to external shocks and increasing value-adding by local firms, catalytic policies which shift the focus from the quinary services (information and household based industries) and take advantage of the opportunities for higher value-adding activities in the region. This focus should be placed on goods producing industries and knowledge-based industries which can achieve high value-adding and offer scope for productivity increases. A series of Future Strategic Growth Sectors have been identified by the Strategy. The specific niches identified in each of these sectors represent the potential to dramatically assist in diversifing and expanding the Tweed economy. These industry niches are;

• Tourism o Ecotourism o Beach Tourism

• Health and Community Services o Aged Lifestyle Products o Medical Research o Pharmaceuticals o Nutraceuticals

• Manufacturing o Marine o Food and Beverage Manufacturing

• Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing o Aquaculture

Employment Lands (Industrial) The Strategy has undertaken a significant review of all existing industrial land within the Tweed Shire. There is 231 Ha of land suitably zoned for industrial purposes. Of this 92 Ha is currently developed with a remaining 138 Ha undeveloped. There is 62 Ha of zoned land which represents constraints which restrict it from development. These constraints include flood liability, slope constraints and environmental constraints. In 2001 8,820 employees left the Tweed every day for work, this represents 37% of Tweed’s resident workforce. A majority of these workers travel to the Gold Coast region which offers better job opportunities. This daily commuter migration creates a jobs deficient between the Tweed and Gold Coast regions. This means that there are more Gold Coast residents travelling to Tweed to work than there are Tweed residents travelling to the Gold Coast to work. The Strategy has identified that there is a current deficit of 800 workers in the manufacturing, wholesale trade and transport and storage sectors in the Tweed. This equates to a shortfall of approximately 20 Ha of industrial land.

The employment levels required to meet future industrial land supplies will be influenced by several factors. Firstly, current industrial land take up rates in the Tweed are relatively low. Secondly more localised employment opportunities could help to reverse the current employee outmigration trends. It is assumed that future industrial land releases could potentially influence the demographic trends attracting younger working families to the area. The Employment Lands Strategy has estimated the future demand for industrial land in the Tweed will be between 110 and 250 Ha. This demand will accommodate the projected employment capacity over the next 25 years. The Strategy has based this projected employment capacity on a potential high population growth scenario. This represents a take up rate of approximately 10 Ha per annum, which is significantly above the existing industrial land development rates. This augmented rate will allow for an increase in the retention of future employees located in the Tweed as well as an increase in the significance of manufacturing, wholesale and transport related industries. Figure 2 below presents the Strategies projected demand for industrial land in the Tweed.

Figure 2: Projected Additional Industrial Land in Tweed; Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy.

The employment levels that can potentially be achieved through the industrial land release program is projected at 3,311 additional employees in the manufacturing, wholesale, transport and supporting industries by 2031. In determining a suitable supply of sites to accommodate a land release program the Strategy has undertaken a Land Suitability Analysis. Industrial developers typically have a series of key requirements in identifying a suitably located site for their business. These factors include;

• The land must be flood free in order for business to feel secure, • Proximity to transport options including major roads and the port, • Easy access for trucks and into the site, • The topography of the land for cost-effective development, • Proximity to existing industrial land to allow for less impact on the

region, • Proximity to existing industrial land to allow industry clustering

opportunities, and • A buffer between the land and conflicting land uses such as

residential. These factors have been matched against the following physical environmental constraints comprising;

• Environmental (Open Space, Acid Sulphate Soils, Contaminated Lands etc.)

• Vegetation Management (SEPP 14, SEPP 26, Koala Habitat) • Threatened Species and Vegetation Management • Agricultural Land • Bushfire Management • Topography • Land Susceptibility to Climate Change • Flood Liable Land • Airport Noise

The Employment Lands Strategy has reviewed these land requirements and constraints and proposed the following land release program to guide the location of future employment lands over the next 25 years, refer figure 3. This program includes three time frames short term (0-10 years), medium term (10-20 years) and long term (20 years plus). These time frames refer to the period in which rezoning of the particular areas should commence. It is assumed that there will be up to a six year lead time before each area reaches market from the commencement of rezoning. A map of each area identified in Figure 3 are located in the Strategy which is attached to this report.

Potential Employment

Locality

Gross Area (ha)

Net Area (ha)

Approximate Years supply (@ 10 Ha per yr Shire wide

demand)

Timing for commencement

of rezoning

Comment

Airport Precinct Area 1

14 11 1.1 Medium Term Assumes 80% of land will yield lots.

Airport 29 23 2.3 Medium term Assumes 80%

Precinct Area 2

of land will yield lots.

Border Race Track Area 3

11 9 0.9 Medium term Assumes 80% of land will yield lots.

Chinderah East Area 4

37 26 2.6 Short Term Assumes 70% of land will yield lots due to vegetation buffers.

Wardrop Valley West Area 5

63 44 4.4 Long Term Assumes 70% of land will yield lots due to vegetation buffers and agricultural buffers.

Wardrop Valley East Area 6

60 48 4.8 Short Term Assumes 80% of land will yield lots.

West Pottsville Area 7

144 86 8.6 Short / Medium Term

Assumes 60% of land will yield lots due to residential and riparian buffers.

Figure 3: Tweed Shire Land Release Program; Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy

Employment Lands (Commercial) There is an estimated 58,970 m2 of office floor space in the Tweed, evenly distributed between Tweed Heads (18,600 m2), South Tweed (15,300 m2) and Murwillumbah (16,200 m2). The next largest cluster of space are located at Kingscliff (4,400 m2) and Banora point (1,800 m2). Anecdotal evidence suggests that there is a current shortages of office space throughout the Tweed, evidenced by low vacancy rates and business turnover. There is also limited new office development providing additional supply to the market in the Tweed. Based on the current 0.75 m2 per capita office supply (which is likely to decline as the market matures) and projected population growth, the demand for office space is estimated at between 19,800 and 29,100 m2 over the next 25 years. Tweed Heads and Tweed Heads South are projected to account for 65% of future demand. In terms of projecting future demand for office space, the projected population growth of the region and continued business and economic growth is likely to result in the creation of new businesses and office space requirements. Future commercial development is most likely to be located within an existing urban area rather than on ‘greenfield sites’ unless it is commercial floor space that is part of a master planned neighbourhood centre or the like. The Strategy identifies a release program for commercial floor space as listed below;

• To incorporate an additional 19,000 m2 (approximately) of commercial office space in existing zoned commercial land within Tweed Heads and South Tweed Heads urban area,

• To incorporate an additional 5,000 m2 (approximately) of commercial office space in existing zoned commercial land at Murwillumbah and South Murwillumbah, and

• To allow the remaining 5,000 m2 (approximately) to be incorporated in existing commercially zoned land in other urban areas.

There is an additional proposal for consideration which would allow an additional 2 hectares of land to be rezoned for commercial office use in either Tweed Heads or South Tweed Heads provided that it was adjoining an existing commercial zone. It also recommends that Council make provisions it its planning instruments to allow for home based offices in all residential and mixed use zones. Far North Coast Strategy The Far North Coast Regional (FNCR) Strategy was adopted by the New South Wales Government in 2006 as an all of government policy document. The purpose of the FNCR Strategy is to manage anticipated population growth within the Far North Coast region. Their growth management model balances environmental assets, cultural values and the natural resources of the region. The Strategy also identifies the boundaries of existing towns and villages as well as future urban release area already identified in approved residential release strategies. Any significant urban development, including commercial or industrial, outside of these approved areas must be identified in a new document, a Local growth Management Strategy. These documents are to be produced by Councils. This Local Growth Management Strategy needs to be approved by the State Government before they will consider any request to zone land for urban purposes outside of any approved area. The Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy has been prepared in accordance with the FNCR Strategy guidelines. North Coast Regional Environmental Plan The North Coast Regional Environmental Plan (NCREP) is a regional plan in force under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act. Clause 38(1) of the NCREP requires that;

39(b) if the expansion is not adjacent to or adjoining the existing centre, that development is in accordance with a commercial/retail expansion strategy prepared by the council, published for public discussion.

The Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy has been prepared with due regard to the NCREP and its requirements for Council’s undertaking zone changes within Local Environmental Plans. It is recommended that the Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy be referred to the Department of Planning as a commercial/retail expansion strategy in accordance with Clause 39 of the NCREP.

Conclusions The conclusions of this report have been based on the Employment Lands Release Strategy which recommends the following implementation program. Areas that are already zoned for industrial development will continue to supply land to the market over the life of this strategy. The intention of the strategy is to replenish these stocks of zoned land to ensure a continuous and long term supply. It is not appropriate that all areas identified in this strategy proceed to rezoning at the same time and Council does not have the resources to do this. Only those areas within the identified time frame will be considered by Council. Commercial office space will be supplied to the market mainly from existing commercial zoned land in the major regional centres and the district town centres identified in this strategy. Any additional commercial rezoning will need to consider the Tweed Retail Strategy as well as this Employment Lands Strategy given that retail and office development are typically both permitted in commercial or business zones. This strategy will be implemented by the rezoning process. It is Council’s decision as to whether a rezoning should proceed, but in the first instance an interested landowner will need to contact Council to confirm the timing of the proposed rezoning and whether Council has the resources to proceed. Council will need to advise on the type and extent of studies required to support a rezoning and whether Council wishes to undertake this work (at the applicant’s expense). Council is supportive of master planned business and employment parks and will consider reviewing the development assessment process for subsequent tenants where the issues relevant to the overall site can be addressed through the rezoning phase and the substantive development consent that is originally issued for the site meets Council requirements. Although this would be site specific, Council would consider identifying such locations as enterprise areas where employment generating businesses can commence operations quickly and with limited “red tape’ and delays that can be encountered at the development application stage. Each potential employment land release area (or group of areas) will require an amendment to the Tweed LEP, and may require Development Control Plan provisions, a Section 94 contributions plan and/or a planning agreement with Council. A local environmental study may be required by the NSW State government. The Strategy proposes that Council review the strategy every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand or services and infrastructure. It is also recommended that the Tweed Shire Employment Land Strategy be publicly exhibited, and referred to the Department of Planning for their consideration.

Tweed Shire Council

Urban Land Release Strategy and Employment Lands Strategy

2009

3

22/14195/1538 Urban Land Release Strategy and Employment Lands Strategy

Index

Overall Introduction

Part 1 – Urban Land Release Strategy

Part 2 – Employment Lands Strategy

Part 3 – Public consultation and submissions

i


Overall Introduction

The Far North Coast Regional Strategy (issued in December 2006) requires Tweed Shire Council to prepare a Local Growth Management Strategy prior to rezoning further land for urban, commercial and industrial uses. The format for a Local Growth Management Strategy is not fixed and it can be a single document or a series of interrelated documents.

Tweed Shire Council initially chose to address future employment lands and future urban lands in two separate, but related documents. They have been prepared at the same time and exhibited and reviewed at the same time. Much of the base line information is shared between the two documents. These two Strategies are major components of a Local Growth Management Strategy.

It is important that these two Strategies be considered together to ensure the long term sustainability of Tweed Shire. The final versions of the Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy and the Tweed Shire Urban Lands Strategy are now combined under a single cover to emphasise the need to look at both strategies together. They should also be considered in conjunction with the Tweed Retail Strategy (2005).

It is also important that the relationship between the Far North Coast Regional Strategy and Local Growth Management Strategies be understood. The following flow chart demonstrates that relationship and how Council will deal with any requests for the rezoning of land for urban or employment purposes over the life of the current Strategies.

GHD acknowledges the input of the AEC Group and Tweed Shire Council’s Planning Reform Unit in the preparation of these Strategies.

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Disclaimer:Proponents are reminded that all rezoning applications and supporting documentation are to be prepared at cost to the proponent, in line with Council’s current fees and charges schedule.

Not all land identified in the urban land release strategy and employment lands strategy may be developed for urban purposes. All sites will be subject to more detailed investigations to determine capability and future yield.

Is your Parcel of land identified in the Far Is your Parcel of land identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy?North Coast Regional Strategy?

Local and Regional Strategies and the Rezoning ProcessLocal and Regional Strategies and the Rezoning Process

YesYes NoNo

Your land has been assessed as unsuitable

for Urban or Employment Lands at this time

Your land has been assessed as unsuitable

for Urban or Employment Lands at this time

NoNo

YesYes

Is your land zoned for Urban or Employment Lands under

the Tweed LEP?

Is your land zoned for Urban or Employment Lands under

the Tweed LEP?

See Council’s Development Control Section regarding

proceeding with development options

See Council’s Development Control Section regarding

proceeding with development options

YesYes

Is your land identified in one of these strategies as:Is your land identified in one of these strategies as: Your land has been assessed as unsuitable for Urban or Employment Lands at this

time

Your land has been assessed as unsuitable for Urban or Employment Lands at this

time

10 - 20 yrtimeframe10 - 20 yrtimeframe

20 + yrtimeframe20 + yr

timeframe

YesYes YesYes

NoNo

0 - 10 yrtimeframe0 - 10 yr

timeframe

YesYes

Please re-apply when your land is in the correct timeframePlease re-apply when your land is in the correct timeframe

Landowner to contact Council’s Planning Reform UnitLandowner to contact Council’s Planning Reform Unit

NoNoYesYes

E.g. Development Control Plan Provisions• State Environmental Planning Policies

• S94 Contributions Plan• Planning Agreement with Council

• Local Environmental Study – NSW State Govt. requirement

E.g. Development Control Plan Provisions• State Environmental Planning Policies

• S94 Contributions Plan• Planning Agreement with Council

• Local Environmental Study – NSW State Govt. requirement

Discuss with Council Officers when resources may be available

Discuss with Council Officers when resources may be available

Confirm what is required to support your rezoning

Confirm what is required to support your rezoning

Need to prepare master plan /

concept plan for entire investigation

area.

Need to prepare master plan /

concept plan for entire investigation

area.

Lodge rezoning application with appropriate supporting

documentation

Lodge rezoning application with appropriate supporting

documentation

Does Council have the resources to proceed?Does Council have the resources to proceed?

Is your Parcel of land identified in the Tweed Is your Parcel of land identified in the Tweed Employment Lands or Urban Land Release Employment Lands or Urban Land Release

Strategy?Strategy?


Tweed Shire Council

Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Strategy

2009

4


Contents

Executive Summary i

1. Introduction 2

1.1 Purpose of this Strategy 2 1.2 Vision Statement 2 1.3 Strategy Timeframe and Review 2 1.4 Statement of Aims 3 1.5 The Strategy Area 3

2. Relevant Planning Documentation 4

2.1 Introduction 4 2.2 Relevant Statutory Documents 5 2.3 Relevant Strategic Documents 7

3. Population Growth 18

3.1 Population 18 3.2 Age Distribution 21 3.3 Population Distribution by Urban Area 23

4. Existing Housing Types and Densities 25

4.1 Average Household Size 25 4.2 Typical Dwelling Yields and Population Density 25 4.3 Dwelling Stock and Dwelling Production 27 4.4 Holiday Letting of Dwellings 28 4.5 Residential Lot Production 28

5. Housing Affordability 30

5.1 Introduction 30 5.2 Demand for Affordable Housing in Tweed Shire 30 5.3 The Need to Address the Affordable Housing Issue 30 5.4 Land Supply 31 5.5 Implications for Tweed Shire Council 31

6. Land and Dwelling Demand 32

6.1 Introduction 32 6.2 Population Projections Method 32

22/14195/1538


6.3 Far North Coast Regional Strategy Targets 32 6.4 Dwelling Approvals Method 32 6.5 Lot Approvals Method 33 6.6 Strong Regional Growth Scenario 34 6.7 A Preferred Approach to Estimating Demand 35

7. Land and Dwelling Supply 37

7.1 Introduction 37 7.2 Vacant Subdivided Land 37 7.3 Residential Zoned Land yet to be Subdivided 38 7.4 Maximum Population Capacity of Urban Areas 40 7.5 Redevelopment of Existing Residential Properties 41 7.6 Greenfield Sites 41 7.7 A Preferred Estimate of Supply 45

8. Infrastructure 46

8.1 Water Supply 46 8.2 Sewerage Supply 47 8.3 Transport 49 8.4 Social 50

9. Environmental Constraints and Opportunities and Land Suitability 57

9.1 Introduction 57 9.2 Flood Liable land 57 9.3 Topography 57 9.4 Vegetation Management 57 9.5 Acid Sulfate Soils (ASS) 58 9.6 Groundwater 58 9.7 Agricultural Land 58 9.8 Bushfire Hazard 58 9.9 Land Susceptible to Climate Change 59 9.10 Contaminated Lands 59 9.11 Biting Midges and Mosquitoes 59 9.12 Garbage Tips and Sewage Treatment Works 59 9.13 Extractive Industries 60 9.14 Airport Noise 60 9.15 National Parks, Nature Reserves and State Forests 60 9.16 Land Suitability Analysis 60

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10. Balancing Demand and Supply of Land and Dwellings 61

10.1 A Time Frame 61 10.2 A Residential Land Balance Sheet 61

11. Major Directions for Urban Land Development 63

11.1 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas 63 11.2 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas and Increase the Residential

Yields from Rural Residential Areas 64 11.3 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas and Increase the Density of

Development in Key Urban Areas 64 11.4 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas and Delay the Release of

Greenfield Sites 64 11.5 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas and Identify and Release

Greenfield Sites 65 11.6 A Preferred Direction 65

12. An Urban Centres Hierarchy and Urban Land Release Program 67

12.1 Urban Centres Hierarchy 67 12.2 Population and Dwelling Targets for Urban Areas 71 12.3 The Urban Land Release Program 71

13. Strategy Evaluation, Implementation and Review 74

13.1 Strategy Evaluation 74 13.2 Strategy Implementation and Master Planning 75 13.3 Strategy Review 76

14. References 77

Table Index Table 3-1: Population, Usual Residents 19 Table 3-2: Population Projections 20 Table 3-3: Projected and Usual Resident Population (for 2005

Projections) 20 Table 3-4: Projected and Usual Resident Population (for 1999

Projections) 21 Table 3-5: Age Distribution, Usual Residents 22 Table 3-6: Forecast Median Age 22 Table 3-7 Tweed Shire Population by Urban Area 1996 -

2006 23

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Table 4-1 Average Household Size, Tweed Shire LGA 25 Table 4-2 Tweed Shire Dwelling Yields and Household Size 26 Table 4-4 Dwelling Approvals in Tweed Shire 02/03 – 06/07 28 Table 4-5 Residential Lot Approvals and Registrations 29 Table 6-1 Summary of Land and Dwelling Demand Options 35 Table 7-1 Residential zoned land with approval for

subdivision 38 Table 7-2 Residential zoned land yet to be subdivided 39 Table 7-3 Potential Residential Areas in Tweed Shire 41 Table 8-1 Current and Ultimate Capacity of Tweed Shire

Sewage Treatment Plants 48 Table 8-2 Strategy Actions for Community Facilities: for

Interaction and Self Support 51 Table 8-3 Strategy Actions for Community Facilities: for

Community Groups 53 Table 8-4 Indicative Community Facility Infrastructure

Required Post 2007 55 Table 10-1 Residential Land Balance Sheet 2006 - 2031 62 Table 12-1 Urban Centres Hierarchy 67 Table 12-2 Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Program 71

Diagram Index

Diagram 3-1: Historic and Projected Estimated Resident Population, 1996–2031 19

Diagram 3-2: Projected Population by Age, Tweed Shire 23

Figure Index Figure 1 Strategy Area Figure 2 Flood Liable Land Figure 3 Topography Figure 4 Vegetation Management Figure 5 Koala Habitat Figure 6 Acid Sulfate Soils Figure 7 Groundwater Vulnerability Figure 8 Agricultural Land Figure 9 Bushfire Hazard


Figure 10 Land Susceptible to Climate Change Figure 11 Contaminated Lands Figure 12 Airport Noise Figure 13 National Parks, Nature Reserves and State Forests Figure 14 Potential Urban Areas Figure 15 Potential Urban Areas Figure 16 Potential Urban Areas Figure 17 Potential Urban Areas Figure 18 Potential Urban Areas

Appendices A Urban and Village Area Likely Maximum Population Range B Land Suitability Analysis C Housing Affordability

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Executive Summary

The Far North Coast Regional Strategy (2006) requires Tweed Shire Council to prepare a local growth management strategy which outlines how Council will meet the State government targets for the region’s housing needs.

Tweed Shire Council currently has the Tweed Shire Council Residential Development Strategy (1992), but this document is now out of date.

The Tweed Urban Land Release Strategy has been prepared for Tweed Shire Council to guide and manage future urban development within the Shire until at least 2031. It predominantly deals with residential development but there is always some overlap with other land uses.

This Strategy examines the population profile and the likely land use demands arising from the anticipated population growth and changes in the structure of the population over time. Population growth has been consistent and remains above that of the State of NSW.

The Shire population is expected to grow to about 120,000 people by 2031. This will create a demand for approximately 16,000 houses and approximately 10,000 units, depending on household size. It will create a demand for approximately 1,350 ha of urban land.

This Strategy evaluates the supply of land for residential purposes and identifies the environmental constraints and opportunities that influence the potential suitability of land for future urban use. It identifies infrastructure issues generated by future development.

Tweed Shire has approximately 1,533 ha of zoned residential land potentially available for development which constitutes about 27 years supply of land. However, if Council wants to maintain a significant stock of zoned land in order to allow a variety of development locations it will need to commence replenishing land stocks through the rezoning process by 2011.

This Strategy estimates that in addition to already zoned land there is approximately 589 ha (net area, given assumptions about development yield) of land that can be identified as having potential for urban land release. This constitutes approximately a further 10 years supply of land. There is also potential to review existing densities in Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff subject to locality plans being prepared.

The Strategy outlines a land release program that will see a replenishing stock of land available to the market to ensure the supply of land in the short, medium and long term. It also creates an urban centres hierarchy for the Tweed Shire that links to expected future population and dwelling density in its urban centres.

Readers of this Strategy are also cautioned that this document has not been prepared for anyone as a basis for investment or other private decision making in relation to land purchases, sales or other land uses. Council recommends that it not be used by anyone in this way.

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1. Introduction

1.1 Purpose of this Strategy The North Coast of NSW is under increasing pressure from strong population growth and sustained pressure for development. Due to its proximity to the high growth area of South East Queensland, the urban coastal areas of the Tweed Shire have demonstrated the strongest growth in the region over the past decade (Department of Planning, 2006).

In its “Tweed 4/24 Strategic Plan”, Tweed Shire Council identified the need to prepare a new urban land release strategy to guide the preparation of a new Local Environmental Plan, Development Control Plan and ultimately development control decisions (TSC, 2004). This document is intended to replace the existing Residential Development Strategy (1992) and examine growth options that would guide Tweed Shire towards 2031.

The purpose of this Strategy is to:

Comply with the Far North Coast Regional Strategy requirement that Councils prepare a Growth Management Strategy prior to zoning further land for urban, commercial and industrial uses;

Comply with the North Coast Regional Environmental Plan, 1988 (cl.38) in relation to Council preparing an urban land release strategy to be agreed by the Department of Planning;

Make provision for up to 2,000 new residents in Tweed Shire per annum over the life of the strategy;

Provide a range of locations for new urban development to reduce pressure on the immediate Coastal Area (east of the Pacific Highway) and provide for consumer choice;

Ensure that the limited “greenfield sites” available in the Tweed Shire are developed to their maximum capability without compromising the quality of the natural or living environment;

Ensure that not all “greenfield sites” are used for residential development but also allow for employment land uses;

Ensure that new development is linked to Council’s physical and social infrastructure plans;

Ensure that new development is responsive to the housing needs of existing and future populations with particular reference to affordable housing;

Provide information relating to an urban centres hierarchy, population growth, housing supply and demand so that this may be used to guide decisions on locality plans and urban design guidelines for key centres within Tweed Shire.

1.2 Vision Statement To guide and fashion future urban settlements within the Tweed, with certainty and coordination, that provide for sustainable urban development density and housing diversity and that capitalise on the area’s natural and built attributes for present and future generations.

1.3 Strategy Timeframe and Review This Strategy is planned to provide for the projected population growth through a staged release of “greenfield sites” over the next twenty three years to 2031. In accordance with the principles of

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'intergenerational equity', this Strategy will not limit the ability of future generations to be able to have their say on the planning for the Tweed under this Strategy. To allow for this, and to ensure that planned development under this Strategy aligns with any changes in community values and thinking, a comprehensive review will be undertaken every 5 years.

1.4 Statement of Aims The aims of this Strategy are:

To identify “greenfield sites” of suitable environmental characteristic, size, and proximity to existing urban areas that warrant further detailed investigation for use as urban purposes;

To provide sufficient land and its coordinated release to accommodate the projected population growth of the Tweed over a period of at least 23 years;

To provide diversity in housing and lifestyle choice for the present and future population through the identification and release of “greenfield sites” located in a variety of localities;

To encourage best use of available land resources by requiring all future urban communities within the “greenfield sites” identified in this Strategy to be properly master-planned; and

To reduce the under utilisation of urban land through piecemeal and ad hoc development by requiring that each investigation area is the subject of a single master-plan for the entire site.

1.5 The Strategy Area The strategy area (Figure 1) is the entire Tweed Shire and consists of an area of approximately 1,303 square kilometres located in the far north eastern corner of NSW. The shire is dominated physically by the McPherson Range in the north, the Tweed Range in the west and the Nightcap Range in the south, with the Pacific Ocean bordering to the east. The Tweed River floodplain occupies a major land area in the central area of the Shire.

The urban population of Tweed Shire is concentrated in the northeast corner (Tweed Heads) adjacent to the Queensland border and along the Tweed Coast. The only major inland urban area is Murwillumbah. Approximately 85% of the population lives in urban areas and villages.

The major urban areas and villages are also identified in Figure 1.

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2. Relevant Planning Documentation

2.1 Introduction There is a hierarchy of statutory planning instruments and policies affecting urban residential development in the Tweed Shire, including:

Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, 1979 (EP&A Act)

State Environmental Planning Policies (SEPPs);

Regional Environmental Plans (REPs);

Local Environmental Plans (LEPs);

Development Control Plans (DCPs); and

Section 117 directions from the Minister for Planning.

These are described in Section 2.2.

At the regional and local level there are many planning Strategies that guide the implementation of these statutory and policy documents as they apply to Tweed Shire. These include:

Far North Coast Regional Strategy 2006;

NSW Coastal Policy 1997;

Northern Rivers Farmland Protection Project, 2005;

Catchment Action Plan (Northern Rivers Catchment Management Authority -CMA);

Tweed Coast Strategy 1995;

Tweed 4/24, 2004;

Strategic Plan Tweed Shire 2000+;

Tweed Shire Residential Development Strategy 1992;

Burringbar Scoping Study, 2005;

Murwillumbah Scoping Study, 2007 (draft)

Tweed Estuary Management Plan;

Tweed Coastline Management Plan;

Tweed Floodplain Management Plan;

Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy, 2004;

Tweed Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy, 2006;

Tweed Shire Draft Cultural and Community Facilities Plan, 2007 and

Tweed Shire Social Plan, 2005-2009

Settlement Planning Guidelines, 2007

Tweed Road Development Strategy - 2007

These are described in Section 2.3.

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2.2 Relevant Statutory Documents

2.2.1 Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979

The EP&A Act sets the legal basis for planning controls in NSW. This Strategy is not intended to be a statutory instrument prepared under the EP&A Act, but it will be used by Council to prepare statutory plans at a later date.

2.2.2 State Environmental Planning Policies

A number of SEPPs that may be applicable to the Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Strategy are as follows:

SEPP 14 Coastal Wetlands The aim of SEPP 14 is to ensure coastal wetlands are preserved and protected for environmental and economic reasons. This SEPP requires consent and the concurrence of Department of Planning for clearing, draining, filling of, or constructing a levee within, the identified wetlands (Ecograph, 2004). Wetland areas are not considered available for future development.

SEPP 26 Littoral Rainforests SEPP 26 aims to provide a mechanism for the assessment of development proposals that are likely to damage or destroy littoral rainforest areas. The policy applies to certain mapped areas and includes a 100 metre buffer zone surrounding such areas. The policy requires that consent must be granted prior to the carrying out of any development within these areas. The likely effects of the proposal must be considered in an environmental impact statement. Littoral rainforest areas are not considered available for future development.

SEPP 44 Koala Habitat Protection SEPP 44 encourages the conservation and management of natural vegetation areas that provide habitat for koalas to ensure permanent free-living populations will be maintained over their present range. The policy applies to 107 local government areas including Tweed Shire. Local councils cannot approve development in an area affected by the policy without an investigation of core koala habitat. The policy provides the state-wide approach needed to enable appropriate development to continue, while ensuring there is ongoing protection of koalas and their habitat. Typically, koala habitat is not considered available for future development.

SEPP 55 Remediation of Land SEPP 55 provides a state wide planning approach to the remediation of contaminated land. This policy aims to promote the remediation of contaminated land for the purpose of reducing the risk of harm to human health or any other aspect of the environment. Contaminated land is constrained for certain types of development.

SEPP 71 Coastal Protection This policy came into effect on 1 November 2002. It seeks to ensure that development in the NSW Coastal Zone is appropriate and suitably located, to ensure that there is a consistent and strategic approach to coastal planning and management and to ensure that there is a clear development assessment framework for the coastal zone.

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This SEPP requires a greater level of scrutiny of any development proposals considered to have potential to create an adverse impact on the coastal areas of the NSW (as per Schedule 2 of the SEPP) and originally required the adoption of a Master Plan by the then Minister for Infrastructure and Planning for all major subdivisions (generally 25 or more residential lots or 5 or more rural-residential lots). These Master Plans were subsequently required to be prepared as Development Control Plans.

2.2.3 Regional Environmental Plan

North Coast Regional Environmental Plan 1988 The North Coast Regional Environmental Plan (NCREP) contains provisions specifying regional policies to control and guide the preparation of LEPs within the region and the assessment of development applications. Additionally it sets out Council’s responsibilities with respect to the preparation of urban land release strategies. Although there is now also a Far North Coast Regional Strategy, the NCREP has never been repealed and still applies to the Tweed Shire.

Clause 37 of the NCREP states the Plan’s objectives in relation to urban development which are to:

(a) provide for the orderly and economic release of urban land and identify growth centres, and

(b) promote the efficient commercial functioning of subregional and district centres.

Clause 38 of the NCREP requires councils to prepare an urban land release strategy for the whole of the local government area prior to preparing any LEP for significant urban growth. Any draft LEP must be consistent with such a strategy. The strategy is to:

(a) be based on a land release program and population projections agreed between the council and the Director,

(b) give preference to development resulting in urban growth on land that adjoins other land which is already being used for urban purposes and is the most economic to service,

(b1) not provide for development of land which is unsuitable for urban growth due to its agricultural capability or which adjoins land that is currently used for agriculture,

(c) not include for development land that is unsuitable due to any environmental hazard unless the council has made an assessment of the risk and considered it to be minor or alternatively has made provision for the control or reduction of that hazard,

(d) not include for development land which has conservation value or which has heritage, environmental or cultural significance,

(e) have regard to the rural character and heritage significance of villages and small coastal settlements and the need to maintain that character and significance, and

(f) provide substantial buffer areas between coastal urban centres to avoid uninterrupted coastal development.

2.2.4 Local Environmental Plan

The Tweed Shire Council’s major local planning instrument is Tweed Local Environmental Plan 2000, which is a shire wide LEP.

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Tweed LEP 2000 currently zones a range of areas for various urban land uses. It provides the main statutory basis for future development and is the statutory instrument that has been used to implement the existing Residential Development Strategy, 1992 (through the rezoning process). Its relevance to this Strategy is that it sets the basis for the existing stock of zoned and developed or undeveloped land that the Strategy needs to consider in assessing the long term requirements for urban land in Tweed Shire.

Tweed Shire Council is currently reviewing Tweed LEP 2000 to create an LEP that is consistent with the Standard LEP issued by the State Government in March 2006.

2.2.5 Development Control Plans

Development Control Plans (DCPs) are created by Council under the provisions of the EP&A Act. They deal in more detail with selected areas of the Shire or with selected issues that apply across all of the Shire. In 2007 Council consolidated all of its DCP’s into a single document consistent with the approach recommended by the State government. It is likely that Council will review the content of its DCP’s over the next few years as it updates its planning instruments. Two DCP’s that take a strategic approach and are relevant to this Strategy are as follows:

DCP 2007 Section B9 (ex DCP 51 Tweed Coast Strategy). This plan summarises Council’s policies for the management of the growth of the Kingscliff District of the Tweed Coast. The purposes of the DCP are to: set out Council’s strategy for the Tweed Coast; identify the relevant planning controls to implement the Strategy; provide guidance to those wishing to develop within the Tweed Coast area and to indicate Council’s policies with respect to that development; and have clear policies for determination of the merits of developments within Tweed Coast.

DCP 2007 Section A3 - Development of Flood Liable Land This plan contains development standards and other provisions in respect of floodplain management in Tweed Shire and relates to the Tweed Local Environmental Plan 2000.

2.2.6 Section 117 directions for the Minister for Planning

Under the EP&A Act, the Minister for Planning also has the ability to direct Council to comply with certain directions when preparing draft LEPs. These Ministerial directions (117 Directions) relate to local environmental plan preparation by Council for specific development proposals, flood prone land, residential zones, acid sulfate soil occurrence, development near licensed aerodromes and requirements for the environmental studies within one kilometre of the coast under the New South Wales Government Coastal Policy. A revised set of 117 directions was issued on the 19 July 2007, and these have been considered for the purpose of this Strategy.

2.3 Relevant Strategic Documents

2.3.1 Far North Coast Regional Strategy (2006)

The Far North Coast Regional Strategy was prepared by the Department of Planning in 2006. It is intended to guide local planning in the six local government areas of Ballina, Byron, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed, and inform decisions on service and infrastructure delivery. It will be

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reviewed every five years. The purpose of the Regional Strategy is to manage the Region’s expected high growth rate in a sustainable manner (DoP, 2006).

The Strategy recognises the potential impacts on the Region from the rapid growth of South East Queensland. It sets out a regional hierarchy of centres and specifically identifies Tweed Heads as a major regional centre. The Southport /Gold Coast location in Queensland is identified as the nearest Regional City. The revitalisation of Tweed Heads Town Centre (CBD) will become the focus for the Tweed urban area enabling it to provide a high level of services, employment and housing to complement those provided in the adjoining South East Queensland Region. Tweed Heads will also continue to develop as a major regional centre for tourism and the provision of retail services and community facilities. Additionally, the strategy identifies that the Tweed LGA currently has 34,650 existing dwellings and by the year 2031 Council should be planning to provide an additional 19,100 dwellings in the Tweed LGA (DoP, 2006). Assuming an average occupancy rate of 2.4 persons per dwelling this is an average growth rate of approximately 1,800 persons per year over the next 25 years. It suggests that 60 % of this additional growth should take place in coastal locations (generally east of the Pacific Highway) and 40% in non coastal areas, however this is taken across the whole region, not just Tweed Shire.

The proposed future urban release areas identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy for the Tweed LGA are shown in Figures 19 and 20 of this Strategy overlaid on air photos.

2.3.2 Residential Development Strategy (1992)

Tweed Shire Council developed its Residential Development Strategy in 1992 to satisfy the requirements of the NCREP. The NCREP requires Councils to prepare an Urban Land Release Strategy for the Shire before preparing a LEP for significant urban growth. The 1992 strategy estimated population forecasts until 2006, and outlines existing land supply options for urban development and balances this supply against demand.

The 1992 Strategy has been the basis for a range of significant rezoning proposals. Some of the forecasts in the Strategy have been implemented and are now outdated, while others have proved to be inaccurate and need to be revised. The following is a summary of the key components of the 1992 Strategy.

The 1992 Strategy estimated a population of 125,000 by 2006, whereas the Department of Planning estimated 75,000 to 80,000 by 2006. The 2006 Census confirms a population of 79,321 for Tweed Shire. This suggests that the Department of Planning forecasting methodology is quite accurate.

This 1992 Strategy identifies nine areas in the north eastern sector of the Shire for consideration to accommodate the expected growth of this part of the Shire. These include areas to the west of Tweed Heads, Cobaki, an area between Terranora Village and Fraser Drive and a large area to the west and south west of Kingscliff. These areas have predominantly been zoned for urban purposes, but two of the largest areas (Cobaki and Kings Forest ) have yet to supply land to the residential market. Land identified west of Kingscliff has been constrained by flooding while land in the Terranora area has been constrained by the need to retain good quality agricultural land in production. Conversely, coastal areas such as the Casuarina Beach and Salt developments south of Kingscliff have proceeded to development and land release.

In other parts of the Shire, proposed land release areas include Bogangar, Pottsville, Sleepy Hollow, Burringbar-Mooball and Kielvale. The coastal components of these areas have all been rezoned and

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largely developed with land releases in the Pottsville area approaching their final stages. Some rezonings have occurred in the inland areas, but very little residential land has been supplied to the market. The lack of reticulated sewerage at Burringbar and Mooball has been a factor in development not proceeding in this locality.

In terms of water supply infrastructure the 1992 Strategy predicted that the capacity of the Clarrie Hall Dam would allow for residential development up to approximately 115,000 equivalent persons (ep). Assuming that approximately 12,000 people will reside in the Tweed in areas not supplied with reticulated water then this equates to a Shire wide population of approximately 127,000 persons. Given the change in water management, water costs and community attitude since 1992, these supply estimates may well be achieved from the existing dam, subject to the lifting of the dam wall and treatment and distribution infrastructure being available.

In relation to sewage treatment capacity the 1992 Strategy predicted that the combined capacity of the six sewage treatment plants (STP’s) in the Tweed Shire would eventually equate to a residential population of 148,000 ep. This was based on the STP’s being upgraded and expanded to their ultimate capacity as population levels increased. A number of these STP’s have been upgraded as planned and others are still on track for augmentation. This is discussed in more detail in the Infrastructure Section of this Strategy.

2.3.3 Settlement Planning Guidelines (2007)

These guidelines were released in August 2007 to assist Councils in preparing local growth management strategies. They document the scope and content of a local growth management strategy and the planning principles on which the work should be based.

These guidelines have been useful in preparing and evaluating the draft strategy to ensure that where possible it meets the expectations of the State government.

2.3.4 NSW Coastal Policy 1997

The NSW Coastal Policy is the State Government’s policy for the co-ordinated planning and management of the NSW Coastline. The policy represents an attempt to better co-ordinate the management of the coast by identifying in a single document the various management policies, programs, and standards as they apply to a defined coastal zone (Byron Shire Council 2005).

This Policy applies to the coastal zone along NSW including coastal estuaries, lakes lagoons, islands and rivers, therefore a proportion of the Tweed LGA is covered. In relation to urban land release, this policy applies to all new developments and publicly owned lands within urban areas covered by the coastal zone. The principles in the Coastal Policy relevant to this Strategy are also covered in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy and the NCREP.

2.3.5 Regional Farmland Protection Project– Department of Planning

Agriculture is an important industry on the North Coast. Agricultural land is a finite resource and is under increasing development pressure. Population pressures have resulted in substantial urban and rural residential encroachment onto farmland. The protection of agricultural land on the NSW North Coast is a long term government initiative. The Farmland Protection Project seeks to protect important farmland from urban and rural residential development by mapping farmland and developing planning principles.

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The project team has endeavoured to put forward policies which can be of genuine long-term benefit to agriculture in the region without imposing unnecessary restrictions on farmers (DoP, 2005).

According to the Project, State significant farmland cannot be considered for urban or rural residential rezoning for the purpose of this Urban Land Release Strategy. An area of State Significant farmland area is located inland from Kingscliff (Cudgen) with pockets near Duranbah, Terranora and west of Terranora.

The maps provided with the Project identify a large area of regionally significant farmland located inland from Kingscliff following the Tweed River to the west. This includes areas used for sugar cane production in the Tweed River valley. Regionally significant farmland is not an absolute constraint to future urban development, but to be included it must be consistent with seven criteria documented in the Project. Councils when preparing new strategies can consider regional farmland for urban use only under limited circumstances. It is highly unlikely that all seven criteria could be achieved in the Tweed Shire. For the purposes of this Strategy, regional farmland has been considered in the same way as State significant farmland - an absolute constraint.

2.3.6 Northern Rivers Catchment Management Authority (NRCMA) – Catchment Action Plan (2006)

The purpose of the Catchment Action Plan (CAP) is to manage natural resources within northern NSW. Local government is a key stakeholder in this management process. This Plan (NRCMA, 2006) outlines that increasing population growth and associated urban expansion is putting pressure on the present natural resources and Aboriginal cultural landscapes. All Councils in the NRCMA (including Tweed Shire) are currently revising their local planning instruments which incorporate natural resource issues. The treatment of natural resources in planning and planning instruments becomes a major influence on the resource condition and the achievement of local, state and national targets.

2.3.7 Tweed Coastal Strategy (1995)

The Tweed Coastal Strategy was prepared in response to the Integrated Planning Study, which recommended the creation of a broad-ranging coastal strategy to address the future demands placed on Council resources from coastal growth and development. It attempts to offer a more coordinated response to growth pressures amongst all stakeholders. The strategy adopts the ‘vision’ outlined in the NSW Government’s Draft Revised Coastal Policy “A coastal environment which is conserved and enhanced for its natural and cultural values while also providing for the economic, social and spiritual well being of the community” (Tweed Shire Council 1995).

The bulk of the data presented in the Tweed Coastal Strategy 1995 is outdated with land release forecasts only extending to 2006. The Tweed Coastal Strategy 1995 is useful for comparison with present data and an analysis of the accuracy and relevance of past projected trends.

2.3.8 Tweed Coast Strategy 2003 (DCP No.51)

The Tweed Coast Strategy was originally embodied in Tweed DCP No. 51, but has subsequently been included as Section B9 of the Shire wide Tweed DCP 2007. It applies to an area that includes Kingscliff and the coast south to Casuarina (but excluding SeaSide City), and west to include Kings Forest, Duranbah, Cudgen and part of Chinderah. It aims to provide planning policies and guidelines for this important growth area of the Tweed coast that is likely to accommodate up to 25,000 people when fully developed. Significantly the Strategy introduces the concept of an urban centres hierarchy that uses

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retail floor space and population catchment to define centre size. Kingscliff is nominated as both a District and Local Centre, Casuarina Beach and Kings Forest will be Local Centres and Neighbourhood Centres will be located in other smaller urban areas as they develop.

2.3.9 Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan

The Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan provides the broad directions for future planning in the Tweed area. It outlines the policies and actions designed to achieve outcomes, which have been developed between the private sector, community groups and the three tiers of Government (TSC, 1997).

The Plan outlines the current situation and desired outcomes of urban development and management in the Tweed area for the next 20 years. Additionally, it outlines policies and actions in place to deal with urban development and management issues. In particular, the Plan (TSC, 1997) states that:

There is sufficient land zoned for urban development to accommodate the expected population growth in the Tweed for the next 20 years;

Some areas of land identified for urban development in the 1992 Residential Development Strategy are not achievable at this time due to the environmental, financial and infrastructure constraints;

No further regional shopping centres are required in the Tweed, although subregional retail centres will be required at Tweed Heads, Tweed Heads South, Murwillumbah, and South Kingscliff; and

Housing and subdivision designs need to be integrated.

The population projections identified in the Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan are outdated, or will be outdated by 2011. However the information and urban management issues identified are useful for the preparation of this Strategy.

2.3.10 Tweed 4/24, Strategic Plan (2004)

The 4/24 Strategy replaces and updates the Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan. It sets broad directions for the next two decades and provides a framework for more detailed plans and policies. It applies to the whole Tweed Shire. The purpose of Tweed 4/24 as outlined in the Strategy (TSC, 2004) is:

To update the Tweed 2000+ Strategic Plan and strengthen arrangements for implementation;

To guide sustainable growth and change;

To safeguard the Tweed’s quality of life and environment;

To enable all key players (Council, other government agencies, businesses and community organisations) to work together in achieving shared goals; and

To assist Council in setting priorities in its Management Plan and budgets.

Key elements of this strategy which relate to urban lands and development include:

Urban Development – Implement current plans for urban expansion including Cobaki and Bilambil Heights. Complete assessments of Terranora and Kings Forest. Retain green belts or buffers between settlements;

Land Use Structure Plan and Urban Design Framework – A new Structure Plan to set out more detailed proposals for urban and rural land use;

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Housing Affordability – New measures to provide more housing for both purchase and rental within the reach of lower and middle income groups; and

Regional Links – Closer integration with planning for the Gold Coast and South East Queensland. Continued involvement with the Northern Rivers Region and Premier’s Department coordination group.

A number of the Strategic directions set down by this Plan form a good basis for the Objectives of this Urban Land Release Strategy.

The Plan suggests that Council does not have a need to consider additional major release areas beyond those in the current Residential Development Strategy (1992), which are Kings Forest, Cobaki, Terranora ‘Area E’ and Kielvale. Additionally, the actual capacity of existing zoned residential land needs to be confirmed, and the likely extent of redevelopment for higher density housing in existing urban areas needs to be assessed (TSC, 2004). These issues were considered in the preparation of this Strategy.

2.3.11 Estuary Management Plans

Through the State Government’s Estuary Management Plan, Local Governments have an opportunity to obtain technical and financial assistance for the purpose of preparing and implementing estuary management plans, undertaking works to rehabilitate the estuarine environment and improving the recreational amenity of estuarine foreshores (Ecograph, 2004).

Tweed Shire Council has many detailed management plans for the Tweed River and the Tweed Coast Creeks, these include:

Tweed River Estuary Bank Management Plan 2000;

Tweed Coast Estuaries Management Plan 2004/2008;

Upper Tweed River Estuary Management Plan;

Terranora Broadwater Management Plan;

Cobaki Broadwater Management Plan; and

Tweed Urban Stormwater Quality Management Plan.

2.3.12 Coastline Management Plan (2005)

TSC is required to manage the Tweed coast in a sustainable manner into the future, balancing natural, cultural, social and economic values. The Coastline Management Plan was prepared in 2005 to inform and assist TSC on Coastal issues and management measures.

Umwelt (2005) outlined that population growth of the Tweed area is high and expected to continue. The Tweed’s coastline population represents a significant proportion of the Tweed Shire’s population. Increased pressure for use of the Tweed coastline and the amenity it provides is predicted. This will be driven by anticipated urban growth, in particular from the retiree population, tourist development and, people’s desire for a more secluded beach experience than is available in other regional coastal destinations.

In relation to urban land release and development the Tweed Coastline Management Plan must be considered. Umwelt (2005) outlined that the majority of development on the Tweed Coast is to the west

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of the Coast Road, however, there are some areas zoned for residential and tourist purposes on the eastern side of the Coast Road:

Areas zoned for residential and tourist purposes on the eastern side of the Coast Road have management problems such as encroachment and coastal hazards;

Development pressures are increasing demand for the construction of community facilities including toilet blocks, car parks, surf life saving facilities and tourist accommodation/resorts; and

NSW Coastal Policy 1997 supports ecologically sustainable development principles, retention of public access to foreshore areas, preservation of undeveloped headlands and

Protection of beaches and waterfront open space from over-shadowing.

As population growth in the Tweed increases, there is an increased pressure for urban land release on the Tweed coastline. Such development brings pressure on the use of coastline resources, which may potentially impact on environmentally sensitive lands and the natural and scenic amenity valued so highly by the local community and tourists (Umwelt).

2.3.13 Tweed Valley Floodplain Risk Management Plan, 2005

Tweed Valley Floodplain Risk Management Plan Part I establishes a “design flood level” at 1% AEP. Minimum floor levels for residential development shall be “design flood level” plus 0.5m. Part 2 establishes development controls to apply to various development types in mapped high flow areas of the floodplain based on existing zones in Tweed LEP 2000. Part 3 considers emergency response provisions for habitable land uses in the floodplain. The recommendations of the Part 1, 2 & 3 Plans have been adopted into DCP Section A3 – Development of Flood Liable Land. Further work on the TVFRMP is currently underway by consultants, which may impact on the suitability of flood prone land for future urban development.

New urban development on the floodplain is only appropriate where it can be demonstrated that the development will have no significant adverse impacts on local flood behaviour, when considered in isolation and as a part of a cumulative development scenario. Emergency response provisions also need to be considered for habitable urban development. Flood impact assessment will be required, in accordance with the NSW Floodplain Development Manual.

2.3.14 Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy (2004) (TVM)

The TVM Strategy was initiated in 1998 after the introduction of the Native Vegetation Conservation Act 1997, which provided a number of opportunities to streamline planning and management of native vegetation.

The goals of the Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy are to:

Encourage the protection and enhancement of regional and local native biological diversity in the Tweed by promoting ecologically sustainable management practices.

Promote a holistic and co-ordinated planning framework in accordance with the Native Vegetation Act 2003 and the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 for the management of ecological processes and systems in the Tweed.

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Adopt a balanced and equitable approach in developing the framework that takes into account the environmental, economic, social and cultural interests of the State and the Tweed community. (Ecograph, 2004)

The TVM Strategy outlines that only a relatively small proportion of mapped bushland (1.5%) (Ecograph, 2004) that had a high level of ecological importance is likely to be threatened by development, given existing planning commitments. The most prominent of this bushland is located at Kings Forest and in the Cobaki Area. Other ecologically significant areas included parts of Tanglewood, Sea Ranch, Kingscliff and Uki.

2.3.15 Burringbar Scoping Study (2005)

This study was conducted in 2005 for the Burringbar-Mooball Sewerage Scheme to analyse the anticipated development and population growth for Burringbar and Mooball to determine the future capacity of the proposed sewerage system.

The villages of Burringbar and Mooball are mainly residential and rural residential with some commercial and non-residential development. The villages do not currently have a sewerage system with the majority of the area served by septic tanks with on-site disposal systems. Due to the growing population and the high take up rate for rural residential development there is considered a growing need for an upgrade of the sewerage facilities in the area. Septic tank overflows have occurred and this can lead to soil and groundwater pollution, surface water pollution, odours and public health risks.

The study identifies some land as being suitable for future urban and rural residential expansion based on existing zoned land and predicts that the population of the area will grow by approximately 300 people over the next 20 years based on conservative historical growth scenarios.

2.3.16 Murwillumbah Scoping Study (Draft Report)

TSC (2007) has prepared a draft Scoping Study for Murwillumbah. The key issues identified and addressed in the Study are the finite supply of suitable zoned land, the importance of the agricultural industry and the expanding population. These issues underline the need to identify additional new residential and employment lands in close proximity to the Town of Murwillumbah.

The study examines an area within a 5 km radius of the Murwillumbah town centre as the focus for the Scoping Study. The methodology used to determine this land is an analysis of existing vacant supply and potential future demand, leading to an estimate of potential additional required land and the most appropriate location for such growth to be accommodated. This involved four stages:

Land Suitability

Existing and Potential Demand

Existing Supply

Conclusions

Based on a combination of population projections, discussions with key stakeholders (such as TEDC) and published sources, the following estimations were made:

An estimated total of 169.7 ha of land (gross) is zoned and available for residential development within the study area.

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An estimated total of 70.4 ha of land (gross) is zoned and available for industrial development within the study area.

The scoping study notes that the base data informing the study is now up to 12 years old. Additionally, the forecasts are based on a Shire-wide analysis and do not necessarily represent the specific market characteristics present in Murwillumbah (TSC, 2007).

2.3.17 Tweed Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy, 2006

Integrated Water Cycle Management (IWCAM) is the integrated management of the water supply, sewerage and stormwater services within a whole catchment strategic framework (Hunter Water Australia, 2006). An important component of the IWCM process is the preparation of an IWCM Strategy. The IWCM Strategy provides a framework and long term focus on the integrated delivery of water supply, sewerage and stormwater services.

The key Water Resource Characteristics of Tweed Shire are:

The study area includes one major dam (Clarrie Hall Dam), one major supply weir (Bray Park Weir) and one minor water supply weir (Tyalgum Weir).

The May 2002 estimate of secure yield based on “Historic No Failure Yield” methodology for the study area is 18.5 GL/a. This may reduce to as low as 14.7 GL/a, once environmental flows are set under a future water sharing plan.

Surface water quality and health are generally fair to good across the catchment. Suspended solids and nutrient levels are generally elevated in the Upper Tweed catchment due to rural runoff, with algal blooms commonly occurring during the warmer months. Water quality and health are generally fair to good in the Lower Tweed estuary and broadwaters, which benefit from tidal flushing, but decline with distance from the river mouth, with poor health in the mid to upper estuary and the Rous River. Major pollutant sources for the Tweed Estuary include urban stormwater, effluent and rural runoff (via the Upper Tweed River). Rural runoff and urban stormwater appear to be the dominant influence on pollutant inputs to the other coastal estuaries.

Water users in the catchment include extractions for town water (around 10 GL/a) and rural irrigation (around 4.8 GL/a surface water and 1.7 GL/a groundwater), commercial enterprises (such as fishing, oyster farming, houseboats/cruises) and recreational activities (such as fishing, boating, swimming and skiing).

The key Urban Water Characteristics are:

The urban water supply system includes one major water treatment plant (Bray Park WTP) and two minor plants. Bray Park WTP is soon to be upgraded from 60 ML/d to 100 ML/d to cater for expected population growth and improve treatment processes. A new WTP is required sometime in the future for Tyalgum to improve supply security during times of low water quality.

Current town water consumption is around 10 GL/a, with around 60% attributed to residential. Future consumption is likely to increase to around 16 GL/a by 2019 and 22 GL/a by 2034 (assuming consumption levels remain unchanged).

The urban wastewater system includes five major sewage treatment plants (Tweed Heads, Banora Point, Kingscliff, Hastings Point and Murwillumbah) and three minor plants. Tweed Heads, Banora

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Point and Kingscliff STPs require future augmentation in order to cater for predicted population increases, with Murwillumbah and Hastings Point STPs being recently upgraded.

Around 7.5 GL/a of effluent is discharged to various receiving waters (the majority to the Tweed Estuary), with less than 5% of dry weather flows currently being reused. Future effluent volumes are likely to increase to around 13 GL/a by 2019 and 19 GL/a by 2034.

Urban stormwater runoff contributes to nutrient and sediment loads in the study area’s waterways (mainly the Lower Tweed Estuary), with only limited treatment of urban stormwater currently occurring.

2.3.18 Tweed Shire Social Plan 2005-2009

The Tweed Shire Social Plan (2005-2009) is a planning document that integrates with other Council plans to implement the community component of the triple bottom line approach to planning for Tweed Shire.

It aims to assess changing community needs and the extent to which these are being met; provide information about target groups; benchmark services in the Tweed against comparable areas; identify needed services and facilities; give particular attention to the needs of children, the elderly, people with disabilities, indigenous people and minorities.

The Tweed Shire Social Plan sets out a community facilities policy and program and a community services program for a five year period from 2005.

2.3.19 Tweed Shire Draft Cultural and Community Facilities Plan 2007

The Tweed Shire Draft Cultural and Community Facilities Plan, 2007 provides a detailed review of existing community facilities in the Shire based on a service level of local, district and whole of Local Government Area. It also identifies the needs of the community through contact with community workers and service providers and compares this to established standards of services and infrastructure using community facility benchmarks referenced to population levels. It also estimates the current gaps in services and facilities that need to be filled in the short term as well as the likely community needs based on population growth estimates to 2024.

The Tweed Shire Draft Cultural and Community Facilities Plan, 2007 provides the basis for Council to prepare a works program and a Section 94 Plan for developer contributions that is linked to that works program. It makes specific recommendations about community facilities in the Kings Forest, Cobaki Lakes and Bilambil Heights localities all of which have significant areas of zoned urban land. The services and facilities benchmarks will be a good guide to the likely future demand for these services in any potential urban areas identified in this urban land release strategy.

2.3.20 Tweed Road Development Strategy – 2007

The Tweed Road Development Strategy – 2007 (Veitch Lister Consulting (VLC), 2007) examines :

The traffic studies which have defined the Tweed Shire’s long term road improvement strategy; and

The principles, mechanisms and assumptions underlying the schedules of contributions contained in the Tweed Shire Council contributions plan.

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The document suggests an ultimate development scenario based on zoned land and likely development options including detailed additions and improvements to the road network for West Tweed Heads, Banora Point, the Tweed Coast and Murwillumbah. It uses a consumption based model and generic road costs to generate the cost of accommodating anticipated development and how this might be shared among development in different localities.

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3. Population Growth

3.1 Population Rapid population growth and a trend toward coastal living have had a significant impact on the region, driving unprecedented residential and tourism development and giving rise to environmental, economic and social pressures. Despite the rapid growth, the Tweed has actually recorded population growth below that projected.

Population in the Tweed has grown at a faster rate than both NSW and Australia over the past decade. In the past five years, the Tweed has averaged 2.1% annual growth compared to State growth of 0.7%. This is reflective of the popularity of the coastal and hinterland lifestyle on offer in the Tweed and the relative attractiveness of the ‘sea-change’ lifestyle proximate to the major urban centres of the Gold Coast and Brisbane.

Within the Tweed, Tweed Heads has recorded the fastest growth and largest change in population, accounting for the bulk of the increase in population over the past five years, growing at over three times the average growth recorded in the State over the period.

The Tweed’s population is projected to continue to grow above the level of NSW to year 2031, with the most significant growth expected to occur in Tweed Heads. Key drivers of current and future population growth include:

In-migration from the Sydney Greater Metropolitan Region and other areas of NSW;

Population flow from SEQ; and

Greater accessibility due to the upgrading of the Pacific Highway.

In terms of migration trends, the national trend of sea/tree-change for those over 55 years of age has driven the considerable intra- and inter-state migration to the region. Improved accessibility to SEQ, principally through the completion of the Tugan Bypass, is likely to increase the viability of the Tweed as a place to live, offering a different lifestyle and more affordable housing than other areas in the region.

(Note: In the following population tables “Tweed” refers to Tweed Shire. Tweed Heads refers to a “greater Tweed Heads” which includes Cobaki, Terranora, Banora Point, Fingal Heads, Chinderah and Kingscliff. Tweed Part B refers to everything else not included in “greater Tweed Heads”. These localities are constructs of the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

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Table 3-1: Population, Usual Residents

Tweed

Heads

Tweed

Part B

Tweed Richmond-

Tweed

New South

Wales

Australia

Population

1996 n/a n/a 63,607 196,015 6,006,206 17,752,829

2001 45,051 26,568 71,618 211,884 6,326,579 18,769,249

2006 50,455 28,869 79,321 219,329 6,549,179 19,855,288

Total Population Growth

1996-2006 n/a n/a 24.7% 11.9% 9.0% 11.8%

2001-2006 12.0% 8.7% 10.8% 3.5% 3.5% 5.8%

Annual Population Growth

1996-2006 n/a n/a 2.2% 1.1% 0.9% 1.1%

2001-2006 2.3% 1.7% 2.1% 0.7% 0.7% 1.1%

Source: ABS Census 2006

The NSW Department of Planning has produced medium series population projections at the Statistical Local Area (SLA) level, published in NSW State and Regional Population Projections, 2001-2051 (2005 Release). Tweed’s population is projected to increase by 35,000 persons over the next 25 years to 2031, relatively consistent with the estimated yield of 1.9 persons per dwelling from the target of 19,100 additional dwellings outlined in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy. The projected average growth rate of 1.4% is below the 2.2% growth rate historically recorded between the 1996 and 2006 Censuses.

Diagram 3-1: Historic and Projected Estimated Resident Population, 1996–2031

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

1996 2001 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031

Est

imat

ed R

esid

ent P

opul

atio

n ('0

00s)

Tweed Part A - Historical Tweed Part A - Projected Tweed Part B - HistoricalTweed Part B - Projected Tweed - Historical Tweed - Projected

Sources: ABS 2006 Census; Department of Planning (2005)

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Table 3-2: Population Projections

Tweed

Heads

Tweed

Part B

Tweed Richmond-

Tweed

New South

Wales

Population Projections

2006 53,317 29,706 83,023 229,359 6,843,858

2011 58,932 31,939 90,871 242,700 7,145,170

2016 63,928 34,167 98,095 255,321 7,437,260

2021 68,795 36,388 105,183 267,715 7,725,260

2026 73,629 38,547 112,176 279,686 8,002,499

2031 78,147 40,607 118,754 290,769 8,259,181

Total Growth

2006-2031 46.6% 36.7% 43.0% 26.8% 20.7%

Annual Growth

2006-2031 1.5% 1.3% 1.4% 1.0% 0.8%

Source: Department of Planning (2005)

The population projections released by the Department of Planning in 2005 projected the population of the Tweed in 2006 would be 83,023. The preliminary Census data indicates that the population of the Tweed was 79,321, almost 5% lower than the projected population. The discrepancy with the 2005 projections can be explained by their marking to the ABS’ estimated resident population series which was also different from the Census actuals. The incorporation of the additional information gathered during the 2006 Census would be expected to improve the accuracy of the base from which population projections are made. However, the discrepancy highlights the considerable variability in population projections that can exist over relatively long forecast horizons.

Table 3-3: Projected and Usual Resident Population (for 2005 Projections)

Resident Population in 2006 Difference

Projected Actual Census Number Percentage

Tweed Part A 53,317 50,455 -2,862 -5.7%

Tweed Part B 29,706 28,869 -837 -2.9%

Tweed 83,023 79,321 -3,702 -4.7%

Sources: ABS, Census 2006; Department of Planning

This issue is further illustrated by the accuracy of the population projections produced in 1999. The 2005 projections differ from the projections released in 1999 as updated information was used in developing the newer projections, including more recent fertility and migration trends. The 1999 release projected the population of Tweed Part A at 53,700 in 2006, whereas the actual population as measured by the Census in 2006 was 50,455. The difference between the projected population and the actual population

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is about 3,300 residents, or 0.4 percentage points of growth between 2001 and 2006. While the projected level for Tweed Part B was higher than the Census actual in 2006, the actual population growth rate was actually lower than projected. Overall, for the 10-year period 1996-2006, the projected population growth of 2.5% was 0.3 percentage points higher than the actual experience as measured by the Census.

Table 3-4: Projected and Usual Resident Population (for 1999 Projections)

Resident Population 2001-2006 1996- 2006

1996 2001 2006 Change Avg

Annual

Growth

Change Avg

Annual

Growth

Tweed Part A

Projected 39,100 47,100 53,700 6,600 2.7% 14,600 3.2%

Actual (Census) N/a 45,051 50,455 5,404 2.3% N/a N/a

Tweed Part B

Projected 25,900 27,700 29,700 2,000 1.4% 3,800 1.4%


Tweed

Projected 65,000 74,577 82,955 8,378 2.2% 17,955 2.5%

Actual (Census) 63,607 71,618 79,321 7,703 2.1% 15,714 2.2%

Sources: ABS, 3218.0, 2006 Census; Department of Planning

3.2 Age Distribution The Tweed has recorded an increasing average age and a high proportion of persons over 55 years of age, primarily due to the popularity of the region as a ‘sea/tree-change’ retirement destination. This can impact the local availability of skilled labour.

Over the past 10 years, the average age of residents of the Tweed has grown more rapidly than the NSW average and is now almost 20% higher than the State average. This is most likely attributable to a high proportion of over 55 aged persons reflecting the national trend toward sea/tree-change communities, particularly for retirement aged persons and a low proportion of youth in the Tweed compared to NSW, reflecting the trend for youth to move to nearby metropolitan areas (Brisbane and the Gold Coast) in search of education, employment opportunities and urban lifestyles. The rapidly increasing average age is most prominent in Tweed Heads, which currently sits at 45.3 years. Tweed Part B has retained the greatest proportion of persons aged 15 to 24 years, but is still below the levels recorded for Richmond-Tweed and NSW overall.

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Table 3-5: Age Distribution, Usual Residents

Tweed

Heads

Tweed

Part B

Tweed Richmond-

Tweed

New South

Wales

Australia

Average Age

1996 n/a n/a 39.4 37.1 35.5 35.1

2001 43.8 37.3 41.4 39.0 36.5 36.3

2006 45.3 38.6 42.5 40.5 37.6 37.4

2006 Population Breakdown

0-14 years 16.8% 21.3% 18.4% 19.5% 19.8% 19.8%

15-24 years 10.2% 11.5% 10.7% 11.7% 13.3% 13.6%

25-34 years 8.8% 9.2% 8.9% 9.5% 13.6% 13.5%

35-44 years 11.7% 14.6% 12.7% 13.4% 14.6% 14.8%

45-54 years 12.9% 16.8% 14.3% 15.6% 13.8% 13.9%

55-64 years 13.1% 11.9% 12.7% 12.3% 11.0% 11.0%

65+ years 26.5% 14.7% 22.2% 18.0% 13.8% 13.3%

Note: In the 2006 Census, Tweed Part B was separated into two parts, Tweed Coast and Tweed Part B

Source: ABS, Census 2006

The percentage of the population over 55 years of age in Tweed Heads is 40%, compared with 27% in the remainder of the Tweed Shire, 30% in Richmond-Tweed and 25% in NSW. This trend is expected to continue, with the median age in Tweed Heads forecast to rise from 46 in 2006 to 56 in 2031, and in the rest of Tweed rising from 41 to 50. By comparison, Richmond-Tweed is forecast to increase from 42 to 51, and NSW is forecast to increase from 37 to 42.

Table 3-6: Forecast Median Age

Tweed Heads Tweed Part B Richmond-Tweed New South Wales

Median Age

2006 46 41 42 37

2011 48 44 44 38

2016 50 45 46 39

2021 52 47 48 40

2026 55 49 50 41

2031 56 50 51 42

Source: NSW Department of Planning (2005)

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Tweed’s population is projected to skew further toward the older age groups, with the number of persons aged over 65 years projected to more than double to 41,000 persons by 2031. The population in the primary working age groups between 25 and 54 years is projected to average growth of 0.6%-0.7% per annum over the period. The 15-24 years age group is projected to remain unchanged in number.

Diagram 3-2: Projected Population by Age, Tweed Shire

0

20,000

40,000

60,000

80,000

100,000

120,000

140,000

2001 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031

65+55-6445-5435-4425-3415-240-14

3.3 Population Distribution by Urban Area Table 3-7 shows the population distribution of Tweed Shire between its urban areas (ABS State Suburbs) based on the 1996, 2001 and 2006 census information. There are limitations with comparisons between census periods because the census collections districts are changed as areas grow and this can skew figures. However, the figures do reflect the land release areas in the northern areas of Banora Point, Terranora and Bilambil and the slowing of growth in the established areas of Tweed Heads in the last five years in particular. It also shows the relatively stable population of Murwillumbah and inland areas while there has been strong growth on the Tweed coast, particularly around Kingscliff and Pottsville. About 12 -15 % of the Tweed population lives outside of urban areas on farms and in rural residential development. This proportion is likely to stabilise and then slowly fall as the Tweed Shire population increases in predominantly urban locations.

Table 3-7 Tweed Shire Population by Urban Area 1996 - 2006

1996 2001 2006

Urban North

Tweed Heads

Tweed Heads West

Tweed Heads South

Banora Point

Cobaki

7,660

4,782

6,778

8,800

634

7,547

4,752

8,538

11,168

713

7,125

5,870

7,321

14,682

700

24


Cobaki Lakes

Bilambil (Inc Bilambil Heights)

Terranora (Inc Area E)

452

2,552

1,905

723

2,935

2,423

227

3,691

3,137

Total 33,563 38,799 42,753

Coastal

Fingal Head

Chinderah

Kingscliff

Kingscliff West (Cudgen)

Casuarina

Kings Forest

Cabarita/Bogangar

Hastings Point

Pottsville

584

1,663

3,960

505

2,733

681

1,930

656

1,636

4,779

505

3,082

722

2,553

575

1,341

6,017

535

890

402

3,050

614

3,781

Total 12056 13933 17205

Murwillumbah (Inc Sth M’bah) 7,471 7,340 7,696

Other Urban and Rural 10517 11546 11667

Tweed Shire 63,607 71,618 79321

Sources: ABS, Census 2006; Core Economics , 2005

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4. Existing Housing Types and Densities

4.1 Average Household Size Table 4-1 shows the change of average household size for Tweed Shire over the last four census periods. The average household size has dropped from 2.6 to 2.4 persons on a Shire wide basis but has stabilised at 2.4 for the last two census periods. At the 2006 census the average household size ranged from 2.3 to 2.6, demonstrating that there is some variation in the Tweed. In particular, Tweed Heads had the lowest average household size at 2.3 persons, while the highest average household sizes were at Banora Point, south of Kingscliff, and Bogangar/Cabarita. The Australian average household size for 2006 was 2.6 and this has also been in decline from previous years. By comparison, the Far North Coast Regional Strategy assumed an average household size of 1.9 for its long term projections. However, this is likely to be too low for the Tweed given current trends.

Recent work undertaken by the Tweed Shire Strategic Planning Unit indicates that household size varies from 2.7 for a single family dwelling down to 1.3 for a one bedroom unit. Townhouses and villas have an average household size of 2.3. An average unit development containing between one and four bedrooms would be 1.95.

Table 4-1 Average Household Size, Tweed Shire LGA

Census Year Occupied Dwellings Persons in Occupied Dwellings Average Household Size

1991 20,943 54,080 2.6

1996 26,279 64,719 2.5

2001 30,283 72,024 2.4

2006 31,121 74,444 2.4

Source: ABS census, 1991, 1996, 2001, 2006

4.2 Typical Dwelling Yields and Population Density The following information (sourced from the Urban Development Advisory Service) is provided to demonstrate the typical dwelling yields that can be achieved from various forms of housing. The densities referenced are net densities (excludes roads and footpaths etc):

Large detached house on a large lot (>1000m2) <9 dw/Ha

Large detached house on a large lot (700m2) 10-13dw/Ha

Detached house on a medium size lot (575m2) 14-16 dw/Ha

Small lot housing with reduced setbacks (450m2) 17-19dw/Ha

Semi-detached one and two storey houses (360m2) 20-24dw/Ha

Two storey attached townhouses (300m2) 25-30dw/Ha

Two storey attached houses with rear car/courtyards (225m2) 30-34dw/Ha

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Small lot two and three storey townhouses (200m2) 35-40dw/Ha

Three storey terrace houses with shared wall (200m2) 41-60dw/Ha

Three to four storey apartments 60-79 dw/Ha

Five to eight storey apartments 80-99 dw/Ha

High-rise apartments >8 storeys 100+ dw/Ha

Similar work undertaken in the Tweed Shire by its Strategic Planning Unit indicates similar dwelling yields if development, and in some cases redevelopment, were to proceed in accordance with current planning controls. Tweed LEP 2000 requires a minimum of 450sq m for a single dwelling and 450 sq m per dwelling for a duplex dwelling meaning the maximum dwelling yield for both will be the same (Table 4-2). Higher density development such as town houses can deliver around 16-28 dwellings per hectare while apartment buildings in the Tweed (typically in the order of three storeys) can deliver 74 to 94 dwellings per hectare. Apartments over four storeys yield between 94 and 200 dwellings depending on how tall the building is.

Table 4-2 Tweed Shire Dwelling Yields and Household Size

Dwelling Type Maximum Dwelling Yield per net Hectare

Assumed Household Size by Dwelling Type

Dwelling /Duplex 6-12 2.6

Town house/Villa 16-28 2.3

Apartment to 3 storeys 74-94 1.95

Apartments 4 storeys and over

94-200 1.95

In order to apply these dwelling yields to existing zoned areas, assumptions need to be made about the proportion of each dwelling type that can occur. Not all dwelling types are permitted in all zones and the objectives and location of each zone also affects the likely dwelling type. Table 4-3 shows the ratio of each dwelling type in each zone based on the experience of Tweed planners and observations of existing development.

Table 4-3 Tweed Councils Density Ratios by Dwelling Type and LEP Zone

Zone under LEP 2000 Dwelling Type Proportion of Dwelling Type

2(a) Dwelling/Duplex 95%

Townhouse/Villa 5%

2(b) Dwelling/Duplex 10%

Townhouse/Villa 30%

Apartment (3 storeys 60%

2(c) Dwelling/Duplex 70%

Townhouse/Villa 15%

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Apartment (3 storeys) 15%

2(d) Dwelling/Duplex 100%

Townhouse/Villa 0%

Apartment (3 storeys) 0%

2(e) Dwelling/Duplex 60%

Townhouse/Villa 15%

Apartments (3 storeys) 25%

2(f) Dwelling/Duplex 40%

Townhouse/Villa 0%

Apartments (3 storeys) 60%

3(a) Dwelling/Duplex 0%

Townhouse/Villa 0%

Apartments (3 or 4 storeys) * 100%

3(b) Dwelling/Duplex 0%

Townhouse/Villa 0%

Apartments (3 or 4 storeys) * 100%

* 3 storeys in all areas except Tweed Heads (4 storeys or over)

4.3 Dwelling Stock and Dwelling Production The 2006 ABS census revealed that Tweed Shire’s existing housing stock was 63% single family dwellings, 18% semi detached dwellings, 11% flats or units and 8% other dwellings. This compares to the Australian figures of 75%, 9%, 14% and 2% respectively. This probably reflects the older demographics of the Tweed, the popularity of duplex units among a range of age groups and the traditional resistance to unit development outside of metropolitan areas.

The ABS Building Approvals statistics for Tweed Shire over the last five years (Table 4-4) indicate that multi unit dwellings (semi detached dwellings and flats or units) account for between 22% and 49% of all new dwellings approved (an average of approximately 35%). This suggests that overall Tweed Shire is achieving a reasonable mix of dwelling types in new development. It is important that the Council’s Planning controls continue to provide a range of housing types consistent with its ageing population and the strategic directions of Tweed 4/24 (TSC, 2004).

These building approval statistics indicate there is a large and consistent demand for both houses and units in Tweed Shire with an average demand of 851 dwellings per annum over the last five years. This can then be compared to the likely future supply of land to give an idea of the shortfall or surplus over time. However, this is based on the premise the demand for dwellings will remain as it has over the last five years and this may not be the case.

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Table 4-4 Dwelling Approvals in Tweed Shire 02/03 – 06/07

Number of Dwellings

Houses Units Total

2002-03 756 430 1,186

2003-04 563 160 723

2004-05 451 437 888

2005-06 434 323 757

2006-07 401 303 704

Average 521 330 851

Source: ABS, 8731.0 – Building Approvals, Australia

4.4 Holiday Letting of Dwellings Even though Tweed Shire is a well known tourism and holiday destination the 2006 census revealed that there was a 91.5% occupancy rate for all dwellings. This suggests that the use of dwellings for holiday lettings is not currently a major threat to the residential housing stock on a Shire wide basis. By comparison, areas such as the Great Lakes (Forster –Tuncurry) or Byron Shire, which have a high incidence of holiday letting, experience 20% or greater vacancy in the winter months in residential housing and therefore need to increase the housing stock in order to meet demand from permanent residents. Tweed Shire Council allows tourism in most of its residential zones and has specifically catered for it in its Residential Tourist 2(e) and Tourism 2(f) Zones in coastal locations. By allowing tourism uses in a controlled manner Council has been able to meet genuine demand, yet still maintain its residential stock.

However, it is reasonable to anticipate that tourism (and some other non residential uses) will increase in residential zones as the Tugun Bypass makes it even easier to commute from South East Queensland to a holiday home in Tweed. It is suggested that maximum population densities be discounted by 50% in the 2(e) and 2(f) zones (where tourism is required by Council to balance the residential component) by 20% in coastal located residential zones, and 10% in residential zones west of the Pacific Highway.

4.5 Residential Lot Production Table 4-5 shows that on average over the last five years Tweed Shire Council has approved 306 lots per year while over the same period “releasing” 450 lots per year. “Releasing “ refers to Council agreeing that the conditions imposed by it on the subdivision have been met and the landowner can then register the lots with the State government as property able to be sold to consumers. The numbers are different because of the lead time required by different subdivisions to satisfy the conditions imposed by Council. Observations and anecdotal evidence from local property developers indicates that many new urban release areas in Tweed Shire are in strong demand and there is increasing interest from South East Queensland residents.

These lot approval statistics indicate that there has been a strong and steady demand for residential land in Tweed Shire over the last five years. As with dwelling approval statistics, lot consumption can be

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compared with the likely future supply of land to give an idea of the shortfall or surplus over time. However, as previously stated, this is based on the premise the demand for residential land will remain as it has over the last five years. This may not be the case.

Table 4-5 Residential Lot Approvals and Registrations

Year Residential lots given approval

Residential lots where linen plan released by Council

Residential lots registered with the NSW Government (LPI)

02/03 711 585 746

03/04 284 435 269

04/05 105 801 611

05/06 222 322 142

06/07 211 102 N/A

Average 306 449 442 (4 yrs only)

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5. Housing Affordability

5.1 Introduction “Affordable housing is housing for low to moderate income earners that is priced at such a level that allows them enough income after paying housing costs to meet other basic needs such as food, clothing, transport, medical care and education. While the term can encompass public and community housing (generally called social housing) it is more often used to describe other forms of assistance targeted to people who are either not eligible for social housing or who tend not to be able to access it.” (Source: National Housing Strategy 1992).

The term ‘affordable housing’ expresses the notion of reasonable housing costs in relation to household income. The 1992 National Housing Strategy identified the housing affordability benchmark as households in the lowest 40% of income distribution spending more than 30% of household income on housing costs.

Additional background information on housing affordability is included in Appendix C.

5.2 Demand for Affordable Housing in Tweed Shire The UDIA State Reports on housing affordability (UDIA, 2007) found that the median detached house price in the Ballina/ Lismore/ Tweed area had more than doubled in the period 2001 to 2006. Increases occurred in all other localities reviewed in NSW but the Northern Rivers is now in the least affordable category of the affordability index (similar to Sydney). Not surprisingly, affordable housing was in the top 5 issues provided in community feedback to the 2006 Tweed Shire Social Plan Review (TSC, 2006).

5.3 The Need to Address the Affordable Housing Issue Tweed Shire has relatively high levels of unemployment, retirees on fixed incomes and low-income earners, thus placing increased demand on the provision of affordable and special needs housing. It is also home to an increasing number of families, especially single parent families.

There are a number of reasons why immediate actions are needed to address the affordable housing issue:

The Tweed Shire area has a high proportion of population over 65 years of age and this situation is projected to continue;

The Tweed Coast will continue to attract more holidaymakers and tourism investors. Those seeking to invest in holiday accommodation are looking for reasonably priced units close to entertainment (shops, restaurants and beaches). This takes a percentage of residential accommodation out of the market for fulltime housing and pushes rental prices up for rental accommodation which needs to return a rate competitive with holiday rentals;

As older areas redevelop, those families that previously occupied the older housing stock are being forced out of town or at least to the fringe locations away from services and amenities;

As the population in the area increases and the retired population becomes older and less financially secure, the demand for smaller forms of housing will correspondingly increase;

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The aging of the general population of Australia is inevitable and plans to accommodate those people in their later years must be initiated now before the opportunities are lost;

A lack of diversity in housing choice may lead to the creation of gaps in the labour supply as the lower income groups (with working age occupants) are forced to leave the area due to rising house prices.

5.4 Land Supply Many local commentators and real estate industry representatives cite raw land supply as a critical issue in demand and supply relationship that affects the market price of housing. Although Tweed Shire does not currently have a shortage of zoned residential land, it is important that a residential land supply is identified for the long term to ensure shortages do not occur in this growth area over time. One of the significant roles of this Strategy is to identify that land to provide supply options.

5.5 Implications for Tweed Shire Council Council needs to look at ways to facilitate an increase in the availability of public housing in Tweed Shire and also to seriously consider mechanisms to increase the availability of affordable housing that is outside the traditional public housing sector.

Implementation of a range of measures intended to improve housing affordability should be a major goal of Council. Such implementation will be the responsibility of a range of stakeholders in the housing industry – including public sector housing agencies, the private sector (covering housing finance, design and construction) and government at all levels. The Council can be both a facilitator and implement actions to provide sustainable affordable housing.

Such measures include:

preparation of an Affordable Housing Strategy;

inclusion of affordable housing objectives and special provisions in its revised local environmental plan;

inclusion of a range of opportunities for potential residential release areas in this Strategy in the short, medium and long term;

negotiation of planning agreements at the rezoning and development application stage with a view to affordable housing outcomes; and

negotiate with the State Government on paying for more infrastructure costs in agreed growth areas required to supply genuine demand for housing.

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6. Land and Dwelling Demand

6.1 Introduction Land and dwelling demand can be estimated using a variety of methods. Each method has merit and can be useful. The outcomes from each method are influenced by the assumptions made and these need to be stated.

Applying a range of methods gives a good overview of the range of demand that may occur over the nominated time frame.

6.2 Population Projections Method The NSW Department of Planning has produced medium series population projections at the Statistical Local Area (SLA) level, published in NSW State and Regional Population Projections, 2001-2051 (2005 Release). Tweed’s population is projected to increase by 35,000 persons over the next 25 years to 2031. Assuming that 35% will live in units at an average household size of 1.95 persons per unit then there will need to be an additional 6,282 units constructed. Assuming the remaining 65% will live in dwelling houses then at an average household size of 2.4 persons per dwelling there will need to be an additional 9,480 dwellings constructed. If it is assumed that all of the units will be constructed in existing urban areas such as Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff then the predicted demand for new residential land will be dependant on the density of new urban areas.

If densities are at the low end, say 6 dwellings per net ha then 1,580 ha of residential land will be required. If densities are in the mid range, say 12 dwellings per net ha then 790 ha of residential land will be required. If dwellings are at the upper end of the range, say 16 dwellings per net ha then 593 ha of residential land will be required. (Table 6-1)

6.3 Far North Coast Regional Strategy Targets The Far North Coast Regional Strategy indicates that the North Coast Region is likely to grow by about 60,400 persons by the year 2031. In order to house its share of this expanding population the Tweed Shire is expected to provide 19,100 new dwellings at a ratio of 40% units and 60% dwelling houses (State Government targets). Assuming that the 7,640 units to be constructed will all go into existing urban areas such as Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff then the predicted demand for new residential land will be dependant on the density of new urban areas.

Assuming the 11,460 dwelling houses are accommodated at say 6 dwellings per net ha then 1,910 ha of residential land will be required. If densities are mid range, say 12 dwellings per net ha then 955 ha of residential land will be required. If dwellings are at the upper end of the range, say 16 dwellings per net ha then 716 ha of residential land will be required. (Table 6-1)

6.4 Dwelling Approvals Method Another approach to defining the demand for land and dwellings is to assess the past approved dwellings over a period of say five years and project this demand forward over a given time frame to give an estimate of future demand. This methodology is outlined in the State Government’s publication, Urban Settlement Strategies – Guidelines for the North Coast (DUAP, 2000).

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It is known that the average number of dwellings approved by Council over the last five years is 520 dwelling houses and 330 units per year. Projecting this as a constant demand until the year 2031 then Council will need to give approval to 12,480 dwelling houses and 7,920 units.

Using these dwelling projections it could be assumed that the 7,920 units required to meet the projected demand will all go into existing urban areas such as Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff. The predicted demand for new residential land will be dependant on the density of new urban areas.

Assuming the 12,480 dwelling houses are accommodated at say 6 dwellings per net ha then 2,080 ha of residential land will be required. If densities are mid range, say 12 dwellings per net ha then 1,040 ha of residential land will be required. If dwellings are at the upper end of the range, say 16 dwellings per net ha then 780 ha of residential land will be required. (Table 6-1)

It is common with this method to build in a percentage on top of current demand to ensure that long term supplies are maintained and to allow for unknowns that may affect demand. In high growth locations an allowance of up to 30 % more than projected demand can be used.

6.5 Lot Approvals Method Another approach to defining the demand for land (and therefore dwellings) is to assess the past demand for land over a period of say five years and project this demand forward over a given time frame to give an estimate of future demand. This methodology is outlined in the State Government’s publication, Urban Settlement Strategies – Guidelines for the North Coast (DUAP, 2000).

It is known that the average production of residential land in Tweed Shire is say 450 lots per year and it might be assumed that the majority of these lots are in new urban areas and are to be used to construct dwelling houses. Projecting this as a constant demand until the year 2031 then Council will need to release 10,800 lots in order to satisfy the current level of demand from the market.

Taking these lot production estimates and assuming 6 lots per net ha then 1,800 ha of residential land will be required. If lot densities are mid range, say 12 lots per net ha then 900 ha of residential land will be required. If lot density is at the upper end of the range, say 16 lots per net ha then 675 ha of residential land will be required. (Table 6-1)

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These numbers are based on the assumption of constant demand. It is common with this method to build in a percentage on top of current demand to ensure that long term supplies are maintained and to allow for unknowns that may affect demand. In high growth locations an allowance of up to 30 % more than projected demand can be used.

6.6 Strong Regional Growth Scenario A further approach that has been put forward by the property development industry is to view the future of Tweed Shire as part of a broader picture of growth and change in South East Queensland and Northern NSW.

Matusik (2007) notes that the Gold Coast is the fastest growing municipality in Australia and is the largest city in Australia outside of the capitals. The Gold Coast grows by about 13,000 persons per year and has approximately 525,000 permanent residents. He suggests that the Gold Coast and Tweed regions combined will require an additional 227,000 new dwellings over the next 25 years to accommodate expected population growth. The implication of this is that the demand for additional land and dwellings in the Gold Coast may be transferred south to the Tweed Coast over that 25 year period as land supply issues in the Gold Coast change. He also suggests that the opening of the Tugun Bypass road link from South East Queensland into the north of Tweed Shire (in mid 2008) combined with the recent upgrading of the Gold Coast Airport may be a catalyst for an increase in population growth by 30% on current levels. Another factor that may also support this position is the connection of the Gold Coast Airport to Brisbane by heavy rail by 2026 and a rapid transit system of public transport in place for all of the Gold Coast by 2015. All these factors make commuting from the Tweed Shire more attractive to people with employment in South East Queensland.

It is also noted that Tweed Shire has a reliable supply of potable water and even though South East Queensland is investing in desalination on the Gold Coast, the water that is obtained from this method will be expensive by comparison to traditional methods.

Converting this approach into a demand for land and dwellings could be done in two ways. One way is to take the medium series population projections by the NSW Department of Planning and add 30% (say), then apply the population projection method as above. The other is to take the current dwelling approval statistics and add 30% (say) and apply the dwelling approvals method as above.

The population projections option would assume that Tweed Shire’s population will grow by about 45,500 persons between now and 2031. Assuming that 35% will live in units at an average household size of 1.95 persons per unit then there will need to be an additional 8,167 units constructed. Assuming the remaining 65% will live in dwelling houses then at an average household size of 2.4 persons per dwelling there will need to be an additional 12,323 dwelling houses constructed. If it is assumed that all of the units will be constructed in existing urban areas such as Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff then the predicted demand for new residential land will be dependant on the density of new urban areas.

If densities are at the low end, say 6 dwellings per net ha then 2,054 ha of residential land will be required. If densities are in the mid range, say 12 dwellings per net ha then 1,027 ha of residential land will be required. If dwellings are at the upper end of the range, say 16 dwellings per net ha then 770 ha of residential land will be required. (Table 6-1)

The dwelling approval option would take the average number of dwellings approved by Council over the last five years (520 dwelling houses and 330 units per year) and project this until the year 2031 with a

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30% increase. In this method Council will need to give approval to 16,224 dwelling houses and 10,296 units.

Using these dwelling projections it could be assumed that the 10,296 units required to meet the projected demand will all go into existing urban areas such as Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff. The predicted demand for new residential land will be dependant on the density of new urban areas.

Assuming the 16,224 dwelling houses are accommodated at say 6 dwellings per net ha then 2,704 ha of residential land will be required. If densities are mid range, say 12 dwellings per net ha then 1,352 ha of residential land will be required. If dwellings are at the upper end of the range, say 16 dwellings per net ha then 1,014 ha of residential land will be required. (Table 6-1)

6.7 A Preferred Approach to Estimating Demand Table 6-1 summarises the range of demand statistics outlined previously. These options indicate that the number of new units required will be between 6,282 and 10,296, dwelling houses required range between 9,480 and 16,224, and land required ranges between 593 net ha and 2,704 net ha.

In determining its preferred approach Council needs to be mindful that underestimating the demand has greater impacts on the community than overestimating demand. Accordingly it is recommended that the strong regional growth –dwelling approval option with new residential land required at the mid range of residential density (12 dwellings per net ha) be adopted as the preferred approach in estimating future demand in the Shire.

Table 6-1 Summary of Land and Dwelling Demand Options

Demand Method

Units Required

Dwelling Houses Required

Residential Land Required at Low Density (net ha)

Residential Land Required at Mid Range Density (net ha)

Residential Land Required at Upper Range Density (net ha)

Population Projection

6,282 units

9,480 1,580 790 593

Far Nth Coast Regional Strategy Targets

7,640 units

11,460 1,910 955 716

Dwelling Approvals

7,920 units

12,480 2,080 1,040 780

Lot Approvals

N/A N/A 1,800 900 675

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Strong Regional Growth - population

8,167 units

12,323 2,054 1,027 770

Strong Regional Growth – dwelling approval

10,296 units

16,224 2,704 1,352 1,014

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7. Land and Dwelling Supply

7.1 Introduction The supply of land and housing to meet future demand will come from a combination of sources:

Vacant lots within existing zoned residential subdivisions;

Residential zoned land that is yet to be subdivided;

Redevelopment of existing residential or other properties;

Rezoning of new land for residential purposes (“Greenfield sites”).

The following sections provide details as to the likely land supply to be generated from the various sources, redevelopment opportunities and the anticipated population growth and timing.

7.2 Vacant Subdivided Land In preparing a strategy that is to be implemented over the short term it would normally be appropriate to survey existing vacant lots within zoned and subdivided residential areas. However, given that this strategy is Shire wide and is looking at urban land availability over a 25 year period, there is limited value in providing a snap shot of vacant land in existing residential areas that would quickly become out of date.

However, in the case of Tweed Shire there are some significant areas which are zoned for residential development and have been given development approval for subdivision. In some cases these areas have delivered land to the market over stages and there are still some stages yet to be delivered. In other cases, the consent for subdivision has been issued, but no land has been delivered to the market. In all cases these areas have valid and “commenced” consents for subdivision. A summary of these areas is shown in Table 7-1.

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Table 7-1 Residential zoned land with approval for subdivision

Urban Release Area Approximate area zoned Residential that remains vacant (ha)

Approximate Maximum No. of Dwellings

Approximate Maximum No. of Persons

Cobaki Lakes 350

5,500 12,000

Pottsville (Seabreeze) 16 170 450

Pottsville (Black Rocks) 11 90 250

Casuarina/Salt/Seaside City 41 750 2,000

West Murwillumbah 10 80 200

Cudgen (Heights) 8 125 290

Total 436 6,715 15,190

There is a substantial area of land zoned and subdivided that has yet to reach the market. The majority of this is in one site at Cobaki Lakes that has been in progress now for over a decade. It was identified in the 1992 Strategy and subsequently rezoned and a subdivision consent issued. This consent was activated. The development has strong links into south east Queensland and the finalisation of the Tugun Bypass by the end of 2008 is likely to increase the desire to provide land in this location. The current owners are reviewing their development consent through a Part 3A process which is expected to be dealt with by the Minister by mid 2008. The owners consider that residential lots should be available to the market by 2009 with approximately 300 lots being made available each year thereafter. However, this land has been zoned and subdivided for a considerable time and given the major road, water and sewerage infrastructure costs that will need to be incurred before land can be released, it cannot be guaranteed that this land will be available within the next five years. It is likely that some of the land currently zoned for residential purposes will be used for employment purposes as well as for non residential support facilities.

Other land in this category includes the final stages of the Sea Breeze and Black Rocks residential developments, both in the vicinity of Pottsville. These lands are in the process of being developed and it is assumed that they will deliver the remainder of the residential zoned land to the market over the next two years. There is also the final stage of residential development on the northern edge of Cudgen (Cudgen Heights) from a residential subdivision given consent in the mid 1990’s.

7.3 Residential Zoned Land yet to be Subdivided This category of land applies to areas that are currently zoned under Tweed LEP 2000 for residential purposes but have not yet been subject to an application for subdivision. Such land can be withheld from the market because the owner has no interest in undertaking the development or it may be that development in that location is not cost effective due to physical, infrastructure or other constraints. Sometimes land can be held at this stage because its value has been significantly increased through the rezoning process yet the costs of maintaining the land have remained at relatively low levels. If land values in an area such as Tweed are known to be increasing even without any development taking place

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then withholding the land from the market can actually be a way of increasing its value further. This tactic can be employed as part of a wider investment portfolio, but has the down side from a Council perspective of making it difficult to predict when land will be subdivided and made available to the market.

Some Councils have used “sunset “ clauses attached to rezonings to ensure that land is developed within a reasonable amount of time or it reverts to a rural zone. This is an option that Council could consider with future rezoning.

A summary of the more substantial areas of land zoned for residential purposes, but not currently subdivided is shown in Table 7-2.

Table 7-2 Residential zoned land yet to be subdivided

Urban Release Area

Approximate Area zoned Residential that remains vacant (ha)

Approximate Area zoned Residential that remains vacant less 20% unless otherwise known (net ha)

Approximate Maximum No. of Dwellings

Approximate Maximum No of Persons

Tanglewood 78

62 650 1,500-3,000

Kings Forest 495 396 4,500 10,000

West Murwillumbah and Kielvale

170 136 2,500 3,900*

Bilambil Heights 370 296 2,500 7,500**

Area ‘E’ (Terranora)

188 150 1,600 4,000

Kunghur (Nightcap village)

43 20*** 400 – 450*** 750 – 1,200

West Kingscliff 62 50 1,375**** 3,460****

Other lands 71 Discounted Discounted Discounted

Total 1,477 1,110 13,525 31,110

* Architectus, 2007 **DAC , 2007 ***Nightcap Village et al, 2006, ****DGP, 2008

Table 7-2 indicates that Tweed Shire has approximately 71 ha of “other” land currently zoned for residential purposes and held in lots greater than 1 ha. This figure represents the total area zoned for residential purposes that is still held in lots greater than 1ha (an area of 1,913 ha as at Jan 2008) less the total of the known residential areas either with or without consent for subdivision (Table 7-1and Table 7-2). This is an indication of land that may have subdivision potential scattered throughout the Shire. Much of this land is unlikely to be developed to any significant level due to physical site constraints such

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as aircraft noise, flooding, poor drainage and steepness. As well as environmental constraints such as significant vegetation and servicing limitations such as the absence of reticulated sewerage in some village areas. There is also a proportion of this land that is not subdivided (in terms of Torrens Title), but is already used for residential development such as Strata and Community Title developments and caravan parks. A further proportion of this land is zoned for residential purposes but may be part of publicly owned remnant bushland or in drainage reserves or public parks. Given that it is not known how many dwellings this land may yield (if any) it is assumed that it will not contribute to the supply of land for residential purposes and is therefore discounted.

For a number of these sites (such as Kings Forest, Area E and Bilambil Heights) it is likely that some of the land zoned for urban purposes will be used for employment as well as other non residential support facilities.

7.4 Maximum Population Capacity of Urban Areas Using the observations and assumptions discussed previously such as dwelling density, average household size, density ratio by dwelling type, LEP zoning, and knowing the area of existing zoned land within urban localities, it is possible to estimate the maximum population capacity of existing urban areas (Appendix A).

However, caution needs to be taken when using these figures as the factors that affect development within each locality make it difficult to predict with any certainty how or if population density might change and if it does over what area or time frame. In addition to this, the major areas of zoned and vacant residential land that have been assessed in this Strategy individually (eg Kings Forest and Cobaki Lakes) are also counted in the zoned areas of the maximum population capacity. So it is important in assessing land supply for future growth that these large areas of residential zoned land are not counted twice.

The approach taken to establishing the maximum capacity of existing zoned urban areas is to apply a range of dwellings per ha and a range of maximum persons per ha and multiply these by the net zoned area. In most cases this provides a population estimate that is realistic compared to the existing population. However in three cases (Tweed Heads West, Terranora, and Chinderah), the existing 2006 population of these ABS state suburbs actually exceeds the estimated maximum population. The reasons for this are that in the Terranora locality there are large areas of established rural residential development that contributes to population, but is not zoned for urban purposes. In Chinderah there are three densely populated mobile home/caravan parks that add significantly to population density. In West Tweed Heads there are two densely populated mobile home/caravan parks plus a precinct of two and three storey unit developments at relatively high densities.

Using these estimates suggests that the existing zoned urban areas of Tweed Shire have a population capacity of between 92,000 and 146,000 depending on how the density of development and redevelopment takes place. Given the 2006 urban population was around 67,500 (assuming approximately 15% of residents live outside of urban areas) then there is clearly room for substantial growth within existing zoned urban areas. The majority of this growth is likely to take place in the undeveloped parts of these zoned areas rather than through redevelopment. As stated previously, these undeveloped areas are specifically counted in the land supply calculations of this Strategy.

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7.5 Redevelopment of Existing Residential Properties A portion of potential housing supply is feasible through urban renewal. Specifically, increases in housing density and redevelopment of deteriorated housing stock. This is a difficult area to quantify as it is subject to many factors including land ownership and the financial merits of redeveloping individual sites. Architectus (2007) in its Murwillumbah scoping study concluded that as little as 10% of residential demand is likely to be taken up by redevelopment because of the lack of options for higher densities in the inner centre of town.

It may be more than this in Tweed Heads (or South Tweed or West Tweed) given existing planning controls that allow tall buildings in commercial zones, but the last three census periods have shown little evidence of increased population in these census suburbs. However, this is likely to change as land prices rise and the housing stock in places such as Tweed Heads ages to the point where redevelopment to higher densities becomes more attractive. One of the limiting factors will be the existing strata units that are in multiple ownership. Typically these locations may be zoned and suitable for tall buildings, but the restrictions of Strata Title and multiple ownership make demolition very difficult. Similarly, not all commercial sites will be redeveloped as there is business resistance by some operators to running a major retailing operation with residential towers above.

In coastal locations such as the Tweed coast villages, there will be increasing pressure to redevelop larger residential lots for either duplex dwellings, villas or units up to three storeys. This has already happened in places such as Marine Parade in Kingscliff where the views and proximity to the ocean and town centre services has been the driving force. However, in coastal locations it is likely that a significant percentage of these redeveloped dwellings will be used for tourism rather then residential and will not actually contribute to housing the growing Tweed population.

In some locations redevelopment may result in a loss of dwellings as areas that are currently low density residential are used for retail, industrial or commercial uses. One such location in Tweed Heads is land zoned residential that is affected by noise from aircraft to an ANEF level of greater than 25. Such areas are better suited to non residential uses and over time are likely to be rezoned and then redeveloped for those purposes. Any such redevelopment would have to consider the height limitations on structures in the airport flight path.

7.6 Greenfield Sites Using the land suitability analysis in this report and the scoping studies and strategic work undertaken previously by Tweed Shire Council there are a number of areas that, subject to further investigation may be suitable for rezoning to accommodate future urban growth. These areas are summarised in Table 7-3 and shown in Figure 13 to Figure 17.

Table 7-3 Potential Residential Areas in Tweed Shire

Location Gross Potential Area (ha) Comment

East Kielvale

(Area 1)

370 Located east of and adjoining the Kielvale village zone.

West Murwillumbah

(Areas 2 and 3)

73, 13 One area along North Arm Road and one area along Tyalgum Road, both in

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Location Gross Potential Area (ha) Comment proximity to existing residential development. These areas provide logical extensions to the west Murwillumbah growth areas

West Kings Forest

(Areas 4)

214 A large area located west and adjoining the existing Kings Forest residential zoned land

North of Seabreeze estate

(Area 5)

27 Adjoins the northern edge of the existing residential zoned Seabreeze estate near Pottsville. Provides a link between Sea breeze and Koala Beach estates

West of Seabreeze estate

(Area 6)

3 Small area adjoins the western edge of the existing residential zoned Seabreeze estate near Pottsville

Dunloe Park Urban Release Area

(Area 7)

241 Large area in a rural location west of Black Rocks estate near Pottsville

Burringbar

(Area 8)

11 One area located immediately adjacent to residential zoned land north of the railway line at Burringbar.

Mooball

(Area 14)

46 Adjoins the southern boundary of the Mooball village.

7.6.1 East Kielvale (Area 1)

This area lies to the east of the existing Kielvale Residential 2(d) land and includes the area identified for potential residential development in the Murwillumbah Scoping Study (Architectus, 2007). It is mostly cleared of native vegetation and is currently predominantly grazing land that is elevated from the floodplain. It is important that areas such as this are identified for long term growth options. This location is likely to become more attractive as the employment lands in the Wardrop Valley are further developed and as existing residential land in West Murwillumbah and Kielvale is consumed. The intersection with the Reserve Creek Road and the old Pacific Highway (Tweed Valley Way) has capacity limitations and will need to be upgraded. Alternatively, a new residential link road could be constructed if a suitable route can be established. The Tweed Road Development Strategy (Veitch Lister, 2007) indicates that the Tweed Valley Way between Alma Street and Clothiers Creek Road will reach capacity without any additional development in this location. Upgrading of this road may also be required. Water supply for this area would require approximately 10ML of storage probably on two or three different levels. This would require trunk conveyancing mains and pump stations as well. Sewerage options will need to be examined, including the possibility of a package STP. A new STP would require a new outfall or effluent

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disposal option. This would require an EIS and DECC licensing. Upgrading of the Murwillumbah STP (duplication) may be an option particularly if the treated water can be supplied to the Condong sugar mill. This would require extensive transport system upgrading. The opportunity for dual reticulation should also be canvassed.

7.6.2 West Murwillumbah (Areas 2 and 3)

These areas lie to the west of the existing Murwillumbah residential zones and include one of the areas identified for potential residential development in the Murwillumbah Scoping Study (Architectus 2007). They are mostly cleared of native vegetation and are currently predominantly grazing land that is elevated from the floodplain. Area 3 is accessed off the Kyogle and Tyalgum Roads, while Area 2 is accessed off North Arm Road. Area 3 is an extension of the existing residential zones while Area 2 is slightly more isolated. It is important in long term growth planning to provide a range of options for potential development where possible to avoid the situation where a limited number of landowners can restrict the availability of land and cause land shortages. The biggest issues with land west of Murwillumbah is traffic capacity problems as vehicles funnel back into town and across the Murwillumbah bridge. The Tweed Road Development Strategy (Veitch Lister, 2007) indicates that traffic from these localities will affect the Tweed Valley Way in a north bound direction and require network upgrades. Water supply in this area would require approximately 2.5ML of storage. This would require an additional reservoir and pump station upgrade. The existing Murwillumbah STP capacity would need careful review as the combination of the future urban and employment land may exceed its capacity.

7.6.3 West Kings Forest (Areas 4)

This large area is bordered by Duranbah Road to the west and the residential zoned land of Kings Forest to the east. It contains some vegetated areas and small areas of steep slopes that are unlikely to be suitable for development. The current land use is grazing and mixed horticulture including some orchards and hydroponic operations. It is not a regionally significant red soil area. As the land in the Kings Forest locality is developed this area may be viewed as a long term extension to it. Access through Area 4 may provide a better opportunity to access Duranbah Road for traffic coming from the Kings Forest site. Road network upgrades would include widening and partial realignment of Duranbah Road. Upgrading of the proposed Kings Forest Parkway may be required to cater for additional traffic at the western end trying to get access to the coast via Kings Forest. Flooding issues and drainage from the site generally will need to be managed to avoid creating problems in proposed nearby Kings Forest residential areas. Water supply and sewer options will be dependent on the infrastructure capacity in the adjacent land including the Kingscliff STP and the Duranbah Reservoir group.

7.6.4 North of Seabreeze Estate (Area 5)

This area is located south of the Koala Beach estate and north of the Seabreeze estate on the western edge of Pottsville. It is immediately adjacent to an area identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (Sheet 1, page 48) as a proposed future urban release area. It is an elevated cleared area of land that provides a logical link between the two existing urban areas. A buffer is likely to be required for the western edge of this land to separate it from the adjacent sugar cane production area and a bushfire buffer is likely to be required to the eastern edge. Although this is a relatively small site it will potentially add traffic to feeder roads in both neighbouring residential areas. This will need to be managed to preserve residential amenities. Hastings Point STP’s capacity is fully committed to current proposed

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development and the sewage conveyancing system is also at capacity between Pottsville and Hastings Point. Separate arrangements will have to be made. This could include a package STP. Water supply is dependant on the Koala Beach Reservoir site being obtained and failing that it would need to connect to the West Pottsville Reservoirs.

7.6.5 West of Seabreeze Estate (Area 6)

This small triangle of land lies immediately to the west of the existing Seabreeze residential zone and is bounded by the Pottsville-Mooball Road to the south and Cudgera Creek to the west. It is unlikely to yield a significant number of residential lots but will provide a logical finish point to the residential development in this location. It is a very small area and unlikely to require any significant water, sewerage or transport upgrade. No additional road access to Cudgera Creek Road will be allowed. Traffic will be required to use existing access points.

7.6.6 Dunloe Park Urban Release Area (Area 7)

This area is located adjacent to and west of the Black Rocks Estate and lies to the west of Mooball Creek. It is accessed off the Pottsville –Mooball Road and Kellehers Road. The majority of this area is identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (Sheet 1, page 48) as a proposed future urban release area. Some of the area contains patches of remnant vegetation and will be unsuitable for urban development. A major sand quarry is proposed for the southern part of this area and this may limit the urban potential of this part of the locality until this resource is exhausted. An existing quarry (Taggets) is located in the northern portion of the area but the extent of the resource in this location is not known. Access will be critical for the logical development of any of this area particularly in relation to Pottsville Road and Cudgera Creek Road and on to the Pacific Motorway to the north and through Kellehers Road to the Tweed Coast Road to the east. Access will need to work in with the proposed sand quarry and any employment lands development in this area west of Pottsville.

Given the size of this area and its proximity to a proposed employment lands area, a new STP will be required to service this development. There is insufficient capacity in the Hastings Point STP and little opportunity for augmentation. A new STP may also take some load from the southern part of Black Rocks and reduce septicity problems in this system. A new STP requires an EIS and must be licensed by DECC. Water supply is dependent on acquisition of the Koala Beach high level reservoir. If this does not proceed, additional storage will be required to service Area 7.

7.6.7 Burringbar (Area 8)

Area 8 is located on the north side of the railway line along Station Street and provides an extension option to the existing strip of houses in this location. It was identified in the 1992 Residential Development Strategy as being suitable for rural residential development, but this use has not taken place. Rural residential was favoured by Council at the time because the village of Burringbar was unsewered. Provision has now been made to sewer the village. Any land that is capable for development and identified in this Strategy should be used for residential development to maximise its contribution to paying for sewerage infrastructure and consolidate the village. Upgrade of the Station Street intersection with Tweed Valley Way will be required. More recently this area was identified as having development potential in the Burringbar Scoping Study (GHD, 2005). This study identified a larger area that includes land that is now recognised as regionally significant farmland by the NSW government. Area 8 does not include any regionally significant farmland. A new STP has been agreed

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as a priority by Council and a site has been identified. However licensing of any treated waste disposal options will be a difficult process and reuse options will need to be examined. Due to funding restrictions of the new STP there will be little spare capacity in the proposed STP for further development. Any major residential development will require a separate STP with associated effluent disposal/reuse scheme. This issue will need to be addressed by the land developers in conjunction with Council.

7.6.8 Mooball (Area 9)

This area is located immediately to the south and adjacent to the existing village of Mooball. It is an elevated area that is mostly cleared and is mainly used for grazing. It has in the past and is still in part used for banana production. Some of the land may be affected by steep slopes or banana land contamination that will limit the lot yield. It was identified in the 1992 Residential Development Strategy for rural residential development, but this was before the village was to be sewered. Now that sewerage is proposed this area should be used for urban expansion. It is also identified in the Burringbar Scoping Study (GHD, 2005) as being potentially suitable for urban development. This area has good potential to generate development that can assist in paying for the new STP that will also service existing dwellings. Dual reticulation should be canvassed as a treated water reuse option. The proposed STP for this locality will not have sufficient capacity to provide sewerage to all of the area identified and either an augmentation or a package STP will need to be investigated. Water supply is likely to come from an augmentation of the Cowell Park Reservoir.

7.7 A Preferred Estimate of Supply Based on the supply statistics outlined previously the existing residential zoned land in Tweed Shire that is not currently being used for residential development and is likely to yield residential lots in the time frame of this Strategy is estimated at 1,533 ha. (This figure is based on 436 ha of zoned land with subdivision approval plus 1,097 ha of zoned land without subdivision approval (after discounting)). Preliminary estimates of dwelling yield suggest that these lands could supply 20,210 dwellings (units and dwelling houses) and accommodate approximately 46,247 persons.

In addition to this there is an opportunity to provide further residential land from Greenfield sites. An estimate of the lot yield potential of the areas identified in this Strategy will vary from site to site, but will probably be in the range of 50% to 80% dependant on physical, infrastructure and ownership constraints. The potential yield of these areas is discussed later in this Strategy.

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8. Infrastructure

It is important that new residential areas can be economically and efficiently serviced in terms of water, sewer, roads and public transport and that the cost of providing such services does not impose an unacceptable burden on existing residents.

Social infrastructure is not always within Council’s control, but it needs to be considered alongside the physical infrastructure in order to match the expected population for urban areas as they grow and change demographically.

Issues relating to the servicing of the growing Tweed Shire population and proposed release areas are discussed in the following sections.

8.1 Water Supply The Tweed River catchment is the bulk source for all town water supplies in the study area. Almost all of the town water supplies are sourced directly from Bray Park Weir and treated at Bray Park Water Treatment Plant. The exceptions to this are the township of Uki which uses the Tweed River at Uki as the source for the Uki Water Treatment Plant and the township of Tyalgum which uses the Oxley River (a tributary of the Tweed River) at Tyalgum as the source for the Tyalgum Water Treatment Plant. Average runoff rates for the catchment are very high due to a combination of steep ranges in the upper catchment and relatively short stream lengths in the lower catchment (TSC, 2006 c).

The secure yield of the Tweed water supply system has previously been assessed at 27,500 Ml/year, capable of sustaining a future population of 189,000. In December 2006, Tweed Shire Council as an interim measure revised this figure down to an estimated 13,750 Ml/year supporting a population of 94,000 at the current demand rate of 145 kilolitres per person per year. This reduction in estimated yield has been brought about by improved modelling techniques, accounting for recent drought events and allowing for release of environmental river flows.

The above assessment whilst useful as an assessment of the current status of the bulk water supply does not allow for the impacts of climate change, the need for improved supply security and improved demand/recycling management. As an example the secure yield of 13,750 Megalitres per year could be reduced by 20% to 11,000 Megalitres per year to allow for climate change and the resultant need for extra system security. Simultaneously however it is envisaged that implementation of additional demand management and recycling initiatives may reduce extraction to say 125 kilolitres per person per year. The combined impact of these two factors would produce a system yield that would sustain a population of 88,000. This is slightly less than the current estimated yield of 94,000

The current connected population is estimated at 73,000 (about 90% of total population), with population growth of around 40,000 expected in the next 20 years there is a need to address the shortfall in bulk water supply expected in coming years.

The shortfall will be addressed by a combination of actions which include demand management (reduction) and recycling as well as the provision of additional bulk water supply sources. These matters and others are being addressed by Council's Tweed Integrated Water Cycle Management (IWCM) process (TSC 2006 c).

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Council has been proactive in attempting to secure new water supply sources. Much of the land for the proposed Byrrill Creek Dam has already been acquired and Council has commenced investigating the potential yields of both the new Byrrill Creek Dam and the potential raising of Clarrie Hall Dam. At this stage raising Clarrie Hall dam is seen as the most likely preferred option.

The IWCM process will rigorously investigate these supply options as well as the options for demand reduction and recycling to produce a balanced and integrated water supply strategy. Whilst demand reduction and recycling will buy Council some time before bulk water supply becomes critical, there is a need to act now to progress the approval process for a new water supply source. The potential system yield of an enlarged Clarrie Hall Dam or a proposed Byrrill Creek Dam will also be dependant on the environmental flow requirements of the NSW State government.

Due to the long lead time in bringing new bulk water supply sources onto line (particularly the environmental planning approval process), it is proposed to immediately commence environmental and detailed yield investigations into the raising of Clarrie Hall Dam so that once (and if) this supply strategy is confirmed, construction of the dam raising can be fast tracked. An early estimate of yield from a raised Clarrie Hall Dam is 16,000 Ml/year which if achieved would equate to a population of around 110,000 persons.

Council needs to consider a water supply worst case scenario such as increased environmental flows, inadequate demand management and worst case climate change scenarios such as back to back droughts with no increase in bulk water supplies. These are significant risks. In this situation, Tweed Shire may not have enough bulk water to supply existing urban zoned lands let alone additional potential urban areas.

However, the IWCM process is under way and Council is committed to bringing new bulk water supply sources to secure water for projected population increases over the long term. There are significant financial and environmental risks in securing these additional water resources and Council is well aware that the ultimate population capacity of Tweed Shire is dependant on a successful outcome.

8.2 Sewerage Supply The Tweed Shire wastewater system includes five major sewage treatment plants (Tweed Heads, Banora Point, Kingscliff, Hastings Point and Murwillumbah) and three minor plants. Tweed Heads, Banora Point and Kingscliff STPs require future augmentation in order to cater for predicted population increases, with Murwillumbah and Hastings Point STPs being recently upgraded (Refer to Table 8-1).

Around 7.5 gigalitres per annum of effluent is discharged to various receiving waters (the majority to the Tweed Estuary), with less than 5% of dry weather flows currently being reused. Future effluent volumes are likely to increase to around 13 gigalitres per annum by 2019 and 19 gigalitres per annum by 2034 (TSC, 2006c).

Approximately 80% of the total Shire population is connected to reticulated sewerage and approximately 98% of the urban population are connected (TSC, 2006 c).

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Table 8-1 Current and Ultimate Capacity of Tweed Shire Sewage Treatment Plants

Sewage Treatment Plants Current Capacity

(persons)

Ultimate Capacity (persons)

Uki 600 600

Tumbulgum 700 700

Mooball / Burringbar (proposed) Zero(yet to be constructed) 620

Tyalgum 500 500

Murwillumbah 16,000 16,000

Hastings Point 16,000 18,000

Tweed Heads West / Banora Point 62,500 80,000

Kingscliff 25,000 50,000

Total 121,300 166,420

Less 10% for non residential uses 109,170 149,778

Across the Shire the trade waste volume of effluent (i.e. non residential related effluent) is about 810 ML/a from a total volume treated of 7,810 ML/a (TSC, 2006c). If a similar capacity is required in the future then this would reduce the treatment capacity available for residential development by about 10%.

Banora Point STP and Tweed Heads STP service the major urban area of Tweed Heads and surrounding suburbs. Both plants will require future augmentation in order to cater for predicted population increases. Council has also adopted an effluent disposal strategy for the plants, which will involve enhanced effluent treatment via improved nutrient levels in effluent discharged to the Terranora Inlet. The ability to augment any STP is contingent on obtaining a licence to dispose or reuse the treated water in an environmentally acceptable manner. Although significant augmentation is planned they may not happen if this cannot be achieved.

The new Kingscliff STP has just been commissioned to cater for predicted population of 25,000 equivalent persons.. Effluent quality from this plant has been significantly improved in order to more consistently achieve the EPA’s effluent quality criteria for the plant and in conjunction with augmentations proposed for Tweed Heads STP and Banora Point STP, will help to improve water quality in the lower estuary.

Hastings Point STP was augmented in 2004 with a view to achieving its ultimate capacity of 18,000 persons. To date it is estimated that the real capacity of the plant is 16,000 persons. The current method of disposing treated water into the coastal dune system is not ideal and may be a limitation that cannot be overcome. Although Council is investigating opportunities for providing effluent to a nearby turf farm and/or for irrigation of local sporting fields these options are not certain. If these disposal issues cannot be overcome then this STP may not reach its projected capacity. Urban development on the lower Tweed Coast that exceeds the capacity of this STP will more than likely require a new STP and effluent disposal system.

Murwillumbah STP was upgraded in 2001, with improved quality effluent being discharged into Rous River. The new plant has dramatically reduced nutrient and bacteria loadings on the Rous River and

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downstream estuary. However, nutrient accumulation still occurs downstream of the STP during dry periods due to poor flushing of the river. The Condong Sugar Mill Co-generations plant will soon be commissioned. This plant will utilise the average dry weather effluent discharges from the Murwillumbah STP for cooling tower water. This will significantly reduce the nutrient loading on the Rous River.

Tumbulgum STP was commissioned in 1996 and generally has a reliable effluent quality. Some effluent is currently used to irrigate taro crops on an adjacent farm. There is a current NSW Government Approval for Turf Farm to reuse a substantial proportion of the effluent from this plant.

Tyalgum STP performance is at times unreliable. Tertiary ponds are used for disinfection of secondary treated effluent, with the effluent from tertiary ponds being used to irrigate adjacent pastures. Pastures are not currently used for grazing. Investigations have identified that the reuse area could potentially be expanded with the planting of woodlots adjacent to the existing irrigation area. During extended wet periods, the irrigation ponds overflow into Brays Creek, upstream of the Oxley River confluence.

Uki STP was commissioned in 2004, with effluent being used to irrigate nearby koala feed trees. Any overflows, resulting from extended wet periods, from the irrigation ponds would discharge into Smiths Creek and eventually the Upper Tweed River.

The Tumbulgum, Tyalgum and Uki STP’s are all not affected by the outcome of this Strategy.

There are several smaller villages, including Burringbar and Mooball, which are currently not serviced by reticulated sewerage systems. Council has now made a commitment to construct a STP to service Burringbar and Mooball. A location for the STP has been chosen but the timing of its construction will be dependent on Council funding. A major hurdle with this STP will be to construct a system that produces treated water that is suitable for re-use or disposal in an environmentally responsible manner. The licensing of this STP and its disposal options presents Council with a significant challenge. It is not guaranteed at this stage that the system will have capacity to treat effluent beyond the existing population of the village areas of Burringbar and Mooball and this requires further investigation.

8.3 Transport The Tweed Economic Growth Management Strategy 2007 – 2010 identified the following transport infrastructure issues that provide opportunities for economic growth in the Tweed:

The planned $3 billion to be spent of the upgrading of the Pacific Motorway (Highway) between Sydney and Brisbane. This includes the road connectivity between Queensland and New South Wales to significantly improve inter-regional and regional traffic flow between the Tweed and Gold Coast (the Tugun bypass project in particular).

The Tweed and Gold Coast is a major entry point for non-bulk road freight from Sydney to Brisbane, with the Pacific Highway carrying over 70% of the Sydney to Brisbane traffic.

Ready access to two of the busiest and fastest growing airports in Australia – Gold Coast and Brisbane.

The extension of the Gold Coast Airport runway to provide the opportunity and potential for growth in airfreight and passenger capacity to international destinations.

Retention of the Murwillumbah rail corridor alignment provides future growth opportunities particularly in the area of freight movements to and from southern states.

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The main Sydney-Brisbane rail corridor passes through the western part of the Region linking the Far North Coast to the east coast passenger and freight rail network, the capital cities and major shipping ports. The South East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program 2007- 2026 has identified the future extension of the Gold Coast rail link to Coolangatta airport by 2026 as a major infrastructure initiative. (Queensland Department of Infrastructure, 2007). It also indicates that a public transport corridor will link Helensvale railway station to Broadbeach and Coolangatta by 2015 (Queensland Department of Infrastructure, 2007).

South East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program 2007- 2026 identifies the Pacific Motorway Upgrade as one of four major issues in the Gold Coast area. The Pacific Motorway is a critical link for the South East Queensland region and its use for inter-regional and intra-regional trips must be preserved. Additional lanes between Nerang and Tugun, and improved local transport connections, are essential investments.

The Pacific Motorway complements other modes of transport like the Gold Coast rail line. It links to the South East Busway and transit lanes to the north providing ease of travel to the centre of Brisbane.

The Tugun Bypass is a major road project planned for the Gold Coast / Tweed Heads Region. It extends from Stewart Road in Currumbin to the Tweed Heads Bypass just north of Kennedy Drive, passing to the west of the Gold Coast Airport. It is due for completion in mid 2008.

On the Tweed Coast the main focus is on distributor and collector roads for local traffic generated by new residential development and tourism opportunities. The Tweed Coast Road will be the main distributor road for local traffic and is being considered for upgrading to four lanes from the Chinderah roundabout to at least Casuarina and perhaps Bogangar (TSC, 2003). Consideration is also being given to a West Kingscliff east-west aligned link road; the Kings Forest Parkway to link the Kings Forest development area to Duranbah Road; and maintaining the Casuarina Way as a north south link for Tweed Coast villages.

Inland, the main link is the Tweed Valley Way (old pacific highway), which provides a high speed connection between Murwillumbah and the employment lands on its outskirts (Kielvale and Wardrop Valley) with the Pacific Motorway. It also provides an adequate road link to Burringbar and Mooball and smaller villages to the south. Council has also modelled a number of options for alleviating the traffic pressure on the Murwillumbah bridge including bridge duplication (VLC, 2007).

The ultimate road network based on existing zoned land has been estimated by Council (VLC, 2007) and forms the basis of its current S. 94 contributions plan. Any significant changes to this ultimate road network as a result of the potential development areas identified in this Strategy will need to be modelled to gauge the traffic impacts.

8.4 Social As the population of Tweed Shire expands, many more facilities will be needed. Given the nexus between the demand for additional facilities and the additional population it is reasonable that the new facilities should be funded by contributions from development as it occurs, rather than from general revenue when the need arises later. Appropriate contributions provided pursuant to Council’s Section 94 plan can reduce the need for direct funding. A detailed draft Policy & Programme for Community Facilities 2000-2011 has been prepared by Tweed Shire Council separately (Tweed Shire Council, 2004).

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Recently, progress has been made with the upgrading of the Les Burger Centre at Cabarita, construction of Banora Point Community Centre, and planning for expansion of the Murwillumbah Community Support Centre. The established Pottsville Beach Neighbourhood Centre has expanded by addition of a house for the CTC project, using its own resources. There is now a focus on providing improved community facilities for the Kingscliff area, and a youth facility for Pottsville. High priority facilities are included in the Strategy actions below. Council will plan, fund, construct and manage in conjunction with the community a program of facilities to meet community needs.

Table 8-2 Strategy Actions for Community Facilities: for Interaction and Self Support

Projects and Actions Implementation Financial Implications*

Priority

Finalise Council’s Community Facilities Policy & Program, including a Sustainable Local Transport Plan and a Disability Discrimination Action Plan, to enable timely provision through a S.94 Plan

Tweed Futures Priority Actions Nos. 15 & 16

SPU, E&CS Utilise existing staff resources

2004-6

Tweed Library Strategy -implement actions in 2000 Strategy for libraries at Kings Forest and Cobaki

E&CS Utilise existing staff resources

S.94

Depends on land release programs

Tweed Open Space Strategy - implement actions in 2002 Strategy and S.94 Plan to increase local provision and develop regional facilities

RSU Utilise existing staff resources

S.94

2004-9

Banora Point Community Centre - build Centre and facilitate community based management through an Establishment Officer

CP&D

E&CS

S.94

$1.8m

2004-5

Murwillumbah Community Support Centre Expansion - consult with the community, design and build

MCSC, CP&D

E&CS

TSC, HACC

$0.7m

2004-5

Kingscliff Community Support Centre, and Civic & Cultural Centre - consult with the community, design and build

CP&D

E&CS

TSC 2005-6

Cobaki Community Centre – Consult with the community, design and build

CP&D

E&CS

S.94

$1.28m

Depends on land release

Casuarina Neighbourhood Centre -consult with the community, design and build

CP&D

E&CS

S.94

$0.775m

2005-6

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Kings Forest Community Centre and Neighbourhood Centres – consult with the community, design and build

CP&D

E&CS

S.94

$1.944m

$1.272m

Need to review as part of Kings Forest planning review

Youth Centres facilitate community projects in growing urban areas

CP&D

E&CS

$0.4m

Pottsville

State/Federal

S.94

2004-9

Goori funerals - Investigate land for CP&D

E&CS

Unknown 2005

Country Public Transport and similar infrastructure programs - Implement to develop sustainable transport

E&ODU, SPU DIPNR NSW

$0.095m

2004-9

Implement footpath, crossing, and similar urban space pedestrian infrastructure programs

E&ODU

SPU

TSC,

RTA

$0.25m

2004-9

Implement Council Cycleway Plan E&ODU TSC, RTA

$0.575m

2004-9

Services selectively benefiting particular groups in the community help people to cope with any disadvantages and distribute social benefits more equitably.

A proportion of these services is traditionally provided by Councils, but the majority are provided directly by State and Federal Governments, indirectly through community organisations (including churches), or by private organisations. The broad categories of services cover the following purposes:

Children, youth support, family support

Education, health, age support

Social, recreation, lifestyle.

Council has included its funded services in programs in the Management Plan, 2004/2007. These are monitored, and may be amended annually as part of the Budget process.

8.4.1 Service Capacity

It is likely that some of the community programs are under-funded because of the strong growth of population, and will not achieve their targets in a reasonable timescale unless supplemented. This applies both to Government funded services, which have frequently under-estimated growth rates in Tweed, and some of Council’s own services. Further resourcing has to be balanced against a wide range of demands on revenue.

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8.4.2 Priority Groups

The difficult decision about which groups should be prioritised can be answered by reference to the numbers; there will be more older people needing assistance than other age groups. Many older people are experienced and have accumulated resources, however, and the most neglected age group may be young people who have to contend with issues like unemployment and education expenses with little experience and few resources.

These two priorities are reflected in the ‘Priority’ column of the table below. The actions to engage a ‘Worker to support Aged People’ and a ‘Youth Worker’ are prioritised ahead of the other recommendations.

8.4.3 Service Coordination

Most of the funding for services comes from Government sources, but the Council often needs to take the initiative to make submissions that ensure there is a local service. In other cases, a Government service may be ‘injected’ into Tweed without regard for any similar, complimentary or even conflicting existing services, or the local circumstances, and Council needs to act as coordinator to integrate these with the local service structures.

Limited progress has been made towards providing the three additional community workers previously identified as priorities – for Older People, for the Aboriginal Community, and for Youth. These are serious weaknesses in the community support structure.

Some progress has been made with services at the new Community Health Centre in Kingscliff, additional funding for Community Options, more Families First programs becoming operational, planning towards improved Early Intervention facilities, and building of Multicap respite facilities in Murwillumbah.

Council will maintain and support the community services necessary to meet the needs of Tweed’s growing population, prioritising services for older people and for young people.

Table 8-3 Strategy Actions for Community Facilities: for Community Groups

Projects & Actions Implementation Financial Implications*

Priority

Expand resources for existing community services in line with population growth, by seeking grants and additional workers

CP&D

E&CS

State/Fed agencies

E&CS

CDSE

2004-9 for older persons

Encourage investment in new services by agencies previously unrepresented in Tweed, such as Multicap or Canowindra respite for older people, or church youth and community programmes

CP&D

E&CS community/church organisations

State/Fed agencies

E&CS

community fund raising/volunteers

2004-9 for young and older persons

Worker to support Aged People within TSC - seek funding for (separate from disability)

CP&D

E&CS

HACC 2005-6 for older pers, Ab’l comm.

ATSI Worker within TSC, and seek funding for projects, including

CP&D Government sources 2006-7 for Ab’l community,

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action to conserve Aboriginal heritage

E&CS women

Participate in the Families First Program, to maximise early intervention services for young families

Premiers Dept Regional Coordinator CP&D

Premier’s Dept. $0.787m over 3 years

2004-9 for children, women, Ab’l comm.

Collaborate with the Family Centre in Tweed Men’s Project, to establish a Men’s Resource Centre and maintain support for men and families in Tweed

CP&D

Family Centre

Federal – FACS Dept

$0.19m

2004-9 for men, women, families

Support efforts to prevent violence against women, including staff training and promotional programs to increase public safety and social support opportunities for women

CP&D

TS Women’s Service

Lifeline

Comm. Health

Police Service

Safer Communities Funding

TSC

2004-9 for women, children

Expand early intervention services for young children with a disability, and improve facilities

CP&D

E&CS

State (Dept. of Ageing, Disability & Home Care)

CDSE

2004-9 for children

Youth Worker to increase Young People’s support services and information, by facilitating community based projects and activities.

YDO

Family Centre

Lifeline

TSC, State Gov’t

$0.055m p.a.

2005-6 for youth, women

HIV /AIDS specialist service for Tweed – seek funding for

CP&D

E&CS

State/Federal agencies

2004-9

Anti-homophobia projects - programs to provide support, and avoid discrimination on the basis of sexual preferences

ACON

CP&D

HR Unit

Area Assistance Scheme

$0.032m

2004-9

8.4.4 Priority Facilities Post 2007

In its study of facilities and services and the future demand from population growth, SGS (2007) found that the Tweed Heads urban catchment had a projected need for 16 additional facilities, the Tweed Coast had a need for 19 additional facilities and the rural areas had adequate capacity. This is shown in more detail in Table 8-4.

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Table 8-4 Indicative Community Facility Infrastructure Required Post 2007

Level Facility Benchmark for provision (# per population)

No. of Needs Urban

No. of Needs

Coastal

No. of Needs Rural

Local Community Meeting Room/Multi purpose hall

1:6-10,000 3 2 0

Childcare centre 1:4-8,000 1 4 0

Preschool 1:7,500-10,000 2 2 0

Primary School 1:4,500-5,000 1 0 0

District Multi purpose Community Centre / Civic Centre

1:20-30,000 1 1 0

High School 1:14,000-18,000 0 1 0

Youth Facility 1:20,000 1 1 0

Branch Library 1:15,000-30,000 1 1 0

Aged Care Service / Respite Centre

1:10-20,000 2 2 0

Neighbourhood Centre 1:20-30,000 1 1 0

Community Health Centre 1:20-30,000 1 1 0

Police 1:20-30,000 1 1 0

Fire & Rescue 1:25,000 0 0 0

Ambulance 1:25,000 0 1 0

State Emergency Service (SES)

1:25,000 0 1 0

Whole of Shire

Art Gallery 1:30-150,000 0 0 0

Museum 1:30-120,000 0 0 0

Performing Arts / Exhibition / Convention Centre

1:50-200,000 1 0 0

Hospital – Public 2.6 beds/1,000 people

0 0 0

TAFE District Facility 1:150,000 0 0 0

University 1:150-200,000 0 0 0

Cemetery 1:50-200,000 0 0 0

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Level Facility Benchmark for provision (# per population)

No. of Needs Urban

No. of Needs

Coastal

No. of Needs Rural

TOTAL 16 19 0

Source: SGS Economics and Planning, 2007

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9. Environmental Constraints and Opportunities and Land Suitability

9.1 Introduction The Tweed Urban Land Release Strategy has identified a number of environmental constraints and opportunities applicable to land in the Tweed Shire.

9.2 Flood Liable land Flood liable land presents a constraint to development as it has implications with regard to the provision and cost of infrastructure, roads and services located within floodplains. In high hazard situations it presents a threat to life and property. Filling of flood areas (not high hazard) is possible in some situations but needs careful assessment to avoid causing problems elsewhere.

Flooding is a major constraint for urban land in the Tweed Shire. Figure 2 illustrates the areas of flood prone land in the Shire, located along the Tweed River from Tweed Heads to Murwillumbah. There are also floodprone areas along the Tweed Coast and Council is currently undertaking work to identify the extent of this constraint. The Tweed Coast data was not available at the time of preparing this Strategy.

9.3 Topography Slope is a significant factor influencing soil erosion, drainage and bushfire hazard. It also has implications with regard to the provision and cost of infrastructure, roads and services. Slope is a major constraint for urban land in the Tweed Shire. Figure 3 illustrates the extent of steeply sloping land in Tweed Shire particularly around the volcanic features of the Border Ranges and Mt Warning.

9.4 Vegetation Management

Wetlands (SEPP 14) The aim of SEPP 14 is to ensure coastal wetlands are preserved and protected for environmental and economic reasons. These areas have been identified and protected since 1985.

SEPP 14 Wetlands are associated with the lower floodplain and estuary of the Tweed River and the estuaries on the Tweed Coast, particularly surrounding Cobaki and Terranora, Broadwater, Cudgen Lake and Pottsville. Refer to Figure 4.

Littoral Rainforest (SEPP 26) SEPP 26 aims to provide a mechanism for the assessment of development proposals that are likely to damage or destroy littoral rainforest areas. It has protected littoral rainforest since 1988.

Figure 4 shows there are very small areas of SEPP 26 littoral rainforest located sporadically along the Tweed coast from Wooyung to Tweed Heads.

Threatened Species and Vegetation Management There are a number of vegetation communities present within the Tweed Shire that have the potential to pose constraints to urban development.

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Koala Habitat As shown in Figure 5, known koala habitat is located primarily in the eastern half of the Shire, particularly along the coast near Bogangar and Hastings Point and inland near Fernvale and Burringbar. However, the data on this constraint is limited by the extent of the original koala study which was confined to the eastern half of the Shire.

Vegetation Management Categories

Kingston et al, (2004) undertook a major vegetation study which identified high conservation value vegetation and ecologically sensitive vegetation throughout the Shire (Figure 4). The vegetation of value is spread throughout the Shire with the exception of areas that have been subject to intensive agricultural production such as sugar cane areas and grazing areas.

9.5 Acid Sulfate Soils (ASS) ASS commonly occurs on coastal floodplains below 5 m AHD. The Tweed Shire is no exception with ASS occurring along the majority of the eastern part of Tweed Shire. ASS also occurs inland following the Tweed River towards Murwillumbah (Figure 6). ASS can be effectively treated, depending on how severe the problem is.

9.6 Groundwater A high water table in combination with certain soil types can have implications for foundation design and road and drainage construction. Further geotechnical investigations would be required to ascertain the implications for development in locations where groundwater and reactive soil types are likely to be present.

Figure 7 shows the spread of high groundwater vulnerability in the Tweed Shire. These areas generally follow the Tweed River and also tributaries in the western part of the Shire.

9.7 Agricultural Land In 2004 the State Government adopted a position that land identified in its Farmland Protection Project as either State Significant or Regionally Significant should not be regarded as being available for urban or rural residential use unless it had already been identified for such a purpose in an agreed strategy.

Figure 8, shows that State Significant or Regionally Significant Farmland is located between Tumbulgum and Murwillumbah along the Tweed River and following tributaries towards Tyalgum. Additionally there are scattered areas near Burringbar, west of Bogangar and Pottsville Beach, and west of Tweed Heads again primarily following tributaries. There are also the highly significant red soil areas of Cudgen and Duranbah and in the vicinity of Terranora and Bilambil.

9.8 Bushfire Hazard In planning development in rural areas or on the fringes of urban areas it is necessary to take into account the potential threat from bushfire. Bushfire hazard can be a major development constraint given the likelihood for extreme fire events periodically. The slope of the land, aspect and the vegetation types present, determines the level of bushfire hazard.

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Figure 9 shows that bushfire hazard affects a large portion of Tweed Shire. The main hazard areas occur in the west, south-west and northwest of the Shire. Additionally, there are scattered areas within or near Fernvale, Burringbar and west of Bogangar.

9.9 Land Susceptible to Climate Change Climate change affects all land in one way or another through impacts on weather patterns, storm frequency and severity, flooding behaviour, reliability of water supply and rising sea levels. However, it is low lying areas that are affected directly by any changes to sea level and any increases in flood depth should they occur. For the purposes of this study, areas below 5 metres above sea level and between 5 and 10 metres above sea level have been identified as a way of visually gauging one of the potentially direct impacts of climate change. It should be noted that a 5 metre rise in sea level has not been predicted and is used in this study to illustrate the extent of low lying areas.

As can be seen in Figure 10 a considerable part of the Tweed Shire is below 5 metres above sea level including the entire Tweed River valley, the areas around the Cobaki and Terranora Broadwater and the areas in the vicinity of the Tweed Coastal creeks floodplains. Considerable parts of the existing urban areas are below this level.

9.10 Contaminated Lands Portions of the Tweed Shire have been identified as potentially contaminated land due to the former use or current use of the land for banana cultivation. Cattle tick dip sites, are also scattered throughout the Tweed Valley and Tweed Coast and these are subject to a 200m radius of land suspected of contamination.

Figure 11 shows a fairly even spread of cattle tick dip sites across the Shire and banana lands are sparsely located throughout the Shire particularly near Burringbar and north of Uki.

9.11 Biting Midges and Mosquitoes Some areas of Tweed Shire are potentially affected by biting midges and mosquitoes, which may pose issues for urban development.

The main areas of biting midges and mosquitoes occur within the northeast portion of the Shire, surrounding Terranora Broadwater, Cobaki Broadwater and at small sections along the Tweed River (Figure 11). Council has a DCP to address this issue and it can be managed with varying degrees of success.

9.12 Garbage Tips and Sewage Treatment Works Garbage Depots and Sewage Treatment Works exist within Tweed Shire. These facilities and areas should be regarded as contaminated sites.

Figure 11 shows the small area affected by Garbage Tips and/or Sewage Treatment Works at Stotts Island, which is located between Murwillumbah and Tweed Heads. A waste transfer facility and tip is also located in the Murwillumbah industrial estate off Wardrop Valley Road.

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9.13 Extractive Industries Extractive industries should be protected from encroachment by incompatible land uses (including urban development) until the resource has been exhausted. In the Tweed Shire these include both hard rock and sand resources.

There are scattered areas of extractive industries primarily in the eastern half of the Shire. Refer to Figure 11.

9.14 Airport Noise The Gold Coast airport is located at the northern edge of the Tweed Shire and has recently been expanded and upgraded. As can be seen in Figure 12, airport noise affects the north eastern section of the Shire, in close proximity to Tweed Heads. This includes some areas that are already zoned for a range of urban uses.

9.15 National Parks, Nature Reserves and State Forests Tweed Shire has three National Parks (or part there of) and numerous Nature Reserves (Figure 13). These are largely focussed on the Caldera of the Tweed Valley, Mt Warning itself and some smaller areas scattered along the coast.

9.16 Land Suitability Analysis Using this information on constraints and opportunities a land suitability analysis was undertaken for Tweed Shire. The methodology used in this Strategy aims to identify and evaluate a range of constraints, which will impact upon the ability of the Shire to accommodate further residential and industrial development.

The identification of a sound methodology will also enable the community and landowners to better understand the process of planning, site selection and development.

Ultimately, the application of a sound methodology will help the development industry to invest in and develop appropriate sites within Tweed Shire that best serve the needs of the local and regional community and economy.

Appendix B outlines the methodology in detail and how environmental constraints were ranked and examined.

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10. Balancing Demand and Supply of Land and Dwellings

10.1 A Time Frame One of the key aspects of this Strategy is to bring together current estimates of supply and predicted estimates of demand for residential land and dwellings. Normally this is done using a range of time periods (short, medium and long term) in order to assess how supply will diminish over time (based on demand assumptions). This gives Council an opportunity to replenish supply through the rezoning of greenfield sites and to assess development densities and yields to see if they are meeting expectations.

After discussions with Tweed planners, it is suggested that the time frame for assessing the balance of supply with demand should be:

0-10 years (Short term)

10-20 years (medium term)

20 years plus (long term)

Urban land has a long lead time between initial identification within a strategy and then ultimately being rezoned to allow development, having a development application approved, and then having lots released onto the market. This ‘pipeline’ period is assumed to be six years from initiating a rezoning process to release of lots on to the market. This is consistent with other north coast Councils (Lismore City, 2003).

As previously stated, it is Council’s intention to keep a stock of approximately 25 years supply of zoned land available to ensure there is a reasonable opportunity for a constant supply of residential land to the market from a range of locations.

10.2 A Residential Land Balance Sheet A residential land balance sheet allows Council to estimate how the supply of residential zoned land will be used up over time given certain demand assumptions. This allows Council to take action at the appropriate time to assure the long term supply of land to the market.

The residential land balance sheet in Table 10-1 is based on the discounted estimate of zoned residential land in this report (1, 533 ha) and the adopted estimate of demand for land up until 2031, assumed to be a constant annual consumption of 56.5 ha per year. Although the assumption of constant demand is simplistic it provides an opportunity to assess how land stock is likely to diminish over time.

If Council wants to maintain a 25 year supply (approximately) of residential zoned land then it will need to commence the process of replenishing land stocks through the rezoning process by 2011.

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Table 10-1 Residential Land Balance Sheet 2006 - 2031

Time frame Residential Land Stock at start of period (ha)

Estimate of Demand over period (ha)

Residential Land Stock at end of period (ha)

Estimate of Years of Supply Remaining at end of period

2006-20011 1,533 282.5 1,250.5 22

2011-2016 1,250.5 282.5 968 17

2016-2021 968 282.5 685.5 12

2021-2026 685.5 282.5 403 7

2026-2031 403 282.5 120.5 2

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11. Major Directions for Urban Land Development

Tweed Shire is at a significant cross roads in its long term planning for urban land development. In particular, it is facing continued pressure from increasing population, an ageing population living in reduced household sizes, increasing attraction for redevelopment of its coastal villages and a narrowing of its economic base.

Council has put itself in a relatively good position in relation to water and sewerage capacity through long term planning and past investment. However with climate change and uncertainty about environmental flows and treated water disposal options, future capacity is never completely certain. There are problems emerging in relation to transport as the links to South East Queensland are improved and traffic volumes increase from existing zoned areas. The NSW government has yet to make definite commitments to public transport upgrades to link in with the Queensland initiatives. Affordable housing is also emerging as a major issue in the Tweed as land prices reflect the attractiveness of the location to the “sea changers” on the east coast of Australia and land options for South East Queensland are used up.

While some of these issues are Council’s responsibility, the State and Federal governments and the private sector and community organisations have to play their roles in funding and co-ordination of transport, social and community infrastructure in particular.

Council could take a range of planning approaches or a combination of planning approaches to deal with growth and change over the next 25 years. A number of these are briefly outlined as follows.

11.1 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas This option would see Council not rezone any more land for residential development over the life of the Strategy (till 2031) relying on existing zoned land to meet the demands of the market. It is really a “do nothing “ approach to strategic planning. Given the amount of land that Council has already zoned and the predicted growth rates, it is an option that would have some advantages. These would include allowing Council to concentrate on servicing the existing established areas and current zoned lands with infrastructure and social services; allow Council to focus on urban design issues; and allow Council to review existing planning controls (particularly DCP’s) to better address local issues. It may also lead to better use of existing zoned areas as the market responds to a limited number of options to house a growing population.

However, it would create a situation where five major sites dominate the long term supply of residential land to the market (West Kingscliff, Cobaki Lakes, Kings Forest, Bilambil Heights and Area ‘E’). None of these sites are currently producing significant amounts of residential land and the lead times to achieve this are always uncertain. The perception of restricting (or not providing for) the long term market may put upward pressure on land prices. If some of these large sites don’t proceed then there will be no identified large scale alternatives.

As outlined in the housing balance sheet in this Strategy, this option would see land stocks run down over time with land supplies being exhausted in about 2033. As this date is approached it can be expected that there will be significant increase in the cost of housing and shortages in the rental housing market.

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11.2 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas and Increase the Residential Yields from Rural Residential Areas This option would see Council maintain the existing residential zoned lands and in addition to that rezone any existing rural residential areas that are capable of being serviced with urban services such as reticulated water and sewerage to assist with meeting the demands of the market.

In undertaking the land suitability analysis for this Strategy, it became apparent that a number of sites that are physically suitable for residential development have already been used for rural residential lots at yields of around one lot per hectare. Landowners from two rural residential areas participated in stakeholder consultation to support this option. The option is based on the premise that these areas are often physically suitable; are wide spread throughout the Tweed; are not currently required for agriculture or other rural uses; in some cases can be serviced; and are technically large lot residential areas at the moment. The advantages of this option are that it would make better use of this already “developed” land; allow a greater number of landowners to benefit financially from the land development process; assist with the provision of affordable housing to some groups such as family members; and provide a different option to the new residential areas or redeveloped higher density urban areas.

However, it is unlikely to result in significant yields as the fragmented nature of the land will limit the number of lots that can result from any one subdivision; the large number of landowners will produce a patchy response and subsequently a poor urban layout; the difficulty in servicing areas with water and sewer will result in Council taking on holding costs in order to allow some lots to be created; there will be neighbourhood resistance from landowners protecting their “lifestyle lots”; and the community may react to the change in the rural landscape as dwelling numbers increase. It is an option that would not extend the life of existing land stocks by any significant amount of time.

11.3 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas and Increase the Density of Development in Key Urban Areas This option would see Council maintain the existing residential zoned lands subject to a review of residential density in key urban areas such as Tweed Heads Town Centre, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff through a process of locality planning. This would likely involve increasing the height limits in these areas to accommodate the additional expected population. The advantages of this option would be that it could be used as a tool to revitalise these centres (especially Tweed Heads) and bring investment into these areas that can also contribute to public infrastructure. It would also increase the likelihood of these centres achieving higher order social and infrastructure services (eg health and education) commensurate with the larger population. Given the existing level of unit production in Tweed Shire is around 35% of new dwellings there is scope to increase this to the 40% target suggested by the State government in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy.

However, higher densities often lead to increased social issues (this would need to be carefully monitored) and would change the social fabric of these areas as they evolve and grow. It would also have immediate visual impacts as taller buildings appear and the urban form changes. Traffic and public transport issues will increase in importance as density increases and congestion problems occur.

11.4 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas and Delay the Release of Greenfield Sites This option would see Council maintain the existing residential zoned lands and densities and effectively take a “wait and see” approach to Greenfield sites over the next (say) 10 years. The sites would still be

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identified, but no action would be taken to bring any of them towards development over that period. The advantages and disadvantages of this approach would be the same for the first ten years as for the option to just rely on existing zoned areas. After that Council would need to redirect its resources to commence the planning process on the Greenfield sites. This option would require careful monitoring to ensure that the supply of land to the market was not being limited to the point that land prices became overly inflated. Based on the housing balance sheet in this report, this option would see residential land stock come down to about 17 years supply. At this point Council would definitely need to review its position and commence the process of rezoning additional land for residential development.

11.5 Rely on Existing Zoned Areas and Identify and Release Greenfield Sites This option would see Council maintain the existing residential zoned lands and densities but also adopt a short, medium and long term approach to potential Greenfield release areas. Given that some of the potential Greenfield sites are not specifically identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy, it would be appropriate that the Far North Coast Regional Strategy be amended (in due course) with a view to Council’s additional potential release areas being recognised.

This option recognises that Tweed wants to take a supply based approach to long term urban planning and not be restricted by the current levels of demand for residential land. The advantages of this approach is that there could be no perception that the long term residential market is constrained; it would allow a variety of landowners to look at supplying the market with residential land over a range of time periods; it would encourage existing zoned areas to be developed before the “competition” was brought on line; and it would allow for the long term service planning for water supply, sewerage and transport (in particular) where long lead times and large infrastructure costs need planning over several decades.

The disadvantages of this option is that it may spread Council resources thinly between planning for existing zoned areas and the potential areas; it may raise expectations of development for land in the short term when that land is earmarked for much longer term development; and it may create an impression that Tweed is over supplied with urban land options.

It should be noted that the short, medium and long time frames means that most of this land would not be zoned for urban development up front. However, it may need to be identified in a Local Environmental Plan as an investigation area so it is not under pressure for uses that are inconsistent with its potential future urban use.

11.6 A Preferred Direction One of the most important things this Strategy can do is give long term guidance to growth and change in Tweed Shire. A strategy based solely on existing zoned areas is unlikely to provide this even in the situation in Tweed Shire where a lot of land is already zoned for development. The 1992 Residential Development Strategy has provided Council planners with a tool to deal with pressure for rezonings and provided Council engineers with a tool to plan for services and infrastructure. This Strategy will need to look beyond zoned areas if it is to be used in the same way.

Although all of the above options have merit the preferred option is to rely on existing zoned areas and identify and release Greenfield sites in the short, medium and long term.

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Council should also consider reviewing the density of key urban areas in order to ensure a variety of housing forms, and to revitalise its urban centres and provide for good urban design outcomes. Any density increases will also supply additional dwellings to the residential land market.

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12. An Urban Centres Hierarchy and Urban Land Release Program

12.1 Urban Centres Hierarchy In preparing its metropolitan strategy for Sydney the NSW Government has published work on the role and definition of urban centres (Dept of Planning, 2005). Much of the centres definition work in this Strategy is based on that structure. This is consistent with the Urban Centre Hierarchy outlined for the Kingscliff coast in the Tweed Coast Strategy (DCP 2007, section B9). It is also largely consistent with the urban centres hierarchy contained in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (Dept of Planning, 2006). However, in light of the findings of this Strategy it is suggested that the Far North Coast Regional Strategy may need to be reviewed to recognise this more recent work.

12.1.1 Centre Types

Defining the different centre types helps to guide planning and development in the different places in which we live and work. We need a common language to be able to talk about places as they are and what they might become. For example, a Village may evolve to become a District Town Centre in the future.

The key differences between centre types are the density of residential development, the amount of employment and the amount and type of retail and services that are provided in a centre. These are not hard and fast definitions and are not intended to be used to ‘standardise’ different places. Some centres have more employment, less residential or other differences. The numbers of dwellings and commercial and retail elements is a function of development and redevelopment over a number of decades. Therefore these attributes do not necessarily fit with existing centres in newer, outer or less dense places. The role of centres is the most reliable and constant feature across the Tweed Shire and surrounds.

Table 12-1 Urban Centres Hierarchy

Regional Cities

Regional Cities will offer a full range of business, government, cultural, entertainment and recreational activities, taking advantage of their location as a focal point for regional transport and providing jobs closer to home for people living in their catchment. These Regional Cities will also develop stronger mixed use villages around the centres to provide space for supporting activities and residential communities.

A commercial core is recommended for the most accessible part of the centre, without a residential component. The Regional Cities aim to provide a focal point for high

The nearest regional city is the Gold Coast City.

Important role as major employment centre—major health (teaching hospital) and education facilities (university/TAFE) are commonly located in or on the fringe.

Planning instruments for each centre emphasise the importance of core commercial areas to support forecast employment growth.

Major administrative, retail, government, business, cultural, entertainment, recreational, community and transport focus for large, growing catchment areas.

Typical dwelling range 35,000–50,000.

Typical population range is 500,000 plus.

Accommodates a growing residential population in non–

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to provide a focal point for high quality jobs in the region, and current trends suggest a high proportion of residential uses within the core may adversely affect the continued development of a commercial office market. The commercial core should provide capacity for growth and change in commercial and retail uses.

Mixed use zoning is recommended for areas surrounding the commercial core, to cater for a range of support services and activities. A significant proportion of residential development in this area adjacent to the commercial core may be a catalyst for revitalising the central areas of a Regional City, including waterfront redevelopment with river/parkland or ocean views.

core areas.

Focal point for regional and local public transport networks.

Major collection of sporting assets and regional parkland.

Focus for social and community cultural development policies and facilities.

Requires significant investment from government and private organisations.

Governing bodies: State and local government.

Major Regional Centres

Major Regional Centres are the main shopping and business centre for a district, usually with a full scale shopping mall, council offices, taller office and residential buildings, and central community facilities, with over 8,000 jobs defining these centres. Large firms are increasingly choosing to locate in, or split operations and employment among decentralised locations. Tweed Heads City Centre has an opportunity to capture some of this demand for office space.

Increasingly Major Regional Centres are dominated by large retail malls which are typically owned by financial institutions often backed by superannuation funds. The nature of the funds management industry means these significant assets will regularly seek to expand and refurbish, to ensure returns to shareholders. Long–term planning for Major Centres needs to understand this cycle, and plan to achieve the best outcomes for the whole centre, surrounding activities and streets if these malls expand.

Major Regional Centres should retain

Tweed Heads is the Major Regional Centre for Tweed Shire.

A minimum of 8,000 jobs are located in these centres, by 2031 they will generally contain over 10,000 jobs.

The main shopping and business centre for a subregion, with a full scale shopping mall, council offices, regional education and health facilities, taller office and residential buildings and central community facilities.

Typical dwelling range 9,000—28,000.

Typical population range is 20,000 to 60,000

Residential units will be focussed in the Tweed Heads Town Centre with a minimum of 40 % of all new dwellings to be units. Unit density will decrease radiating out from this centre but with a target of 30% overall for Tweed Heads, Tweed Heads South and West Tweed Heads.

Commercial core is located on a heavy or light rail network, serviced by strategic bus corridors and local bus networks.

Major Centres provide employment close to public transport which helps minimise the negative environmental impact of private vehicle use.

Accessible to significant parklands, a civic square, cinemas and sporting facilities.


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a commercial core zone, able to accommodate projected commercial office space and other retail uses. Capacity should be maintained for some commercial office growth in the long–term. Mixed Use Zones should be located around the commercial core, and this may be a significant proportion of the centre. Residential components of a mixed use building can form an important element in revitalising the major centres and provide more housing choices for the area.

District Town Centres

A District Town Centre is a larger group of shops and services generally with one or two supermarkets, sometimes a small shopping mall, a variety of specialist shops, community facilities such as a local library, and a medical centre. They are a focus for a large residential population and must strive for a highly liveable atmosphere.

District Town Centres need to balance activities including customer parking, service vehicles and through–traffic whilst making a pleasant residential and pedestrian environment. They also have to integrate malls/large stores into the main outdoor centre.

District Town Centres include Murwillumbah, Kingscliff and Banora Point Large group of more than 50 retail and other services with

one or two supermarkets, sometimes a small shopping mall.

More a medium or high density residential origin location than employment destination.

Have some community facilities, specialist medical care, schools and restaurants.



Medium and high density housing mixed within the commercial centre and within walking distance of shops, services and transport. Between 20% and 40% of dwellings will be units.

Strategic bus and local bus networks.

Need to balance parking, service vehicles and through–traffic with making a pleasant residential and pedestrian environment.

Town square, main street, library, sports facilities, reasonable access to parkland.

Governance body: local government.

Villages

A Village is a small group of shops for daily shopping which typically includes a small supermarket or general store, butcher, hairdresser, restaurants and take away food shops. Villages also need to develop an enjoyable public environment with a mix of uses and good physical links

Villages include Bilambil, Chinderah, Bogangar, Casuarina and Pottsville.

By 2031, Cobaki Lakes, Kings Forest and Kielvale will also be villages.

10–50 retail spaces.

May include a butcher, bank, hairdresser, café, restaurants and take away food and a supermarket

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with the surrounding area.

restaurants and take–away food and a supermarket.

Child care centres, schools and other compatible activities in the immediate vicinity.

Strip of shops and residential area within a 5–10 minute walk serving daily shopping needs.

Typical dwelling range 750 – 5,000


Medium density housing in and around the main streets and neighbourhood business area, including shop top housing. Between 20% and 40% of dwellings will be units.

Strategic bus and local bus services.

Villages need to develop an enjoyable public environment with a mix of uses and good physical links with the surrounding neighbourhood.

Villages need to manage air quality and amenity by locating a block away from very busy roads/ enterprise corridors.

Access to a local park, may have a market which shares space in school grounds out of school hours.


Small Villages

A Small Village is a cluster of shops for daily shopping. It has more shops than a Neighbourhood Centre but does not have a supermarket. Small villages and other small local centres are serviced with bus stops, schools and small parks.

Small villages include Hastings Point, Uki, Fingal Heads, Tyalgum, Terranora, Cudgen, Mooball, Burringbar, Condong, Tumbulgum.

By 2031, Tanglewood and Kunghur (Nightcap) will also be small villages.

1–15 shops and services.

Similar to village only smaller and without a supermarket.

A small strip of shops and surrounding residential area within a 5 to 10 minute walk serving daily shopping needs.

Typical dwelling range 50 - 750.

Typical population range is 500 to 2000

Medium density housing, including shop–top dwellings in and around the main street. Less than 10% of dwellings will be units.

Local bus network.

Access to pocket parks or small urban outdoor space.


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12.2 Population and Dwelling Targets for Urban Areas Using this urban centres hierarchy (Table 12-1) the Strategy identifies population and dwelling targets for the different size urban areas within Tweed Shire. This enables the residential density controls and urban design controls to be set by Council at the right level to achieve the sort of built environment that the community wants. Targets are not fixed or absolute and are usually presented as a range to indicate the size a centre will grow to over time. Clearly Council can’t make development happen, but in a growing community it is Councils role to guide development to achieve sustainable urban environments that are good places to live, work and play. Targets are also very important in long term infrastructure planning such as water, sewerage and transport.

12.3 The Urban Land Release Program The purpose of the urban land release program is to guide the location of future urban development over the life of the Strategy. It includes a time frame of short (0-10 years), medium (10-20 years) and long term (20 years plus) to give an idea when this land should be considered for rezoning. These time frames refer to the period in which rezoning should commence if the land is to supply lots to the market at a future date. It is assumed that land takes up to six years to reach the market from commencement of the rezoning process.

Table 12-2 outlines each of the potential urban areas and provides an indication of when the rezoning process will need to be considered if these areas are to supply residential land to the market at the appropriate time.

Table 12-2 Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Program

Potential Urban Locality

Gross Area (ha)

Net Area (ha)

Approximate Years supply (@ 56.5 ha per yr shire wide demand)

Timing for commencement of rezoning

Comment

East Kielvale

(Area 1)

370 185 3.3 Long Term Assumes only 50% of land will yield lots due to agricultural use and vegetation buffers

West Murwillumbah

(Area 2)

73 51 0.9 Medium Term Assumes only 70% of land will yield lots due to vegetation buffers and non residential uses

West Murwillumbah

(Area 3)


West Kings Forest

214 107 1.9 Long Term Assumes only 50% of land will yield lots due to

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Potential Urban Locality

Gross Area (ha)

Net Area (ha)

Approximate Years supply (@ 56.5 ha per yr shire wide demand)

Timing for commencement of rezoning

Comment

(Area 4) agricultural use and vegetation buffers

North Sea Breeze

(Area 5)

27 22 0.4 Short Term Assumes 80% of land will yield lots.

West Sea Breeze

(Area 6)

3 2.5 0.04 Short Term Assumes only 80% of land will yield lots as an extension to existing urban area

Dunloe Park Urban Release Area

(Area 7)

241 169 3 Short Term Assumes only 70% of land will yield lots due to vegetation buffers and non residential uses

Burringbar

(Area 8)

11 5.5 0.09 Medium Term Assumes 50% will yield lots due to bushfire and rail buffers

Mooball

(Area 9)

46 37 0.65 Short Term Assumes 80% of land will yield lots

Collectively this land release program identifies 230 ha (net) or approximately 4 years supply of land for the Short Term, 66 ha or 1.2 years supply for the Medium Term and 292 ha or 5.2 years supply for the Long Term. The distribution of land areas across the time frames reflects the large areas of land in Tweed Shire that are already zoned for residential purposes.

Ideally a strategy should be reviewed every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand or services and infrastructure. If needed, areas can be brought forward if development exceeds expectation or other areas are withheld from supply. If development falls short of expectation then some areas can be deferred to a later time frame.

The strategy includes areas that have been identified in the land suitability analysis as having ecological and physical characteristics that may make it suitable for urban development. Areas less than 2km from an existing residential zone were also given preference over isolated lands. The strategy also considers the need to provide land in a range of locations in the Shire, particularly west of the Pacific Highway to meet the requirement of the Department of Planning that a greater proportion of new development take place away from the coast.

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This process is not exhaustive and is limited by the amount and quantity of available data and issues of scale. In most cases cadastre has not been a major influence, so some properties are partly identified in the strategy and partly not. In these cases the entire property should be considered in any detailed analysis to ensure that the best land is ultimately identified for future urban use.

Readers of this strategy are also cautioned that this document has not been prepared for anyone as a basis for investment or other private decision making in relation to land purchases, sales or other land uses. Council recommends that it not be used by anyone in this way.

Refer to Figure 14 to Figure 17 for the areas identified in the urban land release program as being potentially suitable for residential development.

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13. Strategy Evaluation, Implementation and Review

13.1 Strategy Evaluation It is useful to evaluate this urban release strategy against the settlement planning principles in the State government’s Settlement Planning Guidelines (Department of Planning, 2007). The headings that follow are taken from Chapter 3 of that document.

13.1.1 Location

The potential urban release lands nominated in this Strategy are predominantly within the growth areas nominated in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy. In cases where there is variation in the boundaries to these areas this is because of the better quality land use suitability information available to Council. All nominated areas build on existing zoned urban areas.

Where this Strategy nominates an area outside of the growth areas identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy they are either:

areas identified in Councils 1992 Residential Development Strategy for either urban or rural residential development, or

areas that will have minimal environmental impact and will satisfy the sustainability criteria in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy.

13.1.2 Land Suitability

Based on the best available information a land use suitability analysis was undertaken to ensure any areas nominated in this Strategy are predominantly located on land that is suitable for urban use.

Significantly, the areas nominated in this strategy avoid the State and regional farmland mapped by the Department of Planning, avoid the 1% floodplain, are located above areas likely to be affected by long term predicted sea level rise, avoid lands that contain high biodiversity, are not affected by high bushfire hazard and are not excessively steep lands.

13.1.3 Land Release

The potential urban release lands nominated in this Strategy are considered in a short, medium and long term land release program based on a 0-10 year, 10-20 year and 20+ year time frame.

This Strategy recognises the large existing supply of zoned land located predominantly at Kings Forest, Cobaki Lakes, Bilambil Heights, Area E and West Kingscliff and the role that these lands will play in supplying the residential needs of the Tweed over the next 10 years in particular.

This Strategy also examines existing dwelling density and emphasises the need to maintain at least a 40% multi unit housing in the dwelling mix for Tweed Shire.

13.1.4 Settlement Form and Hierarchy

This Strategy builds on existing hierarchies of settlement identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy as well as Council’s own strategic work and comes up with an urban centres hierarchy from

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regional cities down to small villages. This includes typical dwelling and population ranges as well as commercial and employment characteristics of the centres.

13.1.5 Urban Design and Heritage

Council has already embarked on a program of preparing locality based DCP’s and design guidelines to recognise and protect the local and regional attributes that contribute to centres such as Tweed Heads, Kingscliff and Pottsville and Murwillumbah. This Strategy has been prepared with this in mind, but does not specifically contain design guidelines.

13.1.6 Infrastructure Provision

This Strategy builds on existing urban centres and where possible looks to the augmentation of infrastructure such as water and sewerage rather than stand alone systems. However, in some locations it will be necessary to provide considerable additional infrastructure and any rezoning will be dependant on the proper arrangements being in place. Similarly with traffic and public transport it is acknowledged that different sites may be dependant upon bridge or road upgrades or duplication and there will be a need to ensure that these can happen as the demand becomes apparent.

Infrastructure provided by the State government will also be needed including additional hospital, public transport and school services. Council acknowledges that potential development areas need to set aside sites for such services (and they will), but the provision of them is subject to State government programs. Importantly the infrastructure programs in South East Queensland are widely known (such as heavy rail links to the Gold Coast Airport) so it will be possible for the NSW government to work with Queensland to extend such services south of the border, if it chooses to.

13.1.7 Employment Lands

This issue is addressed in the Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy which is being prepared at the same time as this Strategy. Tweed Shire Council is committed to ensuring that employment lands are made available for the long term to broaden the economic base of the Tweed Shire.

The economic, employment and transport relationship between Tweed Shire and South East Queensland is acknowledged in both this Strategy and the employment lands strategy.

13.1.8 Tourism Opportunities

This Strategy addresses the issue of tourism in the context of its impact on affordable housing and the residential housing market in coastal locations. It is not intended that this Strategy identify tourism opportunities in new locations, but it is acknowledged as a significant part of the Tweed economy and as an employment generator it creates a demand for residential development.

13.2 Strategy Implementation and Master Planning Areas that are already zoned for residential development will continue to supply land to the market over the life of this Strategy. The intention of the Strategy is to replenish these stocks of zoned land to ensure a continuous and long term supply. It is not appropriate that all areas identified in this Strategy proceed to rezoning at the same time and Council does not have the resources to do this. Only those areas within the identified time frame will be considered by Council.

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The Strategy will be implemented by the rezoning process. It is Council’s decision as to whether a rezoning should proceed, but in the first instance an interested landowner will need to contact Council’s Director of Planning to confirm the timing of the proposed rezoning and whether Council has the resources to proceed. Council will need to advise on the type and extent of studies required to support a rezoning and whether Council wishes to undertake this work (at the applicant’s expense).

Each potential land release area (or group of areas) will require an amendment to the Tweed LEP, and may require Development Control Plan provisions, a Section 94 contributions plan and/or a planning agreement with Council. A local environmental study may be required by the NSW State government.

All investigation areas identified in this Strategy need to be designed to maximise the density yield of the land. It is expected that greenfield sites located in the more remote rural areas, such as Burringbar (Area 8), Mooball (Area 9), and West Murwillumbah (Area 2 and 3), will achieve a net density between 7 – 13 dwellings per hectare. In the areas of Kielvale (Area 1), Seabreeze (Area 5 and 6), and Kings Forest (Area 4), the expected density is 10 – 15 dwellings per net hectare, whereas Dunloe Park Urban Release Area (Area 7), is expected to yield 12 – 18 dwellings per net hectare.

In order to achieve the best development outcome for the site and its surrounds and so as to ensure the full utilisation of the land, each area must have a Master Plan/Concept Plan prepared for the entire investigation area and must address all facets of the urban layout, mix and design. Council will work to produce a development control plan for each Master Plan at the cost of the proponent.

13.3 Strategy Review It is recommended that Council review the Strategy every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand or changes in services or infrastructure capacity.

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14. References

Architectus, 2007. Murwillumbah Scoping Study. Draft report prepared for Tweed Shire Council

Byron Shire Council, 2005. Byron Bay, Suffolk Park and Ewingsdale Local Environmental Study

Darren Gibson Planning, 2008 (DGP). Cudgen Lakes Sand Extraction Project.

Darryl Anderson Consulting, 2007 (DAC). Bilambil Heights Local Area Structure Plan.

Department of Planning, 2006. NSW Governments Metropolitan Strategy. City of Cities – A Plan for Sydney‘s Future.

Department of Planning (DoP), 2006. Far North Coast Regional Strategy. (NSW Department Of Planning)

Department of Planning, 2007. Settlement Planning Guidelines

DIPNR, 2004. Section 117 Direction – Interim Protection for Farmland of State and Regional Significance on the NSW Far North Coast. (NSW Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources).

DIPNR, 2005. Floodplain Development Manual. The management of flood liable land. (NSW Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources).

DUAP, 2000. Urban Settlement Strategies – Guidelines for the North Coast. (NSW Department of Urban Affairs and Planning).

DUAP,1999. Extractive Industries and Minerals on the North Coast. (NSW Department of Urban Affairs and Planning).

Ecograph, 2004. Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy 2004

GHD, 2005. Burringbar Scoping Study, prepared for Tweed Shire Council

GHD, 2006. South Forster Structure Plan, prepared for Great Lakes Council

Hunter Water Australia, 2006. Tweed Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy.

Kingston, M.B. Turnbull J.W and Hall P.W, 2004. Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy. Volume 2 of 3 Technical Reports.

Lismore City Council, 2003. Lismore Urban Strategy.

Matusik, M, 2007. The Matusik Suburb Profile – Tweed Coast. June 2007.

Milligan, V., Phibbs, P., Fagan, K. and Gurran, N, 2004. A practical Frame work for Expanding Affordable housing Services in Australia: Learning from Experience, AHURI.

New South Wales Government, 1979. Environmental Planning and Assessment Act

Newton,G, 2007. Climate Change Impacts on Australia’s Coast and Oceans. In : Waves Vol 13, Number 1.

Nightcap Village P/L, 2006. Nightcap Village Staged Development Application and Concept Proposal.

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NSW Government, 2007. Department of Planning, Internet Site: http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/plansforaction/northcoastKey_plans.asp

NSW PEC (Planning and Environment Commission), 1978. Technical Bulletin No.11. Guidelines for Siting Rural Dwellings in Coastal Areas.

Phillips, S., Callaghan, J, 1996. Koala Habitat Atlas, Project No. 4: Tweed Coast. The Australian Koala Foundation.

Qld Dept of Infrastructure, 2007. South East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program 2007- 2026

SGS, 2007. Whole of Shire Cultural and Community Facilities Plan for Tweed Shire Council.

Sydney Morning Herald, 2007. Developer Freed from Paying Levies, Article on Page 7 by Catherine Munro.

Tweed Shire Council, 1992. Residential Development Strategy

Tweed Shire Council, 1995. Tweed Coastal Strategy, Discussion Paper

Tweed Shire Council, 1997. Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan

Tweed Shire Council, 2003. Development Control Plan No. 51 – Tweed Coast Strategy

Tweed Shire Council, 2004. Tweed 4/24 Strategic Plan 2004-2024

Tweed Shire Council, 2006. Tweed Local Environmental Plan

Tweed Shire Council, 2006. Water Supply Activity Management Plan

Tweed Shire Council, 2004. Tweed Shire Council Social Plan 2005-2009.

Tweed Shire Council, 2006. Tweed Shire Social Plan Review.

Umwelt (Australia) Pty Ltd, 2005. Tweed Coastline Management Plan

Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA), 2007. National Housing Affordability Report.

Vietch Lister, 2007. The Tweed Road Development Strategy- 2007. Update of Tweed Road Contributions Plan.

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Appendix A

Urban and Village Area Likely Maximum Population Range

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1 Urban Areas

Tweed Heads

Zone under Tweed LEP 2000 Area (ha)

Area less 20% (ha)

Range of Dwellings/ha

Predicted Maximum Dwellings

Predicted Maximum Persons/ha

Theoretical Maximum Population

Discount for Tourism and other uses (%)

Likely Maximum Population Range

2a 77 61 7-13 429-796 17-33 1040-2020 20 832-1616

2b 53 43 50-66 2135-2818 100-132 4270-5636 20 3416-4509

2c 22 18 18-27 317-475 39-59 686-1038 20 5492-831

2e 0.5 0.4 24-35 10-14 51-75 20-30 50 10-15

3a 11 9 94-200 827-1760 183-390 1610-3432 20 1288-2746

3b 12 10 94-200 902-1920 183-390 1757-3744 20 1405-2995

Total 175 140 N/A 4619-7783 N/A 9384-15900 N/A 7501-12711


Tweed Heads South


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 56 45 7-13 312-580 17-33 758-1472 20 607-1177

2b 40 32 50-66 1590-2099 100-132 3180-4198 20 2544-3358

2c 131 105 18-27 1892-2838 39-59 4099-62019 20 3279-4961

2e 54 43 24-35 1039-1516 51-75 2208-3248 20 1767-2598

3b 13 10 94-200 978-2080 183-390 1903-4056 20 1523-3245

Total 294 235 N/A 5811-9112 N/A 12149-19174 N/A 9719-15339

Tweed Heads West


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 119 96 7-13 669-1243 17-33 1625-3155 10 1463-2840

2b 5 4 50-66 190-251 100-132 380-502 10 342-451

2c 24 19 18-27 344-516 39-59 745-1127 10 670-1014

3b 1.1 0.88 94-200 83-176 183-390 161-342 10 145-309

Total 149 119 N/A 1286-2185 N/A 2912-5127 N/A 2620-4614

82


Banora Point

Zone under Tweed LEP 2000

Area (ha) Area less 20% (ha)







2a 184.2 146.3 7-13 1030-1915 17-33 2503-4861 20 2003-3889

2c 317.5 254.0 18-27 4572-6856 39-59 9906-14986 20 7925-11989

2e 0.8 0.6 24-35 13-21 51-75 31-45 20 24-36

3b 0.3 0.24 74-94 18-23 144-183 35-44 20 28-35

Total 502.5 402.0 N/A 5636-8815 N/A 12475-19936 N/A 9980-15949

Bilambil and Bilambil Heights


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 75 60 7-13 419-776 17-33 1017-1972 10 915-1776

2b 8 7 50-66 335-441 100-132 670-883 10 603-796

2c 182 145 18-27 2614-3922 39-59 5667-8573 10 5100-7715

2d 14 11 6-12 66-132 16-31 176-341 10 157-307

3b 0.4 0.32 74-94 24-30 144-183 46-59 10 41-53

Total 279 223 N/A 3459-5305 N/A 7575-11830 N/A 6818-10647


Terranora


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 67 53 6-12 318-636 16-31 848-1643 10 763-1479

Total 67 53 N/A 318-636 N/A 848-1643 N/A 763-1479

Cobaki


Area less 20% (ha)







2c 47 38 18-27 681-1022 39-59 1477-2235 10 1330-2012

Total 47 38 N/A 682-1023 N/A 1477-2235 N/A 1330-2012

Cobaki Lakes


Area less 20% (ha)







2c 296 237 18-27 4266-6399 39-59 9243-13983 10 8319-12585

2e 9 7 24-35 173-252 51-75 367-540 50 184-270

Total 305 244 N/A 4439-6651 N/A 9610-14523 N/A 8502-12855

84


Fingal Head


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 27 21 7-13 150-278 17-33 364-706 20 291-565

3b 0.4 0.32 74-94 24-30 144-183 46-59 20 37-47

Total 27 22 N/A 173-308 N/A 410-765 N/A 328-612

Chinderah


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 22 18 7-13 123-228 17-33 298-578 20 238-462

2c 14 11 18-27 202-302 39-59 437-661 20 349-529

Total 36 29 N/A 324-530 N/A 734-1238 N/A 587-991


Cudgen


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 19 15 7-13 106-196 17-33 257-498 20 205-399

2c 23 19 18-27 333-500 39-59 722-1092 20 577-873

2e 1 1 24-35 19-28 51-75 41-60 50 20-30

Total 43 34 N/A 458-724 N/A 1019-1650 N/A 803-1302

Kingscliff


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 54 43 7-13 301-559 17-33 731-1419 20 585-1135

2b 32 26 50-66 1275-1683 100-132 2550-3366 20 2040-2693

2c 57 46 18-27 824-1237 39-59 1786-2702 20 1429-2162

2e 29 23 24-35 554-809 51-75 1178-1733 50 589-866

2f 96 77 47-61 3600-4673 93-123 7124-9422 50 3562-4711

3b 6 5 74-94 367-466 144-183 714-908 20 571-726

Total 274 219 N/A 6922-9426 N/A 14083-19549 N/A 8776-12293

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Casuarina


Area less 20% (ha)







2e 116 92 30-43 2772-3973 51-75 4712-6930 50 2356-3465

Total 116 92 N/A 2772-3973 N/A 4712-6930 N/A 2356-3465

Kings Forest and Duranbah


Area less 20% (ha)







2c 374 299 18-27 5382-8073 39-59 11661-17641 20 9329-14113

2e 122 97 24-35 2328-3395 51-75 4947-7275 50 2474-3638

Total 496 397 N/A 7710-11468 N/A 16608-24916 N/A 11803-17751


Bogangar and Cabarita Beach


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 63 51 7-13 354-658 17-33 860-1670 20 688-1336

2b 9 7 50-66 340-449 100-132 680-898 20 544-718

2c 17 14 18-27 248-373 39-59 538-814 20 431-651

2e 4 3 24-35 67-98 51-75 143-210 50 71-105

3b 2 2 74-94 142-180 144-183 276-351 20 221-281

Total 95 76 N/A 1152-1758 N/A 2498-3943 N/A 1955-3091

Hastings Point


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 2 2 7-13 13-25 17-33 32-63 20 26-50

2b 7 6 50-66 275-363 100-132 550-726 20 440-581

2c 4 3 18-27 58-86 39-59 125-189 20 100-151

2e 7 6 24-35 132-193 51-75 281-413 50 140-206

Total 20 16 N/A 478-667 N/A 988-1390 N/A 706-988

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Pottsville


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 92 74 7-13 515-956 17-33 1250-2426 20 1000-1940

2b 23 19 50-66 935-1234 100-132 1870-2468 20 1496-1975

2c 140 112 18-27 2021-3032 39-59 4380-6626 20 3504-5301

3b 3 3 74-94 189-241 144-183 369-468 20 295-375

Total 259 207 N/A 3660-5462 N/A 7868-11988 N/A 6294-9590

Murwillumbah, South Murwillumbah and Bray Park


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 207 166 7-13 1159-2153 17-33 2815-5465 10 2534-4918

2b 13 10 50-66 505-667 100-132 1010-1333 10 909-1200

2c 120 96 18-27 1723-2584 39-59 3732-5646 10 3359-5082

2d 12 9 6-12 56-112 16-31 149-288 10 134-259

3b 8 7 74-94 497-632 144-183 968-1230 10 871-1107

Total 359 287 N/A 3940-6147 N/A 8674-13962 N/A 7807-12566


2. Villages

Mooball


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 8 6 6-12 38-77 16-31 102-198 10 92-179

Total 8 6 N/A 38-77 N/A 102-198 N/A 92-179

Burringbar


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 30 24 6-12 145-289 16-31 386-747 10 347-672

Total 30 24 N/A 145-289 N/A 386-747 N/A 347-672

Tyalgum


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 37 29 6-12 175-350 16-31 467-905 10 420-815

Total 37 29 N/A 175-350 N/A 467-905 N/A 420-815

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Uki


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 25 20 6-12 120-240 16-31 320-620 10 288-558

Total 25 20 N/A 120-240 N/A 320-620 N/A 288-558

Stokers Siding


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 5 4 6-12 24-48 16-31 64-124 10 58-112

Total 5 4 N/A 24-48 N/A 64-124 N/A 58-112

Kielvale


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 82 66 6-12 395.4-791 16-31 1054-2043 10 949-1839

Total 82 66 N/A 395.4-791 N/A 1054-2043 N/A 949-1839


Condong


Area less 20% (ha)







2a 11 9 7-13 60-111 33-60 281-510 20 224-408

2c 2 2 18-27 31-46 39-59 66-100 20 53-80

Total 13 10 N/A 91-156 N/A 347-610 N/A 277-488

Tanglewood


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 78 63 6-12 376-751 16-31 1002-1941 20 801-1552

Total 78 63 N/A 375.6-751 N/A 1002-1941 N/A 8018-1552

Tumbulgum

Zone under Tweed LEP 2000

Area (ha)

Area less 20% (ha)







2d 13 11 6-12 64-128 16-31 171-332 10 154-299

Total 13 11 N/A 64-128 N/A 171-332 N/A 154-299

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Kunghur


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 43 34 6-12 206-412 16-31 549-1063 10 494-957

Total 43 34 N/A 206-412 N/A 549-1063 N/A 494-957

Chillingham


Area less 20% (ha)







2d 16 13 6-12 77-157 16-31 210-406 10 189-365

Total 16 13 N/A 77-157 N/A 210-406 N/A 189-365


Appendix B Land Suitability Analysis

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Land Suitability Analysis 1. Introduction This report provides a methodology for the assessment of environmental constraints within Tweed Shire. The methodology aims to identify and evaluate a range of constraints, which will impact upon the ability of the Shire to accommodate further residential and industrial development. This process is called a land suitability analysis.



2. Methodology The methodology for determining appropriate land use focuses on those features of the landscape that pose limitations to development. These areas may be divided into the categories of economic, social and environmental limitations.

Natural features primarily define the environmental limitations. These constraints will strongly influence the preparation of a ‘land constraints map’. The land constraints map is a composite map containing a number of overlays. These overlays include but are not limited to maps of environmental protection areas, bushfire hazard area, flood prone land, steep land and the location of prime agricultural land. The integration of the overlays enables the user to recognise areas of varying suitability for different land uses.

Some environmental constraints create prohibitions to development, for example, high hazard floodway. Other constraints identify less desirable areas that generate the need for mitigation measures, for example, bushfire hazards. A suitability analysis eliminates lands where development is prohibited and identifies land that is limited in the type or density of development that may be carried out based on agreed criteria.

Economic and social limitations don’t always lend themselves to being mapped in the same way as natural features. However, once Council has determined areas of low environmental limitations at a broad scale, this information can subsequently be used by investors to target areas for further investigation as part of their risk assessment and decision making process. Residential development and employment lands have a range of economic and social requirements which include the location of the site, its size, price, accessibility and the availability of infrastructure and services.

The land suitability approach used in this study identifies and ranks key environmental factors that are important for development. In assessing further economic and social factors, a number of elements must be considered to determine whether sustainable development can be achieved. These economic and social elements are based on industry standards relating to the final land use and are shown in Appendix Diagram 1.

In determining the areas that are potentially suitable for urban lands sites were preferred if they were within 2 km of an existing urban zone (at least in part) and were preferably greater than 5 ha in area. Areas already nominated in the Fart North Coast Regional Strategy were also preferred.

Broadscale Land Suitability Analysis Detailed Site Suitability Assessment Residential Development

Environmental National Parks, Nature Reserves, State Forests Commercial Attractiveness Public Open Space Land affordability Acid Sulfate Soils Potential building construction costs High Groundwater or Vulnerable Groundwater Profile of the site Contaminated Lands Potential rents and yields Biting Midge and Mosquito Areas Development yield/and values/financing Garbage Depots and STP’s Flexibility if the site Extractive Industries Vegetation Management SEPP 14 Wetlands SEPP 26 Littoral Rainforest Koala Habitat Threatened Species and Vegetation Management Accessibility High Conservation Value Vegetation Access and profile to highway/major road network High Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation Traffic implications and constraints Medium Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation Low Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation Degraded Habitats Agricultural Land State and Regionally significant farmland Locally significant farmland Physical suitability Bushfire Management Suitable size for intended role (i.e. large scale vs local) Vegetation Category 1 Elevation of land and fill requirements Vegetation Category 2 Previous uses Contamination/rehabilitation opportunities Topography Less than 10 degrees slopes 10 degrees – 14 degrees slopes Infrastructure Services Greater than 14 degrees slopes Access to required infrastructure and utilities Protected Lands Access to technology/broadband internet Land Susceptible to Climate Change Social Factors Land less than 5 m above sea level Archaeological sites Land less than 10 m above sea level Attitude of owners and tenure Acceptable levels of impact on community amenity Flood Liable Land Acceptable visual impacts High Flow Flooding Other Flone prone land Airport noise ANEF 40 + ANEF 30 to 40 ANEF 25 to 30 ANEF Less than 25

Appendix Diagram 1 Land Suitability Analysis Framework

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The following assessment of environmental constraints determines the supply of land. Some of the constraints below create prohibitions against future development. Other constraints merely require further investigation or mitigation measures that may influence the location, type and density of development.

In determining land suitable for residential and employment development purposes a ranking system has been formulated and applied to the various constraints that apply to Tweed Shire. This identifies which constraints are limiting and highlights the constraints that can be overcome through mitigation measures and management. The ranking for each constraint can then be mapped for each land unit in the Tweed Shire.

The environmental constraints ranking system includes the following:

1. Most suitable for development (relatively unconstrained);

2. Suitable for development with some controls;

3. Marginally suitable for development – may require further investigation and / or specific engineering solution or exclusion of certain areas;

4. elective development only – subject to further assessment, limited and appropriately designed development may be possible; and

5. Not suitable for development.

A summary of the ranking as it relates to each constraint is located in Appendix Table 1.

2.1. Multi-Criteria Analysis Multi-Criteria Analysis requires consideration of the relative importance of each criterion compared to other criteria. A paired comparison method was selected for weighting of criteria. This approach required each criterion to be compared to each of the other criteria to determine which of the two (paired) criteria is considered more important, and by how much. By considering the number of times any particular criteria is rated as more important than any other, and the levels of importance, the criteria can then be ranked as a set in terms of importance. For this project, only environmental criteria were compared to each other. Weightings were normalised so that they are between 1 and 100 for each criteria.

2.2. GIS Analysis Once evaluation criteria and weightings were undertaken, a GIS modelling and analysis technique was used to overlay geographic data for each of the evaluation criteria.

The steps involved in the GIS analysis to identify areas that are overall more or less suitable for the urban or employment lands development are described below:

Datasets were sourced from Tweed Shire Council and were imported into an ESRI geodatabase;

The data applied for each evaluation criterion were compiled and analysed according to the performance ratings on a series of grids across the study area. In general, the grids were in the order of 5 m x 5 m cells, however in some cases the grid size was varied to ensure the data will be properly represented;

The weightings were applied to each criterion and the overall score for each evaluation criterion in each grid calculated. The GIS model then compiled scores across all the evaluation criteria for each grid and identified areas that are more or less suitable for urban or employment lands development.


The weighted overlays were added together and multiplied by a specified weighting. As a result, an overall sensitivity map was produced. The lower the score, the more attractive the site for development;

The Multi-Criteria Analysis was performed using ESRI’s ArcGis Version 9.1.

2.3. Limitations While the Multi-Criteria Analysis technique is a powerful tool for screening broad study areas, it must be noted that there are a number of limitations including:

Inability to represent all of the critical aspects that determine suitability for development in a geographic format;

Accuracy and currency of some data;

Absence of data for some locations (eg flood data not available for entire Tweed river catchment and not available for the coastal creeks and waterways);

Coarseness of some of the assumptions that may be made in determining performance ratings and weightings for evaluation criteria; and

Coarseness of some of the ‘rounding off” of areas that are identified by the modelling process as having some suitability for development

3. Environmental Criteria

3.1. National Parks, Nature Reserves, State Forests and Public Open Space National Parks, Nature Reserves, State Forests and Public Open Space areas are not available for development regardless of physical characteristics and a ranking of 5 will be used for the purposes of this study.

3.2. Acid Sulfate Soils Acid Sulfate Soils (ASS) generally occur in low lying areas below 5m A.H.D. The term ASS refers to soils that are producing acid (actual acid sulfate soils) and those that could become acid producing (potential acid sulfate soils).

Potential acid sulfate soils are naturally occurring soils containing iron sulfides (pyrite). They become actual acid sulfate soils when the pyrite is exposed to air, often because of human activity. Once oxidised the addition of water results in the production of sulfuric acid.

In July, 2000, The National Working Party on ASS released the National Strategy for the Management of Coastal Acid Sulfate Soils. The Strategy provides a framework for governments, industry and the community to manage development on these soils. It seeks an integrated approach to management and provides general background about the impacts of acid drainage.

Tweed Local Environmental Plan 2000 (LEP) generally states that when more than one ton of acid sulfate soil is disturbed it will require Council’s consent and an acid sulfate soil management plan in accordance with the Acid Sulfate Soil Manual. Acid sulfate soil areas are divided into 5 classes which indicate the risk of encountering problems with it and the depth in the soil profile at which it is likely to occur. Given the adverse impacts of exposed acid sulfate soils and the need for appropriate management within any development, areas of potential or actual acid sulfate soil (in accordance with

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the acid sulfate soils mapping) within ASS classes 1 will have a ranking of 4, ASS classes 2 and 3 will have a ranking of 3, while areas within ASS classes 4 and 5 will have a ranking of 2.

3.3. Vegetation Management

Wetlands Wetlands are a key component of the water cycle, playing critical roles in maintaining the general health of rivers, estuaries and coastal waters. They assist in mitigating the effect of floods through water storage and retention, absorb pollutants and improve downstream water quality and provide habitats for animals and plants, include a number of species that are threatened or endangered.

State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) 14 –Coastal Wetlands identifies areas where the habitat values, ecological and hydrological process of wetlands need to be conserved and managed from the impact of development. Therefore, any SEPP 14 wetland will be ranked 5.

Littoral Rainforest Littoral rainforests are areas of high biodiversity and on the Tweed coast and typically contain threatened or endangered species. They are identified in State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) 26 which applies strict management controls. Therefore, any SEPP 26 areas will be ranked 5. Littoral rainforests also include a buffer zone of 100 metres from the edge of the mapped area to protect the core area from edge effects. Therefore, any mapped buffer area will be ranked 4.

Threatened Species and Vegetation Management Kingston et al (2004) noted that Tweed falls within the northern zone of the NSW North Coast Biogeographic Region. The Region has a rich assemblage of plant species forming complex mosaics of vegetation communities that includes the greatest diversity of rainforest types in NSW, some areas of which have been World Heritage listed. Over ninety species of Eucalyptus occur in the bioregion making it one of the richest areas on the continent for this genus.

Over the whole North Coast Biogeographic Region, large changes to the landscape have occurred due to European activities. In the past 150 years, over 44 % of the original vegetation cover has been cleared or heavily disturbed. Clearing on the coastal lowlands has been particularly extensive leaving only fragmented remnants on the steeper slopes. Most clearing has concentrated on the areas of low to moderate slope, fertile soil, higher rainfall and higher temperature. Other major disturbances include logging, grazing, drainage works, and the use of fire. The ecological consequences of such extensive habitat fragmentation and disturbance have resulted in major floristic and structural changes to the vegetation (and faunal) communities of the Region (Kingston et al, 2004).

Tweed LGA contains important habitat for a diverse array of native fauna and flora. Certain areas have high conservation value and contain a number of endangered ecological communities and regionally significant vegetation communities. The retention of remnant vegetation and their associated buffers establishes the basis for a network of habitat links and/ or corridors within the area.

The Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 and Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 aim to protect threatened species and significant flora and fauna corridors. It is also a requirement of the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (2006) and the North Coast REP, 1988 that significant vegetation be protected. It is therefore necessary to incorporate appropriate constraints for vegetation management in any land suitability analysis.


The Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy identifies 10 broad vegetation communities and 56 vegetation types within those communities. It then uses a very detailed methodology to assess the ecological status, ecological sensitivity and threatened species requirements of each area of remnant vegetation. It concludes that a combination of ecological attributes be used to determine priority areas that can be described as areas of High Conservation Value (HCV), Ecologically Sensitive Areas and Degraded Habitats.

HCV consists mainly of vegetation types of high regional status, bushland associated with riparian, estuarine, or wetland ecosystems or Critical Habitat. While many of these areas may not require immediate attention, this category includes the most valuable ecological assets in the Shire. It should be ranked 5.

Ecologically sensitive areas can be categorized as high, medium and low. For the purposes of this study those areas categorized as high will be ranked 4, medium will be ranked 3 and low will be ranked 2.

Degraded habitats may be in key locations such as dunes or riparian areas that are unsuitable for development for other reasons. In the absence of site specific information to the contrary degraded habitats will be ranked 2.

Koala Habitat

In 1996 the AKF prepared the Tweed Coast Koala Habitat Atlas (Phillips & Callaghan 1996) for the eastern section of the Shire. The 37608 hectare study area comprises approximately 29 % of Tweed Shire. The remainder of the Shire has not yet been studied in this way.

The Koala Habitat Atlas describes the following four categories of Koala Habitat:

1. Primary Koala Habitat (2.5% of study area). Tree species preferentially utilised by koalas in which tree utilisation is independent of tree density. Preferred trees are a dominant or co-dominant component of the overstorey vegetation.

2. Secondary Koala Habitat (10.7 % of study area) (Secondary (A) Habitat). Tree species preferentially utilised by Koalas, on average, constitute less than 35 % of the overstorey vegetation.

3. Marginal Koala Habitat (10.3 % of study area) (Secondary (B) Habitat). Tree species preferentially utilised by Koalas are largely absent or otherwise occur at very low densities (<10%).

4. Habitat Value “Unknown” (0.7% of study area). Composition of the vegetation remains unknown, but where it is possible for one or more preferentially utilised tree species to occur as a dominant or co-dominant component of the overstorey.

The remainder of the study area has either been cleared of native vegetation (66.3 %) or contains other categories of vegetation not listed above (9.5%).

As Primary Koala Habitat is likely to be critical in supporting breeding colonies of koalas it is important to prevent further clearing, disturbance, fragmentation or isolation of this habitat it will therefore be ranked 5.

Secondary Koala Habitat is likely to play a support role in the survival and distribution of koalas and it is important to minimise further loss, fragmentation or isolation of this supporting habitat it will therefore be ranked 4.

Marginal Koala Habitat will be ranked 2.

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3.4. Agricultural Land In 2004 the State Government adopted a position that land identified in its Farmland Protection Project as either State Significant or Regionally Significant should not be regarded as being available for urban or rural residential use unless it had already been identified for such a purpose in an agreed strategy.

The objectives of this Farmland Protection Project are to ensure that the best agricultural land will be available for current and future generations to grow food and fibre; and to provide more certainty on the status of the best agricultural land, thereby assisting councils with their local strategic settlement planning (DIPNR, 2004). This has been further reinforced by the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (DoP, 2006).

State and Regionally significant farmland will be ranked 5. Locally significant farmland will be ranked 2.

3.5. Bushfire Hazard The Rural Fires Act 1997 requires the identification of bushfire-prone land areas based on bushfire hazard mapping and the provision of Asset Protection Zones (APZ’s).

Bushfire hazard can be a major development constraint given the likelihood for extreme fire events periodically. The slope of the land, aspect and the vegetation types present, determines the level of bushfire hazard.

Tweed Shire Council categorises bushfire prone land into Vegetation Category 1 and Vegetation Category 2. Vegetation Category 1, bushfire prone land that is within (or within 100 m) of a high bushfire hazard area. Category 2, bushfire prone land that is within (or within 30 m) of a medium bushfire hazard area.

Opportunities exist to manage the interface between new development and surrounding vegetation, including perimeter roads, fuel reduction and building design. More detailed site based assessment of bushfire hazard needs to be undertaken in conjunction with future development to ensure that development is located and designed having regard to the degree of bushfire hazard.

Where adequate fire protection measures cannot be established, development should be prohibited. However, as mitigation is often an option, then the constraint should not be regarded as absolute. Vegetation Category 1 (including a 100m buffer) will be ranked as 3. Vegetation Category 2 (including a 30m buffer) will be ranked as 2.

3.6. Topography Protected lands are listed under the Native Vegetation Conservation Act 1997 and represent land that generally has a slope greater than 18 degrees from the horizontal; and land situated in, or within 20 metres of the bed or bank of any specified river or lake or land that is in the opinion of the Minister, environmentally sensitive or effected or liable to be effected by soil erosion.

Slope is a significant factor influencing soil erosion, drainage and bushfire hazard. Slopes greater than 14 degrees are likely to have geological constraints and are susceptible to mass movement and high to very high erosion hazard. In addition, slopes greater than 14 degrees can cause installation and management problems for sewerage and water systems. Therefore, lands with a slope greater than 14 degrees should be excluded from further development and ranked 5.

Slope between 10 degrees and 14 degrees present a high bush fire danger for dwellings, footings require a great deal of cut and fill, access is difficult and they present a greater erosion hazard. In areas


with these grades development is more difficult. However, with specific engineering solutions development is possible and therefore slopes between 10 and 14 degrees will be ranked 3.

Relatively flat grades (less than 10 degrees) significantly reduce costs associated with the installation of infrastructure to service proposed development. Therefore due to the cost efficiency of lesser grades for industrial and commercial development a ranking of 1 will be used for slopes less than 10 degrees (NSW PEC, 1978).

3.7. Land Susceptible to Climate Change There is now broad scientific consensus that climate change is occurring and that early impacts of this change are observable (Newton 2007). Climate change refers to a directional change in climate, beyond natural bounds of variability, that is attributed to human activity and alters the composition of the atmosphere. The likely changes most relevant to this study are sea level rise and increased storm activity with resultant higher risk of inundation, flooding and shoreline erosion (Newton, 2007).

A general representation of the land most likely to be directly affected by these changes is land less than 10 metres above current sea level with land being progressively more at risk the closer it is to current sea levels.

Land less than 5 metres above sea level will be ranked 3 and land between 5 and 10 metres above sea level will be ranked 2.

3.8. Flood Liable land Flood liable land presents a constraint to development as it has implications with regard to the provision and cost of infrastructure, roads and services installed within floodplains, as well as risk implications for public safety and increased property damage.

The flood constraint for employment land is based on the predicted 1 in 100 year (1% AEP) flood level. Based on this predicted flood, Tweed Shire Council regards an area as being subject to “high flow” if flood velocity (v) multiplied by depth (d) is greater than 0.3 (v x d >0.3). Velocity-depth products can also be used as a measure of preliminary flood hazard (refer to NSW Floodplain Development Manual). For example, at flood water depths in excess of 2m (even at low velocities), there can be damage to light framed buildings from water pressure, flotation and debris impact. Motor vehicle instability by buoyancy will also occur at depths as low as 0.3m. At velocities in excess of 2.0m/s the stability of foundations and poles can be affected by scour. High flow floodways will be ranked 5. Other floodprone land will be ranked 3.

3.9. Ground Water A high water table in combination with certain soil types can have implications for foundation design and road and drainage construction. Additionally, groundwater has a greater potential to become contaminated by certain land uses. Further geotechnical investigations will be required to ascertain the implications for development in locations where ground water and reactive soils are likely to be present. As further investigations are needed for future development a ranking of 2 for identified vulnerable ground water areas will be used or where a high water table is known to occur. That is, areas where the water table is typically within 1 metre of the soil surface.

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3.10. Contaminated Lands – Banana Lands and Cattle Tick Dip Sites Portions of the Tweed Shire have been identified as potentially contaminated land due to the former use or current use of the land for banana cultivation. Banana cultivation formally used arsenic and dieldrin as insecticides.

Cattle tick dip sites, are also scattered throughout the Tweed Valley and Tweed Coast and these are subject to a 200m radius of land suspected of contamination.

The Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1993 (EP&A Act) and State Environmental Protection Policy 55 (SEPP 55) require Tweed Council to consider the suitability of land for a proposed development. The risk to health and the environment from contamination must be included in a preliminary assessment, which includes a preliminary site inspection of the contaminated lands. SEPP 55 requires that Council be satisfied that a site is suitable for its proposed use or can and will be made suitable. A site can be made suitable through measures such as site remediation.

Therefore, for these reasons any lands affected by a cattle tick dip site or suspected of being used for banana production will be ranked 3.

3.11. Biting Midges and Mosquitoes Portions of the Tweed Shire have been identified as potentially affected by biting midges and /or mosquitoes. Both these flying insects raise problems of annoyance and health concerns (eg Ross River fever) for urban land uses. Some mitigation measures are possible and some land uses may be more compatible than others.

Affected areas will be ranked 2.

3.12. Garbage Depots and Sewage Treatment Works Tweed Shire has a major garbage depot and transfer facility at Stotts Island. It has other garbage facilities no longer in uses that should be regarded as contaminated sites. It also has a number of STP’s that provide sewerage to Tweed communities. In the absence of other information it is assumed that a 400 metre buffer around such facilities will be appropriate.


3.13. Extractive Industries Tweed Shire has many extractive industry sites including four identified by the Department of Urban Affairs and Planning as being of regional significance (DUAP, 1999). These sites should be protected from encroachment by incompatible urban land uses until the resource has been exhausted. The Department of Primary Industries (formerly Department of Mineral Resources) has identified in a Section 117 Direction a suitable buffer for each site and these should be regarded as unsuitable for urban development.

Existing extractive industry sites including a suitable buffer will be ranked 5.

3.14. Airport Noise Coolangatta airport has recently been expanded with runway extensions south into the Tweed Shire. It now accepts international flights on a regular basis. Australian Noise Exposure Forecasts (ANEF) are a way of identifying land affected by noise exposure at various levels.


The Tweed LEP 2000 places development controls on any construction work within ANEF 25+ in accordance with AS 2021 – 1994. Residential development is typically restricted to areas less than 25 ANEF with light industrial buildings acceptable in areas less than 30 ANEF. Conditions on acoustic design need to be enforced from 30 to 40 ANEF.

ANEF of 40 or more will be ranked 4. ANEF of 30 to 40 will be ranked 3. ANEF of 25 to 30 will be ranked 2. ANEF of less than 25 will be ranked 1.

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Appendix Table 1 Land Suitability Analysis Ranking of Criteria

Constraint Criteria Ranking

National Parks, Nature Reserves, State Forests and Public Open Space 5

Acid Sulfate Soils

Classes 1 4

Classes 2 and 3 3

Classes 4 and 5 2

Vegetation Management:

SEPP 14 Wetlands 5

SEPP 26 Littoral Rainforest 5

Threatened Species and Vegetation Management

– High Conservation Value Vegetation 5

– High Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation 4

– Medium Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation 3

– Low Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation 2

– Degraded Habitats 2

Koala Habitat

– Primary Habitat 5

– Secondary Habitat 4

– Marginal Habitat 2

Agricultural Land:

State and Regionally significant farmland 5

Locally significant farmland 2

Bushfire:

Vegetation Category 1 3


Topography:

– Less than 10 degrees slopes 1

– 10 degrees - 14 degrees slopes 3

– Greater than 14 degrees slopes 5


– Protected Lands 5

Land Susceptible to Climate Change

Land less than 5 m above sea level 3


Flood Liable Land

– High Flow Flooding 5

– Other Flood prone land 3

High Groundwater or Vulnerable Groundwater 2

Contaminated Lands 3

Biting Midge and Mosquito Areas 2

Garbage Depots and STP’s 5

Extractive Industries 5

Airport noise

ANEF 40 + 4

ANEF 30 to 40 3

ANEF 25 to 30 2

ANEF Less than 25 1

The above rankings will be used to compile a constraints map for the Tweed Employment lands and urban lands strategy.

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Appendix C

Housing Affordability


1. Key Needs and Issues Affordable housing should not be defined only in relation to ability to pay rent, a mortgage and maintenance and running costs. The following factors also need to be taken into consideration in the provision of affordable housing:

Appropriateness of the Dwelling – Dwellings should be appropriate to the needs and circumstances of the household in terms of the number, size and configuration of rooms; safety considerations; the versatility of indoor/outdoor spaces, and ease of physical access, regardless of the physical capacity of household members.

Housing and Social Mix – A range of housing types, tenures and styles should be available to meet the needs of people at different stages of their life cycle and in various economic circumstances. Planning should seek to avoid the impacts of a housing market that exclude all but relatively high-income earners. We need to avoid the development of neighbourhoods that do not contribute to community well being.

Security of Tenure – Households should enjoy reasonable security of tenure in their housing, including protection from summary eviction and the reasonable expectation of being able to choose their time of departure.

Location – Housing should be well located in relation to places of employment and to the range of services, facilities, communication and transport networks required to meet other household needs. Planning and design should ensure that residential neighbourhoods and buildings are compatible with adjacent land uses.

Quality of Environmental Planning and Design – Housing planning and design should be responsive to local microclimate and environmental conditions by incorporating energy efficient design principles. Housing should fit into and enhance the neighbourhood, ensure privacy to residents and neighbours, and incorporate the principles of crime prevention through environmental design. Neighbourhood design should promote safe and convenient pedestrian access to local services and facilities.

2. Where to from Here? It is clear from the analysis that Tweed Shire is going to continue to experience pressures from population growth particularly as transport links to South East Queensland are improved and current South East Queensland growth opportunities are exhausted. In coming years the demand for affordable and special needs housing will escalate. To avoid potentially serious social problems early intervention is needed. A proactive, concerted and coordinated effort by all stakeholders is needed if these problems are to be avoided.

The provision of affordable housing and associated support services is a complex issue with a wide range of options available. The sections below provide discussion of the pros and cons of a number of initiatives that Council may choose to pursue.

2.1 Promoting a Mix of Housing Types

Council’s planning instruments and policies should ensure that they more actively facilitate affordable housing. A number of modifications to the planning controls are available including:

1. Revision of zone objectives and the inclusion of special provisions that will encourage a greater mix of housing types. A number of local councils in Australia have been proactive in using their planning

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powers to protect and promote affordable housing. Several councils have amended their local planning instruments to include objectives relating to affordable housing, reinforced by decision making criteria requiring a consent authority to consider affordable housing issues when assessing a development (eg. the local plans of Marrickville Council in NSW, and Port Phillip and Moreland Councils in Victoria).

2. Some councils in outer metropolitan areas have reduced minimum lot sizes for residential dwellings to achieve urban consolidation objectives, but also to reduce land and infrastructure costs – although many of these savings are consumed by the strong demand for new housing. Similarly, promoting urban consolidation by rezoning land for higher density residential development is often associated with claims of improved housing affordability since a greater diversity of housing types, including smaller (and, by implication, lower cost) dwelling units are generated.

3. Some councils have implemented mixed use zones, including provisions for housing in commercial and industrial areas, as a way of preserving affordable entry points to the housing market – Moreland Council in Victoria provides a good example of this approach.

4. Preserving sources of existing low cost accommodation through planning regulation (zone limitations) is another method of ensuring availability of affordable housing stock. However, to do so would remove the development potential that may have existed under the previous zone provisions and will likely meet with resistance from landowners.

2.2 Requiring a Component of Affordable Housing

Specific planning policies have been used successfully on a very small scale in a number of local areas in NSW and overseas to achieve affordable housing on either a compulsory or negotiated basis.

Generally the affordable housing is financed as part of the development (either a proportion of new dwellings or an equivalent financial contribution) then transferred to the local authority or a housing authority. This is widely regarded as an effective way for local governments to generate new affordable housing supply without a heavy government subsidy. In some cases this ‘inclusionary zoning’ approach is combined with planning incentives such as “density bonuses” which help make the affordable housing contribution more viable for developers.

The concept of giving bonuses to encourage the provision of affordable housing should be considered, particularly in larger developments. For example, an additional number of units in medium and high density developments could be considered where a certain proportion of the units will be available as affordable housing. Density bonuses have been used by municipalities in California, New Jersey and Maryland (Morris 2000). However, these mechanisms still depend on a relatively buoyant housing market and are less effective in areas where there are land shortages or where little new housing is being developed.

The former South Sydney Council also applies an ‘inclusionary zoning approach’ to all developments within the former industrial area of Green Square, where three per cent of the total floor area of all residential development, and one per cent of non residential development, must be provided to Council as an affordable housing contribution.

The implementation of the ‘inclusionary approach’ is likely to be controversial and complex in implementation and ongoing management. Although there is no doubt that it would be one of the most effective ways of achieving the intended outcome. Should Council choose to pursue this option,


preparation of a detailed affordable housing strategy would be an essential first step so that the intentions, processes and implications are properly considered and explained.

The Strategy should assess and make recommendations on all the initiatives that are available to Council to increase the provision of affordable housing. This includes Council’s responsibility for land use planning, financial management and community welfare and development. It is however recognised that a number of responsibilities are shared with other government and community sectors, particularly the State Government.

2.3 Developer Contributions and Planning Agreements

Under the current legislation, Section 94 contributions can only be used to fund affordable housing where a State Environmental Planning Policy identifies that there is a need for affordable housing within the area (Section 94F, EPA Act). In addition the Council must be satisfied that the proposed development will create a need for affordable housing within the area. (Note: Tweed Shire is not currently recognised as an area in need of affordable housing by a SEPP).

It should be noted that any condition seeking contributions must be authorised through a regional environmental plan or local environmental plan, and must be in accordance with a scheme for dedications or contributions set out in or adopted by such a plan. To pursue this alternative would involve engaging in discussions with the Department of Infrastructure Planning and Natural Resources (DIPNR) with the intention of having the planning authority recognise the special circumstances that apply to Tweed Shire.

Provision of affordable housing could in future be facilitated through a negotiated developer agreement (Planning agreements) in lieu of Section 94 contributions as currently levied. Such a developer agreement would be negotiated between individual developers and Council. The agreement could specify that a certain proportion of housing provided will be targeted at low income groups.

Developer agreements can be negotiated at the development application stage or the rezoning stage. Given that they are voluntary agreements it is important that Council consider entering into them at the rezoning stage where the rezoning cannot be appealed (on merit) in the Land and Environment Court if the developer is not satisfied with the agreement.

Legal provisions to levy funds from developers for affordable housing have been adopted by several councils in high value areas of Sydney. Waverley Council was the first to introduce a “density bonus” for developers in return for monetary contributions to finance affordable housing; North Sydney Council levies compulsory fees on all residential development to replace the loss of low cost housing, while Willoughby Council requires a proportion of total floor space of new dwellings to be dedicated for affordable housing.

Byron Shire Council has recently approved a ‘boarding house’ style development for low cost rental accommodation and negotiated density and contributions in doing so. Byron Shire Council has also commenced a process of negotiating a planning agreement at the rezoning stage that is based on 20% of housing being dedicated to an affordable housing provider.

2.4 Direct Provision of Affordable Housing

Public housing as a proportion of total housing supply in Australia is in decline (Milligan et al., 2004). The government thus has a role to ensure there is an adequate stock of affordable housing present.

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This can be achieved through such means as listed property trusts, shared equity programs or public-private partnerships.

Obviously, the most effective means of addressing the affordable housing supply problem is through direct provision of additional housing. This can be achieved through a number of ways, each with inherent advantages and disadvantages.

State Government Public Housing Public housing only comprises a small proportion of total housing stock in the Study Area. There should be a greater emphasis on increasing the yield from these sites by redevelopment into higher density. This has happened in some locations and needs to continue.

While state government recognises the pressures of growth being experienced in NSW coastal areas, funding and legislation to date have been more focused towards management of environmental impacts rather than addressing the serious social and infrastructure problems associated with increasing coastal migration.

Council Provision of Housing The provision of low cost housing or rental accommodation is not normally the domain of local government, however opportunity exists to pursue this course should Council choose to do so. Council may become involved in the direct provision of housing (with or without assistance from state government or joint venture partners). The purchase and dedication of land, construction and ongoing long term management will require specialist property development and management skills and an independent body set up under the Corporations Act.

It would be a complex and resource demanding process. Should Council choose to investigate this option further, the first step would be bring together a range of stakeholders and persons with expertise in this area to discuss the issues and implications of this initiative.

Joint Ventures There have been increasing attempts by state and local government agencies and the not for profit sector to engage the private sector in making a contribution to affordable housing development. The most widespread engagement so far has occurred in NSW where, under local or regional policy settings, developer contributions for affordable housing have been mandated on several large sites rezoned for residential development. In these areas developer involvement has been notably passive, however, generally taking the form of monetary contributions. The next level of engagement has been negotiated agreements with developers to include a component of affordable housing in their developments in return for planning concessions or other benefits (see for example Waverley Council). Responses by developers on a voluntary basis are very limited and small in scale.

Council may wish to enter into a joint venture with a private developer or state government agency. Council could provide the land and other support for such a project, while the private developer or government authority would construct the housing and ensure that at least a component of the housing was targeted at lower income residents. Council then provides housing for a range of incomes as part of the same development. This could reduce the stigma that can be attached to affordable housing in the community.

Some proactive councils and not for profit agencies have looked for opportunities to package specific deals with private owners/developers. For example, the City of Port Phillip identified an opportunity to


work with a new developer on the site of a run down 73-room boarding house, purchased by the developer in St Kilda. The Council was able to negotiate a mixed development on the site by offering a subdivision into two separate developments (private and social), whereby the developer (through an upfront cash sale of part of the site to Council) received working capital for their development, reduced their risk and were assured a speedy development approval. Council subsequently sought housing program funds for a boarding house development on the part of the site it acquired. This opportunity would not have arisen had Council not had an established track record of involvement in affordable housing development, and had the developer not been sympathetic to social housing, and in need of cash resources.

Another area of involvement is on existing public housing sites, especially large estates where State Housing Authorities (SHA) across Australia are partnering with the private sector to refurbish and redevelop existing housing. While approaches vary, generally the result of the redevelopment so far has been a mixed public housing and private market development.

As the redevelopment of public housing estates is likely to be a major component of SHA activity over the coming decade, there are likely to be sizeable opportunities for Non-government Organisations to become involved, probably with private sector partners, in developing, owning and managing significant amounts of social and affordable housing in these redevelopments. Facilitation of this role by SHAs would help significantly to address the economies of scale issues.

State Government support, such as by the Department of Housing, may be available to facilitate the provision of affordable housing in areas of need. For example, the Department has established a program to provide equity finance to enter into partnerships with community housing providers of affordable housing. The scheme is known as the Debt Equity Affordable Housing Scheme and is a demonstration project designed to leverage government funds for affordable housing using contributions from the non-government and private sectors. The affordable housing would be managed by the community housing provider when completed. To submit expressions of interest under the Scheme providers need to be registered as a community housing provider under the Office of Community Housing’s system.

Non-government ‘Not-for-Profit’ Organisations The 2002 Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) Report indicates that within Australia there is a policy imperative to effectively draw more private investment towards the affordable end of the housing market. Milligan et al (2004) discusses housing that is initiated and owned by non-government not-for-profit providers for social purposes, financed through a mix of public subsidies, planning benefits, private equity and private debt finance, priced below market rents and restricted to low to moderate income groups.

2.5 Rate Relief

Under the Local Government Act, Council can defer the payment of rates by residents who are experiencing financial hardship. The payment of rates can be deferred against the estate for a period determined by Council. Council could promote this benefit to its ratepayers, such as pensioners, who may be in difficult financial circumstances. This benefit would allow the active elderly to remain in their homes and reduce the demand on other types of housing for the elderly such as retirement villages. Most councils already offer this option to low income ratepayers.

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2.6 Assessment Processes

Delays in the assessment process add unnecessary costs to the final development, making new housing less affordable for purchase. While there may be some gains to be made by “streamlining” the development approval process, it is important to recognise that provisions to promote and protect affordable housing opportunities depend on careful, and in some cases, time consuming, development assessment.

Despite difficulties in gaining development approval, agencies projects do ultimately get approval. This suggests that proposed developments have conformed to planning requirements but have been delayed because of community resistance and/or a lack of familiarity in local government with affordable housing models. The experience in Australia so far suggests that local government planning and development control policies that make explicit provision for affordable housing projects will be necessary to ensure their timely, cost effective and smooth development. To avoid unnecessary delays and therefore costs, local government needs to take a more facilitative and supportive role in the assessment processes for affordable housing projects. As part of the recommended Affordable Housing Strategy, this might include the preparation of a specific Development Control Plan that specifies the intentions and criteria to be considered in the assessment of an application.

2.7 Infrastructure Costs

The high cost of public, social and service infrastructure “upfront” in the development of ‘Greenfield sites’ is a major cost to new housing. The holding costs of these expenses are borne by the developer and then ultimately passed onto the consumer as part of the price of a block of land. Although such a system passes the costs onto the actual users of the land, these are often first home owners, families and workers that are least able to pay these costs. Recent moves by the NSW State Government to transfer some of these costs to the State Government (SMH, 2007) in order to cut costs in suburban Sydney land development by up to $25,000 acknowledges this situation.

2.8 Examples of Affordable Housing Initiatives

Recent or prospective initiatives by local governments to directly support an increased supply of affordable housing in their area

Municipality Affordable Housing Initiatives

City of Subiaco,

Western Australia

Council is considering the feasibility of a Trust Fund for affordable housing developments in its local area to hold council investment and attract other equity investors (personal communication).

City of Adelaide,

South Australia

In November 2003, Council launched a rental program for young workers being priced out of the city. The program concept is that apartments will be purchased in the market with loan funds and rented at discounts of about 25%. Assets acquired would be progressively sold off to cover borrowing costs. Council is still seeking State or Commonwealth support to raise funds for the program (www.adelaidecitycouncil.com).

Waverley

Municipality,

NSW

Council has twenty-five year history of involvement in affordable housing initiatives. Latest approach involves offering development incentives (e.g. higher floor space ratios or larger building envelopes) to developers who include affordable housing in their development. An ‘Affordable Housing Calculator’ has been developed to enable consistent and transparent


calculation of the bonus. Affordable housing units, which are acquired with a proportion of the bonus, either are transferred to Council or are let at capped rents for a period specified in a covenant. The units are managed by community-based or private housing managers selected by Council. 18 units of affordable housing have been achieved and 20 are at planning/development stage (Waverley Municipality, 2001).

City of

Willoughby,

NSW

The City of Willoughby Local Environment Plan allows for a cash contribution or dedication of land or both to be levied as a condition of consent for residential development. Dwellings obtained using this levy are to be rented to low and moderate income residents of the municipality with special needs and retained in the Willoughby Local Housing program (COW, 1995).

City of

Parramatta,

NSW

Council has submitted an affordable housing scheme for state government approval. It aims to ensure that as the City grows and changes, especially through zoning for higher density residential development, that a portion of housing affordable for lower income households is provided. The key mechanisms proposed is either a component of affordable housing equivalent to 3% of the floor space area to be dedicated in all medium to higher density residential and mixed use developments or a monetary contribution equal to the market value of 3% of the floor space. Ownership of dwellings will be vested in the DOH (NSW). (COP, 2003).

Need for an Affordable Housing Policy In the absence of a policy on affordable housing at the state level, only a handful of local governments have developed affordable housing policies.

It is recognised that:

There is a lack of knowledge and experience among local government officers dealing with affordable housing projects in many places;

There is often suspicion of the bona fides of affordable housing development applications;

There has been no organised community education on the role of the affordable housing sector leaving individual agencies to have to undertake this function themselves; and

The small scale and uncapitalised state of the independently founded affordable housing companies in Australia means they are generally not in a position to purchase development sites with potential for planning gain to be achieved through rezoning. Comparing the planning policy framework for achieving affordable housing in Australia with progressive approaches elsewhere shows that local policy is embryonic, fragmented, and comparatively weak. Existing affordable housing providers have to negotiate their development proposals through the planning system without any effective support from state or local government in most places. However, where specific policies have been adopted at state or local level (notably in parts of Sydney and in the City of Port Phillip), positive outcomes have resulted with no apparent negative impact on the local housing market. Outside of these areas, it has been left up to individual providers to create the opportunity for capturing planning gain for affordable housing, as was achieved by Canberra Community Housing in the City Edge development.

114


Figure Index Figure 1 Strategy Area Figure 2 Flood Liable Land Figure 3 Topography Figure 4 Vegetation Management Figure 5 Koala Habitat Figure 6 Acid Sulfate Soils Figure 7 Groundwater Vulnerability Figure 8 Agricultural Land Figure 9 Bushfire Hazard Figure 10 Land Susceptible to Climate Change Figure 11 Contaminated Lands Figure 12 Airport Noise Figure 13 National Parks, Nature Reserves and State Forests Figure 14 Potential Urban Areas Figure 15 Potential Urban Areas Figure 16 Potential Urban Areas Figure 17 Potential Urban Areas Figure 18 Potential Urban Areas Figure 19 Far North Coast Regional Strategy Future Urban Release Areas Figure 20 Far North Coast Regional Strategy Future Urban Release Areas


GHD Pty Ltd ABN 39 008 488 373

Suite 2 317 River Street Ballina NSW 2478 PO Box 372 Ballina NSW 2478 T: 02 6620 6500 F: 02 6620 6501 E: [email protected]

© GHD Pty Ltd 2008

This document is and shall remain the property of GHD Pty Ltd. The document may only be used for the purposes for which it was commissioned and in accordance with the Consultancy Agreement for the commission. Unauthorised use of this document in any form whatsoever is prohibited.

Document Status

Reviewer Approved for Issue Rev No. Author

Name Signature Name Signature Date

0 M Svikis

B Wilkinson

S. Lawer S. Lawer 31/10/07

1 M Svikis

B Wilkinson


2 M Svikis

B Wilkinson



Tweed Shire Council

Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy

2009


Contents

Summary i

1. Introduction 1

1.1 Purpose of this Strategy 1 1.2 Vision Statement 1 1.3 Strategy Timeframe and Review 1 1.4 Statement of Aims 1 1.5 Strategy Area 2

2. Relevant Planning and Economic Documentation 3

2.1 Planning Documentation 3 2.2 Economic Documentation 13

3. Local Economy and Demographic Profile 17

3.1 Introduction 17 3.2 Economic and Industry Profile 18 3.3 Demographic and Social Profile 23 3.4 Investment Trends 38 3.5 Economic Drivers and Influences 41 3.6 Future Growth Scenarios 47

4. Economic Opportunities Assessment 51

4.1 Strategic Context 51 4.2 Competitive Position 56 4.3 Strategic Sectors and Opportunities 60 4.4 Joint Venture/Private Partnership Opportunities 65

5. Future Employment Land Needs 68

5.1 Industrial Land 68 5.2 Office Space 79

6. Land Suitability and Infrastructure 89

6.1 Land Suitability 89 6.2 Infrastructure 89


7. Planning Principles and Locality Recommendations 90

7.1 Key Planning Principles 90 7.2 Potential Employment Areas in Tweed Shire 91 7.3 Airport Precinct (Areas 1 and 2) 91 7.4 Border Race Track (Area 3) 92 7.5 Chinderah East (Area 4) 93 7.6 Wardrop Valley West and Wardrop Valley East (Areas 5 and 6) 94 7.7 West Pottsville (Area 7) 95

8. An Urban Centres Hierarchy 96

8.1 Urban Centres Hierarchy 96

9. Employment Lands Release Program 100

9.1 Balancing Supply and Demand For Industrial Land 100 9.2 Balancing Supply and Demand For Commercial Office Space 100 9.3 The Employment Land Release Program 101

10. Strategy Evaluation, Implementation and Review 104

10.1 Strategy Evaluation 104 10.2 Strategy Implementation and Master Planning 106 10.3 Strategy Review 106

11. References 107

Criticism of the Strategy development process 17 Specific Issues 22

Table Index Table 2-1: Forecast Change in Retail Floorspace

Requirements (m2) 14 Table 3-1: Industry Structure – Contribution to Gross

Regional/State/National Product 20 Table 3-2 Employment Structure 22 Table 3-3 Population, Usual Residents 24 Table 3-4 Population Projections 25 Table 3-5 Projected and Usual Resident Population (for 2005

Projections) 26 Table 3-6 Projected and Usual Resident Population (for 1999

Projections) 26


Table 3-7 Age Distribution, Usual Residents 27 Table 3-8 Forecast Median Age 28 Table 3-9: Unemployment Data 29 Table 3-10 Employment Shares by Industry, 2001 30 Table 3-11 Working Population Profile in the Tweed, 2001 31 Table 3-12 Reside and Work in Tweed by Industry, 2001 32 Table 3-13 Proportion of Persons Aged 15 years or over with a

Qualification, 2001 33 Table 3-14 Proportion of Workers by Occupation, 2001 33 Table 3-15 Household Structure, 2006 34 Table 3-16 Average Weekly Income by Occupation, 2001 35 Table 3-17 Average Weekly Income by Industry, 2001 36 Table 3-18 Average Weekly Rent Payments 1991-2006 37 Table 3-19 Average Monthly Housing Loan Repayment 1991-

2006 37 Table 3-20 Dwelling Approvals, Number and Value, Tweed

01/02- 06/07 38 Table 3-21 Mean and Median Property Sales 39 Table 3-22 Median Rents 39 Table 3-23 Non-Residential Building Investment (New and

Alterations/Additions) 40 Table 3-24 Proposed Major Projects in Tweed Shire 40 Table 3-25 Population Scenarios, Growth 2006–2031,

Richmond-Tweed 48 Table 3-26 Population Projections by Scenario 49 Table 5-1 Tweed Industrial Land Supply (4a Zoned Land) 68 Table 5-2 Projected Industrial Land Demand in Tweed (Per

Capita Approach), (ha) 71 Table 5-3 Projected Additional Employed Persons, Tweed

(Medium Series Population) 74 Table 5-4 Projected Share of Additional Employed Persons in

Tweed in Industrial Sector 75 Table 5-5 Projected Additional Industrial Land Demand in

Tweed, (ha) 77 Table 5-6 Existing Office Floorspace by Centre, Tweed Shire 81 Table 5-7 Supply of Commercial Office Space in the Tweed

and Elsewhere 82 Table 5-8 Projected Additional Demand for Office Space in

the Tweed (m2) 84


Table 5-9 Current and Projected Distributions of Office Floorspace in the Tweed 85

Table 7-1 Potential Employment Areas in Tweed Shire 91 Table 8-1 Urban Centres Hierarchy 97 Table 9-1 Tweed Shire Employment Land Release Program 101 Table 11-1 Land nominated for inclusion in the Strategies 5 Table 11-2 Land nominated for exclusion from the Strategies 12 Table 11-3 Criticism of the Strategy development process 17 Table 11-4 Specific Issues 22

Diagram Index Diagram 17-1 Tweed Shire Statistical Local Areas, 2006 Census

Geography 18 Diagram 17-2: Contribution to the Economy by Industry, Tweed

and NSW, 2004-05 21 Diagram 17-3: Historic and Projected Estimated Resident

Population, 1996–2031 25 Diagram 17-4 Projected Population by Age, Tweed Shire 28 Diagram 19-1 Distribution of Professional and Commercial

Businesses in the Tweed 83

Figure Index Figure 1 Strategy Area Figure 2 Flood Liable Land Figure 3 Topography Figure 4 Vegetation Management Figure 5 Koala Habitat Figure 6 Acid Sulfate Soils Figure 7 Groundwater Vulnerability Figure 8 Agricultural Land Figure 9 Bushfire Hazard Figure 10 Land Susceptible to Climate Change Figure 11 Contaminated Lands Figure 12 Airport Noise Figure 13 National Parks, Nature Reserves and State Forests Figure 14 Potential Employment Areas


Figure 15 Potential Employment Areas Figure 16 Potential Employment Areas Figure 17 Potential Employment Areas Figure 18 Far North Coast Regional Strategy Employment Lands Figure 19 Far North Coast Regional Strategy Employment Lands Figure 20 Far North Coast Regional Strategy Employment Lands

Appendices A Environmental Constraints and Opportunities and Land Suitability B Land Suitability Analysis C Infrastructure

i 22/14195/1538 Urban Land Release Strategy and Employment Lands Strategy

Summary

In 2004 Tweed Shire Council identified the need to prepare an employment lands strategy to identify suitable areas of industrial and commercial land to meet current and projected needs and promote economic development as part of a sustainable approach to strategic planning. Strengthening the Tweed economy is essential to provide employment for the growing population, keep young people in the Shire and to underpin sustainable communities (TSC, 2004). The Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy has been prepared for Tweed Shire Council to guide and manage future industrial and commercial development within the Shire until at least 2031.

For the purposes of this Strategy, employment lands are defined as “any land that is predominantly used for commercial activities resulting in employment (specifically excluding land predominantly used for retail uses)”. Based on this definition, the analysis considers industrial-based activities typically located within industrial zones and business park settings and commercial/professional services businesses typically housed in office space within commercial zones and also business park settings.

The Tweed is fast growing in population terms, but recorded negative growth in economic terms of 1.0% in 2004-05. The region is poised to benefit from the flow-on growth from South East Queensland and the Gold Coast where there are reducing land stocks and increasing property prices. The Tweed offers the potential to extend the economic corridor between Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

Using a preferred employment-based methodology, which considers the employment capacity and demographic trends of the Tweed, there is projected demand for between 110 and 250 ha of industrial land over the next 25 years. At the upper end of this range that equates to about 10 ha of industrial land each year. This demand is significantly higher than historic take-up rates and is reflective of the spatial requirements of specific economic development opportunities and initiatives.

Tweed Shire has approximately 231 ha of zoned industrial land of which approximately 138 ha is vacant land. However, this vacant land bank should be discounted to 102 ha to account for physical and infrastructure constraints which affect different areas. This discounted amount equates to about 10 years supply of land based on the “land demand per employee methodology” for assessing employment land demand. Taking a pro-active approach Tweed Shire requires a replenishing 25 years supply, so additional land is required. If Council wants to maintain a significant stock of zoned land in order to provide a variety of development locations it will need to commence replenishing land stocks through the rezoning process by 2011.

This Strategy identifies a number of locations that may be suitable for further investigation including land west of Pottsville, land in West Tweed Heads near the Gold Coast airport, land at Chinderah and land in the Wardrop Valley near Murwillumbah. Together these sites total approximately 236 ha (net area, given assumptions about development yield and not including Area 1) of land that can be identified as having potential for employment lands. This constitutes approximately a further 24 years supply of land. These sites meet physical suitability criteria, have good access to transport links, have proximity to existing and /or proposed employment

ii 22/14195/1538 Urban Land Release Strategy and Employment Lands Strategy

lands, development, can generally be serviced and are spread out across the Shire to provide a choice of locations. They are consistent with the urban centres hierarchy for the Tweed Shire.

Based on a supply per capita approach, there is projected demand for between 19,800m2 and 29,100m2 of office space across the Tweed over the next 25 years, concentrated within the established centres of Tweed Heads, Tweed Heads South and Murwillumbah. Providing additional office floor space would alleviate reported supply shortages and improve the quality and range of space and enable the entry of larger tenants, the expansion of existing businesses and the provision of additional business support services.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that vacancies in the current commercial floor space supply of 58,970m2 are low. In line with the suggested urban centres hierarchy in this Strategy, it is recommended that 65 % of the projected demand be catered for in existing commercially zoned areas in Tweed Heads and Tweed Heads South with the remainder split between Murwillumbah, South Murwillumbah and other existing commercially zoned areas. Council may also consider a proposal for an expansion of commercial zoned land at Tweed Heads, but this needs to be considered on a locality basis and in conjunction with the Tweed Retail Strategy.

Readers of this Strategy are cautioned that this document has not been prepared for anyone as a basis for investment or other private decision making in relation to land purchases, sales or other land uses. Council recommends that it not be used by anyone in this way.

GHD acknowledges the input of the AEC group in preparing the economic and demand assessment components of the Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy.


1. Introduction

1.1 Purpose of this Strategy In its “Tweed 4/24 Strategic Plan” Tweed Shire Council identified the need to prepare an employment lands strategy to identify suitable areas of industrial and commercial land to meet current and projected needs and promote economic development as part of a sustainable approach to strategic planning. Council concluded that strengthening the Tweed economy is essential to provide employment for the growing population, keep young people in the Shire and to underpin sustainable communities (TSC, 2004). GHD and the AEC group have prepared this Strategy.

1.2 Vision Statement To guide and fashion future employment lands development within the Tweed with certainty and provide for sustainable employment opportunities that capitalise on the areas natural and built attributes for present and future generations.

1.3 Strategy Timeframe and Review This Strategy provides for the projected employment growth through a staged release of “greenfield sites” over the next twenty five years to 2031. In accordance with the principles of 'intergenerational equity', this Strategy will not limit the ability of future generations to be able to have their say on the planning for Tweed. To allow for this, and to ensure that planned development under this Strategy aligns with any changes in community values and thinking, a comprehensive review will be undertaken every 5 years.

1.4 Statement of Aims The aim of this Strategy is to:

Comply with the Far North Coast Regional Strategy requirement that Councils prepare a Growth Management Strategy prior to zoning further land for urban, commercial and industrial uses;

Comply with the North Coast Regional Environmental Plan, 1988 (cl.39) in relation to Council preparing a commercial expansion strategy and the principles for commercial and industrial development in clauses 46 to 48;

Provide a range of locations for new employment generating developments to provide for consumer choice;

Ensure that the limited “greenfield sites” available in the Tweed Shire are developed to their maximum capability without compromising the quality of the natural or living environment;

Ensure that “greenfield sites” are not all used for residential development but also allow for employment land uses;

Ensure that new development is linked to Council’s physical and social infrastructure plans.


1.5 Strategy Area The strategy area (identified in Figure 1) is the entire Tweed Shire and consists of an area of approximately 1,303 square kilometres located in the far north eastern corner of NSW. The Shire is dominated physically by the McPherson Range in the north, the Tweed Range in the west and the Nightcap Range in the south, with the Pacific Ocean bordering to the east. The Tweed River floodplain occupies a major land area in the central part of the Shire.

The urban population of Tweed Shire is concentrated in the northeast corner (Tweed Heads) adjacent to the Queensland border and along the Tweed Coast. The only major inland urban area is Murwillumbah. Approximately 85% of the population lives in urban areas and villages.

The major urban areas and villages are identified in Figure 1.


2. Relevant Planning and Economic Documentation

2.1 Planning Documentation

2.1.1 Introduction

There is a hierarchy of statutory planning instruments and policies affecting urban development in the Tweed Shire, including:

Environmental Planning and Assessment Act, 1979 (EP&A Act)

State Environmental Planning Policies (SEPPs);

Regional Environmental Plans (REPs);

Local Environmental Plans (LEPs);

Development Control Plans (DCPs); and

Section 117 directions from the Minister for Planning.

These are described in Section 2.1.2.

At the regional and local level there are several planning Strategies that guide the implementation of these statutory and policy documents as they apply to Tweed Shire. These include:

Far North Coast Regional Strategy 2006;

NSW Coastal Policy 1997;

Northern Rivers Farmland Protection Project, 2005;

Catchment Action Plan (Northern Rivers Catchment Management Authority -CMA);

Tweed Coast Strategy 1995;

Tweed 4/24, 2004;

Strategic Plan Tweed Shire 2000+;

Tweed Estuary Management Plan;

Tweed Coastline Management Plan;

Tweed Floodplain Management Plan;

Murwillumbah Scoping Study, 2007(draft);

Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy, 2004; and

Tweed Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy, 2006

Settlement Planning Guidelines, 2007

Tweed Road Development Strategy - 2007

These are described in Section 2.1.3.


2.1.2 Relevant Statutory Documents

Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 The EP&A Act sets the legal basis for planning controls in NSW. This Strategy is not intended to be a statutory instrument prepared under the EP&A Act, but it will be used by Council to prepare statutory plans at a later date.

State Environmental Planning Policies A number of SEPPs that may be applicable to the Tweed Shire Employment Lands Strategy are as follows:

SEPP 14 Coastal Wetlands The aim of SEPP 14 is to ensure coastal wetlands are preserved and protected for environmental and economic reasons. This SEPP requires consent and the concurrence of Planning NSW for clearing, draining, filling of, or constructing a levee within, the identified wetlands. Wetland areas are not considered available for future development.

SEPP 26 Littoral Rainforests SEPP 26 aims to provide a mechanism for the assessment of development proposals that are likely to damage or destroy littoral rainforest areas. The policy applies to certain mapped areas and includes a 100 metre buffer zone surrounding such areas. The policy requires that consent must be granted prior to the carrying out of any development within these areas. The likely effects of the proposal must be considered in an environmental impact statement. Littoral rainforest areas are not considered available for future development.

SEPP 44 Koala Habitat Protection SEPP 44 encourages the conservation and management of natural vegetation areas that provide habitat for koalas to ensure permanent free-living populations will be maintained over their present range. The policy applies to 107 local government areas including Tweed Shire. Local councils cannot approve development in an area affected by the policy without an investigation of core koala habitat. The policy provides the statewide approach needed to enable appropriate development to continue, while ensuring there is ongoing protection of koalas and their habitat. Typically, koala habitat is not considered available for future development.

SEPP 55 Remediation of Land SEPP 55 provides a statewide planning approach to the remediation of contaminated land. This policy aims to promote the remediation of contaminated land for the purpose of reducing the risk of harm to human health or any other aspect of the environment. Contaminated land is constrained for certain types of development.

SEPP 71 Coastal Protection This policy came into effect on 1 November 2002. It seeks to ensure that development in the NSW Coastal Zone is appropriate and suitably located, to ensure that there is a consistent and strategic approach to coastal planning and management and to ensure that there is a clear development assessment framework for the coastal zone.


This SEPP requires a greater level of scrutiny of any development proposals considered to have an adverse impact on the coastal areas of the NSW (as per Schedule 2 of the SEPP) and originally required the adoption of a Master Plan by the Minister for Infrastructure and Planning for all major subdivisions (generally 25 or more residential lots or 5 or more rural-residential lots). These Master Plans were subsequently required to be prepared as Development Control Plans.

North Coast Regional Environmental Plan 1988 The North Coast Regional Environmental Plan (NCREP) contains provisions specifying regional policies to control and guide the preparation of LEPs within the region and the assessment of development applications. Additionally it sets out Council’s responsibilities with respect to the preparation of urban land release strategies. Although there is now also a Far North Coast Regional Strategy the NCREP has never been repealed and still applies to the Tweed Shire.

Clause 39 of the NCREP states that in preparing LEP’s in relation to retail, commercial or business activities council should ensure:

(a) the expansion is adjacent to or adjoins the existing commercial centre, or

(b) if the expansion is not adjacent, then it should be in accordance with a commercial / retial expansion strategy prepared by the council.

Clause 46 of the NCREP has the objective of encouraging an adequate supply of zoned land located where there are planned growth areas foreshadowed and where essential services can be provided with minimal environmental damage.

Note that Council has a recently prepared a Retail Strategy (TSC, 2005). It is intended that the Employment Lands Strategy work together with this document to guide future employment development.

Local Environmental Plan The Tweed Shire Council’s major local planning instrument is Tweed Local Environmental Plan 2000, which is a shire wide LEP.

Tweed LEP 2000 currently zones a range of areas for various urban land uses. It provides the main statutory basis for future development and is the statutory instrument that has been used to implement Council policy. Its relevance to this Strategy is that it sets the basis for the existing stock of zoned and developed or undeveloped land that the Strategy needs to consider in assessing the long term requirements for urban land in Tweed Shire. Employment lands activities are focussed on land zoned 4(a) Industrial, but some employment activities such as offices and light industries are also permitted in the 2(d) Village zone, 2(c) Urban expansion zone, and 3(c) Commerce and Trade zone.

Tweed Shire Council is currently reviewing Tweed LEP 2000 to create an LEP that is consistent with the Standard LEP issued by the State Government in March 2006.

Development Control Plans Development Control Plans (DCPs) are created by Council under the provisions of the EP&A Act. They deal in more detail with selected areas of the Shire or with selected issues that apply across all of the Shire. In 2007 Council consolidated all of its DCP’s into a single document consistent with the approach recommended by the State government. It is likely that Council will review the content of its DCP’s over the next few years as it updates its planning instruments. Two DCP’s that take a strategic approach and are relevant to this Strategy areas follows:


DCP 2007 Section B9 (ex DCP 51 Tweed Coast Strategy). This plan summarises Councils policies for the management of the growth of the Kingscliff District of the Tweed Coast. The purposes of the DCP are to: set out Council’s strategy for the Tweed Coast; identify the relevant planning controls to implement the Strategy; provide guidance to those wishing to develop within the Tweed Coast area and to indicate Council’s policies with respect to that development; and have clear policies for determination of the merits of developments within Tweed Coast.

DCP 2007 Section A3 - Development of Flood Liable Land This plan contains development standards and other provisions in respect of floodplain management in Tweed Shire and relates to the Tweed Local Environmental Plan 2000.

Section 117 Directions for the Minister for Planning Under the EP&A Act, the Minister for Planning also has the ability to direct Council to comply with certain directions when preparing draft LEPs. These Ministerial directions (117 Directions) relate to local environmental plan preparation by Council for specific development proposals, flood prone land, residential zones, acid sulfate soil occurrence, development near licensed aerodromes and requirements for the environmental studies within one kilometre of the coast under the New South Wales Government Coastal Policy. A revised set of 117 directions was issued on 19 July 2007, these directions have been considered for the purpose of this Strategy.

2.1.3 Relevant Strategic Documents

Far North Coast Regional Strategy The Far North Coast Regional Strategy was prepared by the Department of Planning in 2006. It will guide local planning in the six local government areas of Ballina, Byron, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed, and inform decisions on service and infrastructure delivery. It will be reviewed every five years. The purpose of the Regional Strategy is to manage the Region’s expected high growth rate in a sustainable manner (DoP, 2006).

The Strategy has recognised the potential impacts on the Region from the rapid growth of South East Queensland. Specific to Tweed Shire the Strategy identifies Tweed Heads as a major regional centre. The revitalisation of Tweed Heads CBD will become the focus for the Tweed urban area enabling it to provide a high level of services, employment and housing to complement those provided in the adjoining South East Queensland Region. Tweed Heads will also continue to develop as a major regional centre for tourism and the provision of retail services and community facilities. Additionally, the strategy identifies that the Tweed LGA currently has 34,650 existing dwellings and by the year 2031, Council should be planning to provide an additional 19,100 dwellings in the Tweed LGA (DoP, 2006). Assuming an average occupancy rate of 2.4 persons per dwelling this is an average growth rate of approximately 1,800 persons per year over the next 25 years.

The strategy also identifies that the region requires at least 32,500 new jobs as a result of the projected population growth. Across the region this translates to at least 156 ha of additional industrial land and 76 ha of commercial land. It also states that in planning for future industrial needs Council should first examine existing urban areas. However, it should also take into account economic markets, South East Queensland pressures, lifestyle opportunities and transport improvements. The strategy nominates Tweed Heads as suitable for large scale tourism facilities and nominates Chinderah as a site suitable for


a highway service centre. The employment lands identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy for the Tweed LGA are shown in Figures 18, 19 and 20 of this Strategy overlaid on air photos.

NSW Coastal Policy The NSW Coastal Policy (1997) is the State Government’s policy for the co-ordinated planning and management of the NSW Coastline. The policy represents an attempt to better co-ordinate the management of the coast by identifying in a single document the various management policies, programs, and standards as they apply to a defined coastal zone (Byron Shire Council 2005).

This Policy applies to the coastal zone along NSW including coastal estuaries, lakes lagoons, islands and rivers, therefore a proportion of the Tweed LGA is covered. In relation to urban land release, this policy applies to all new developments and publicly owned lands within urban areas covered by the coastal zone. The principles in the Coastal Policy relevant to this Strategy are also covered in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy and the North Coast REP.

Regional Farmland Protection Project– Department of Planning Agriculture is an important industry on the North Coast. Agricultural land is a finite resource and is under increasing development pressure. Population pressures have resulted in substantial urban and rural residential encroachment onto farmland. The protection of agricultural land on the NSW North Coast is a long term government initiative. The Farmland Protection Project seeks to protect important farmland from urban and rural residential development by mapping farmland and developing planning principles. The project team has endeavoured to put forward policies which can be of genuine long-term benefit to agriculture in the region without imposing unnecessary restrictions on farmers (DoP, 2005).

According to the Project, State significant farmland cannot be considered for urban or rural residential rezoning for the purpose of this Urban Land Release Strategy. An area of State Significant farmland area is located inland from Kingscliff (Cudgen) with pockets near Duranbah, Terranora and west of Terranora.

The maps provided with the Project identify a large area of regionally significant farmland located inland from Kingscliff following the Tweed River to the west. This includes areas used for sugar cane production in the Tweed river valley. Regionally significant farmland is not an absolute constraint to future urban development, but to be included it must be consistent with seven criteria documented in the Project. Councils when preparing new strategies can consider regional farmland for urban use only under limited circumstances. It is highly unlikely that all seven criteria could be achieved in the Tweed Shire. For the purposes and needs of this Strategy, regional farmland has been considered in the same way as State significant farmland - an absolute constraint.

Northern Rivers Catchment Management Authority (NRCMA) – Catchment Action Plan The purpose of the Catchment Action Plan (CAP) is to manage natural resources within northern NSW. Local government is a key stakeholder in this management process. This Plan (NRCMA, 2006) outlines that increasing population growth and associated urban expansion is putting pressure on the present natural resources and Aboriginal cultural landscapes. All councils in the NRCMA (including Tweed Shire) are currently revising their local planning instruments which incorporate natural resource issues. The treatment of natural resources in planning and planning instruments becomes a major influence on the resource condition and the achievement of local, state and national targets.


Settlement Planning Guidelines

These guidelines were released in August 2007 to assist Councils in preparing local growth management strategies. They document the scope and content of a local growth management strategy and the planning principles on which the work should be based.

These guidelines have been useful in preparing and evaluating the Strategy to ensure that where possible it meets the expectations of the State government.

Tweed Coastal Strategy The Tweed Coastal Strategy was prepared in response to the Integrated Planning Study, which recommended the creation of a broad-ranging coastal strategy to address the future demands placed on Council resources from coastal growth and development. It attempts to offer a more coordinated response to growth pressures amongst all stakeholders. The strategy adopts the ‘vision’ outlined in the NSW Government’s Draft Revised Coastal Policy “A coastal environment which is conserved and enhanced for its natural and cultural values while also providing for the economic, social and spiritual well being of the community” (Tweed Shire Council 1995).

The bulk of the data presented in the Tweed Coastal Strategy 1995 is outdated with land release forecasts only extending to 2006. The Tweed Coastal Strategy 1995 is useful for comparison with present data and an analysis of the accuracy and relevance of past projected trends.

Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan The Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan provides the broad directions for future planning in the Tweed area. It outlines the policies and actions designed to achieve outcomes, which have been developed between the private sector, community groups and the three tiers of Government (TSC, 1997).

The Plan outlines the current situation and desired outcomes of urban development and management in the Tweed area for the next 20 years. Additionally, it outlines policies and actions in place to deal with urban development and management issues. In particular, the Plan (TSC, 1997) states that:

There is sufficient land zoned for urban development to accommodate the expected population growth in the Tweed for the next 20 years;

Some areas of land identified for urban development in the 1992 Residential Development Strategy are not achievable at this time due to the environmental, financial and infrastructure constraints;

No further regional shopping centres are required in the Tweed, although subregional retail centres will be required at Tweed Heads, Tweed Heads South, Murwillumbah, and South Kingscliff; and

Housing and subdivision designs need to be integrated.

The population projections identified in the Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan are outdated, or will be outdated by 2011. However the information and urban management issues identified are useful for the preparation of this Urban Land Release Strategy.

Tweed 4/24, Strategic Plan The 4/24 Strategy replaces and updates the Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan. It sets broad directions for the next two decades and provides a framework for more detailed plans and policies. It applies to the whole Tweed Shire. The purpose of Tweed 4/24 as outlined in the Strategy (TSC, 2004) is:

To update the Tweed 2000+ Strategic Plan and strengthen arrangements for implementation;


To guide sustainable growth and change;

To safeguard the Tweed Shire’s quality of life and environment;

To enable all key players (Council, other government agencies, businesses and community organisations) to work together in achieving shared goals; and

To assist Council in setting priorities in its Management Plan and budgets.

Key elements of this strategy which relate to urban lands and development include:

Urban Development – Implement current plans for urban expansion including Cobaki and Bilambil Heights. Complete assessments of Terranora and Kings Forest. Retain green belts or buffers between settlements;

Land Use Structure Plan and Urban Design Framework – A new Structure Plan to set out more detailed proposals for urban and rural land use;

Housing Affordability – New measures to provide more housing for both purchase and rental within the reach of lower and middle income groups; and

Regional Links – Closer integration with planning for the Gold Coast and South East Queensland. Continued involvement with the Northern Rivers Region and Premier’s Department coordination group.

A number of the Strategic directions set down by this Plan form a good basis for the Objectives of this Urban Land Release Strategy.

The Plan suggests that Council does not have a need to consider additional major release areas beyond those in the current Residential Development Strategy (1992), which are Cobaki Lakes, Kings Forest, Terranora ‘Area E’ and Kielvale. Additionally, the actual capacity of existing zoned residential land needs to be confirmed, and the likely extent of redevelopment for higher density housing in existing urban areas needs to be assessed (TSC, 2004). These issues will be considered for the preparation of this Urban Land Release Strategy.

Estuary Management Plans Through the State Government’s Estuary Management Plan, Local Governments have an opportunity to obtain technical and financial assistance for the purpose of preparing and implementing estuary management plans, undertaking works to rehabilitate the estuarine environment and improving the recreational amenity of estuarine foreshores (Ecograph, 2004).

Tweed Shire Council has many detailed Management plans for the Tweed River and the Tweed Coast Creeks, these include:

Tweed River Estuary Bank Management Plan 2000;

Tweed Coast Estuaries Management Plan 2004/2008;

Upper Tweed River Estuary Management Plan;

Terranora Broadwater Management Plan;

Cobaki Broadwater Management Plan; and

Tweed Urban Stormwater Quality Management Plan.


Coastline Management Plan TSC is required to manage the Tweed coast in a sustainable manner into the future, balancing natural, cultural, social and economic values. The Coastline Management Plan was prepared in 2005 to inform and assist TSC on Coastal issues and management measures.

Umwelt (2005) outlined that population growth of the Tweed area is high and expected to continue. The Tweed’s coastline population represents a significant proportion of the Tweed Shire’s population. Increased pressure for use of the Tweed coastline and the amenity it provides is predicted. This will be driven by anticipated urban growth, in particular from the retiree population, tourist development and, people’s desire for a more secluded beach experience than is available in other regional coastal destinations.

In relation to urban land release and development the Tweed Coastline Management Plan must be considered. Umwelt (2005) outlined that the majority of development on the Tweed Coast is to the west of the Coast Road, however, there are some areas zoned for residential and tourist purposes on the eastern side of the Coast Road:

Areas zoned for residential and tourist purposes on the eastern side of the Coast Road have management problems such as encroachment and coastal hazards;

Development pressures are increasing demand for the construction of community facilities including toilet blocks, car parks, surf life saving facilities and tourist accommodation/resorts; and

NSW Coastal Policy 1997 supports ecologically sustainable development principles, retention of public access to foreshore areas, preservation of undeveloped headlands and

Protection of beaches and waterfront open space from over-shadowing.

As population growth in the Tweed increases, there is an increased pressure for urban land release on the Tweed coastline. Such development brings pressure on the use of coastline resources, which may potentially impact on environmentally sensitive lands and the natural and scenic amenity valued so highly by the local community and tourists (Umwelt, 2005).

Tweed Valley Floodplain Risk Management Plan Tweed Valley Floodplain Risk Management Plan Part I establishes the “design flood level” at 1%

AEP. Minimum floor levels for residential development shall be “design flood level” plus 0.5m. Part 2 establishes development controls to apply to various development types in mapped high flow areas of the floodplain based on existing zones in Tweed LEP 2000. Part 3 considers emergency response provisions for habitable land uses in the flood plain. The recommendations of the Part 1,2 & 3 Plans have been adopted into DCP Section A3 – Development of Flood Liable Land. Further work on the TVFRMP is currently underway by consultants, which may impact on suitability for flood prone land for future urban development.

New urban development on the floodplain is only appropriate where it can be demonstrated that the development will have no significant adverse impacts on local flood behaviour, when considered in isolation and as a part of a cumulative development scenario. Flood impact assessment will be required, in accordance with the NSW Floodplain Development Manual.


Tweed Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy

Integrated Water Cycle Management (IWCAM) is the integrated management of the water supply, sewerage and stormwater services within a whole catchment strategic framework (Hunter Water Australia, 2006). An important component of the IWCM process is the preparation of an IWCM Strategy. The IWCM Strategy provides a framework and long term focus on the integrated delivery of water supply, sewerage and stormwater services.

The key Water Resource Characteristics of Tweed Shire are:

The study area includes one major dam (Clarrie Hall Dam), one major supply weir (Bray Park Weir) and one minor water supply weir (Tyalgum Weir).

The May 2002 estimate of secure yield based on “Historic No Failure Yield” methodology for the study area is 18.5 GL/a. This may reduce to as low as 14.7 GL/a, once environmental flows are set under a future water sharing plan.

Surface water quality and health are generally fair to good across the catchment. Suspended solids and nutrient levels are generally elevated in the Upper Tweed catchment due to rural runoff, with algal blooms commonly occurring during the warmer months. Water quality and health are generally fair to good in the Lower Tweed estuary and broadwaters, which benefit from tidal flushing, but decline with distance from the river mouth, with poor health in the mid to upper estuary and the Rous River. Major pollutant sources for the Tweed Estuary include urban stormwater, effluent and rural runoff (via the Upper Tweed River). Rural runoff and urban stormwater appear to be the dominant influence on pollutant inputs to the other coastal estuaries.

Water users in the catchment include extractions for town water (around 10 GL/a) and rural irrigation (around 4.8 GL/a surface water and 1.7 GL/a groundwater), commercial enterprises (such as fishing, oyster farming, houseboats/cruises) and recreational activities (such as fishing, boating, swimming and skiing).

The key Urban Water Characteristics are:

The urban water supply system includes one major water treatment plant (Bray Park WTP) and two minor plants. Bray Park WTP is soon to be upgraded from 60 ML/d to 100 ML/d to cater for expected population growth and improve treatment processes. A new WTP is required sometime in the future for Tyalgum to improve supply security during times of low water quality.

Current town water consumption is around 10 GL/a, with around 60% attributed to residential. Future consumption is likely to increase to around 16 GL/a by 2019 and 22 GL/a by 2034 (assuming consumption levels remain unchanged).

The urban wastewater system includes five major sewage treatment plants (Tweed Heads, Banora Point, Kingscliff, Hastings Point and Murwillumbah) and three minor plants. Tweed Heads, Banora Point and Kingscliff STPs require future augmentation in order to cater for predicted population increases, with Murwillumbah and Hastings Point STPs being recently upgraded.

Around 7.5 GL/a of effluent is discharged to various receiving waters (the majority to the Tweed Estuary), with less than 5% of dry weather flows currently being reused. Future effluent volumes are likely to increase to around 13 GL/a by 2019 and 19 GL/a by 2034.

Urban stormwater runoff contributes to nutrient and sediment loads in the study area’s waterways (mainly the Lower Tweed Estuary), with only limited treatment of urban stormwater currently occurring.


Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy The Tweed Vegetation Management strategy was initiated in 1998 after the introduction of the Native Vegetation Conservation Act 1997, which provided a number of opportunities to streamline planning and management of native vegetation. It was complete in 2004.

The goals of the Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy are to:

Encourage the protection and enhancement of regional and local native biological diversity in the Tweed by promoting ecologically sustainable management practices.

Promote a holistic and co-ordinated planning framework in accordance with the Native Vegetation Act 2003 and the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 for the management of ecological processes and systems in the Tweed.

Adopt a balanced and equitable approach in developing the framework that takes into account the environmental, economic, social and cultural interests of the State and the Tweed community. (Ecograph, 2004)

The Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy (Ecograph, 2004) outlines that only a relatively small proportion of mapped bushland (1.5%) that had a high level of ecological importance is likely to be threatened by development, given existing planning commitments. The most prominent of this bushland is located at Kings Forest and in the Cobaki Area. Other ecologically significant areas included parts of Tanglewood, Sea Ranch, Kingscliff and Uki.

Murwillumbah Scoping Study (Draft Report) Tweed Shire Council (2007) has prepared a draft Scoping Study for Murwillumbah. The key issues identified and addressed in this Study are the finite supply of suitable zoned land, the importance of the agricultural industry and the expanding population. These issues underline the need to identify additional new residential and employment lands in close proximity to the Town of Murwillumbah.

The study examines an area within a 5 km radius of the Murwillumbah town centre as the focus for the Scoping Study. The methodology used to determine this land is an analysis of existing vacant supply and potential future demand, leading to an estimate of potential additional required land and the most appropriate location for such growth to be accommodated. This involved four stages:

Land Suitability

Existing and Potential Demand

Existing Supply

Conclusions

Based on a combination of population projections, discussions with key stakeholders (such as TEDC) and published sources the following estimations were made:

An estimated total of 169.7 ha of land (gross) is zoned and available for residential development within the study area.

An estimated total of 70.4 ha of land (gross) is zoned and available for industrial development within the study area.

It should be noted some of the base data informing that study is now up to 12 years old. Additionally, the forecasts are based on a Shire-wide analysis and do not necessarily represent the specific market characteristics present in Murwillumbah (TSC, 2007).


Potential Industrial Land Investigation and Site Analysis – Tweed Shire Tweed Shire Council undertook an industrial land investigation in 2000. This work examined the

supply of industrial land and the likely future demand for it based on estimates of population growth. It identified and evaluated a range of sites that might be suitable for industry, wholesale and trade uses and enterprise parks. Although the initial report was adopted by Council in April 2000, there has been no significant implementation of its recommendations. The sites examined in that work are a good comparison for the employment lands suitability mapping identified in this Strategy.

Tweed Road Development Strategy

The Tweed Road Development Strategy – 2007 (Veitch Lister Consulting (VLC), 2007) examines :

The traffic studies which have defined the Tweed Shire’s long term road improvement strategy; and

The principles, mechanisms and assumptions underlying the schedules of contributions contained in the Tweed Shire Council contributions plan.

The document suggests an ultimate development scenario based on zoned land and likely development options including detailed additions and improvements to the road network for West Tweed Heads, Banora Point, the Tweed Coast and Murwillumbah. It uses a consumption based model and generic road costs to generate the cost of accommodating anticipated development and how this might be shared among development in different localities.

2.2 Economic Documentation Extensive work has been undertaken both for the Northern Rivers region and for the Tweed Shire in relation to a range of economic issues. The economic and industry profile and assessment of supply, demand and opportunities for this strategy draws on this work where possible and they are referenced in this strategy. However, it is appropriate to focus on several publications in particular.

2.2.1 Tweed Shire Retail Strategy

Core Economics (2005) has prepared a Retail Strategy for Tweed Shire, outlining a strategy framework intended to inform the strategic planning process and allow Council to define usage and functional parameters for each existing, proposed and intended, centre in the Tweed. The urban centres that it focussed on reflect the State Suburbs used by the ABS in its publications and research.

Supply Assessment

A character assessment was provided for the main retail centres in the Tweed. The existing retail floorspace for each centre in 2005 was:

Tweed Heads - 99,532 m2

Tweed Heads South - 199,857 m2

Tweed Heads West - 16,125 m2

Terranora - 2,257 m2

Bilambil/Bilambil Heights - minimal

Banora Point - 20,235 m2

Fingal - 1,088 m2


Chinderah - 15,325 m2

Kingscliff - 26,266 m2

Cabarita - 3,050 m2

Hastings Point - 870 m2

Pottsville -7,980 m2

Murwillumbah - 78,538 m2

Rural West - 22,613 m2

In summary, the report indicated Tweed Heads South was the largest concentration of retailing, catering for higher order retail needs (especially comparison retail and showroom retail) and functioning as a consolidated regional centre to a northern NSW catchment. Tweed Heads records a mix of retail and commercial uses and was formerly the dominant retail centre in the Tweed. Murwillumbah serves local and outlying rural residents with supermarket and convenience retail. It was considered that other Tweed coastal towns and villages generally serve a convenience of daily impulse need from local residents.

Demand Assessment The following retail floorspace demand forecasts were prepared for three catchments within the Tweed for the 20-year period from 2004. A total of 83,400 m2 of retail floorspace demand was forecast for the entire Council area, with more than half forecast for the Urban North catchment (43,062 m2) (see Table 2-1). The Coastal catchment (35,712 m2) accounted for almost 43% of the total, with the Rural West (4,620 m2) the remainder.

The report comments that overall demand for retail floorspace in the Tweed is generated by regional residents as well as the inflow from northern NSW and tourists and residents of the Gold Coast. The report notes that catering to future demand in the Tweed is dependent on maintaining the character of existing areas, retail centres and precincts, as well as meeting the needs of local residents and providing a regional focus for higher order shopping such as retail showrooms and a regional shopping centre.

Table 2-1: Forecast Change in Retail Floorspace Requirements (m2)

Urban North Coastal Rural West Total

2004-

14

2014-

2024

2004-

14

2014-

2024

2004-

14

2014-

2024

2004-

14

2014-

2024

Convenience 7,697 7,563 7,625 4,939 876 761 16,198 13,263

Warehouse Retail 6,572 6,458 6,605 4,279 748 650 13,925 11,387

Clothing & Footwear 2,080 2,044 2,097 1,358 237 206 4,414 3,608

Other Retail 5,954 1,769 1,761 1,141 205 178 7,920 3,088

Food & Beverage Services 11,806 3,508 3,573 2,315 406 353 15,785 6,176

Total 21,719 21,343 21,680 14,032 2,473 2,147 45,872 37,522 Source: AECgroup


The report comments that the dispersed population of the Tweed Coast makes the provision of a single consolidated centre problematic, leading to two options: Develop a series of local centres scaled to meet the needs of the local catchment; or establish a higher order retail centre to act in concert with smaller centres in each coastal community that would cater for the needs of the immediate population. The report also notes Tweed Heads South hosts a significant amount of retail showroom space in a precinct that is approaching capacity. A new precinct will need to be identified to cater to future demand.

Development Strategy The Core Economics report outlines a retail strategy matrix and retail strategy to guide future retail development in the Tweed across each of the existing, proposed and intended centres in the three catchments (Urban North, Coastal and Rural West). The strategy does not outline floorspace development parameters for each individual centre by distributing the forecast retail floorspace demand for the Tweed.

In terms of the two largest retail centres, the report outlines the following policy framework:

Tweed Heads: Incremental expansion of the existing centre and precinct, this existing precinct has the potential to be a focal point (of retail and other related uses) through the development and integration of street based retailing with existing centres; and

Tweed Heads South: Expansion of Tweed Heads South to cater to future demand, the precinct is to increase as demand dictates. Retail showrooms to be accommodated at Chinderah as Tweed Heads South area reaches capacity and demand dictates.

2.2.2 Tweed Shire Economic Growth Management Strategy 2007-2010 (Ready for Business).

This document was prepared jointly by Tweed Shire Council and the Tweed Economic Development Corporation (TEDC) and adopted by Council in December 2006. It aims to promote a strong economy and diverse employment opportunities through industry specific strategies and projects.

It targets the following as major areas of interest:

research and development;

land use planning;

industry development initiatives;

CBD revitalisation;

cross border issues;

infrastructure development;

marketing and promotion; and

regional partnerships.

2.2.3 Northern Rivers Regional Industry and Economic Plan (NRRIEP)

This document was finalised in November 2005 as a joint project of the Northern Rivers Regional Development Board, NSW Department of State and Regional Development, Southern Cross University and NSW Department of Planning (NRRB, 2005).


The purpose of the NRRIEP is to provide a development framework for use by industry partners to inform decision making, collaboration and alliances. The goal the plan nominates for the region is to “achieve economic development and employment growth in a sustainable way for our regions population”. Sustainable economic development is defined as activity that improves the prosperity of the region or at least maintains it, without prejudicing the capacity for future generations to enjoy the environment.

The NRRIEP defines nine economic development objectives to support its sustainability approach as follows:

To encourage economic diversity and the creation of long term employment opportunities throughout the region while protecting the region’s environment and liveability;

To encourage economic development activities that will assist in the creation of a viable and sustainable network of towns and villages;

To increase exports and import replacement;

To increase efficiency and ensure that business and industry is afforded access to well maintained and world class hard and soft infrastructure;

To foster both large and small business creation;

To increase reinvestment of regional wealth;

To encourage education and training;

To utilise renewable resources and maximise land and infrastructure in a sustainable manner; and

To increase access to Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) that are equivalent to those delivered in metropolitan areas.

The NRRIEP also identifies “best practice planning principles and guidelines to facilitate local and regional economic and industry development. These are:

Positioning for Global competitiveness;

Building the region’s value set;

Developing the region’s key sectors, specifically:

– Tourism;

– Education;

– Creative industries;

– Horticulture, complementary medicine;

– Aquaculture;

– Residential development and construction;

– Forestry, meat and dairy; and

– Transport.

In relation to Tweed Shire the NRRIEP recognises there is limited industrial land capacity within the southern Gold Coast and Tweed area so efforts to facilitate opportunities for local government to identify and promote industrial land opportunities is a high priority. The NRRIEP acknowledges that cross border issues will have a significant impact on Tweed Shire.


3. Local Economy and Demographic Profile

3.1 Introduction The economic and industry profile of the Tweed Shire involves analysis of the area’s economic performance, industry structure, population trends, social profile, investment trends and economic drivers and influences, including external drivers from neighbouring areas, and future growth scenarios for the region in terms of population and economic growth.

There has been a significant amount of research undertaken in regard to employment land, property markets and industry development opportunities in the Tweed. Where appropriate, this strategy refers to, evaluates and extends this literature within the context of assessing future employment land requirements. The strategy considers the implications of regional planning strategies, including the Far North Coast Regional Strategy and the South-East Queensland (SEQ) Regional Plan and external demand factors such as rapid population and economic growth in SEQ and the Gold Coast.

For the purposes of this Strategy, employment lands are defined as “any land that is predominantly used for commercial activities resulting in employment (specifically excluding land predominantly used for retail uses)”. Based on this definition, the analysis considers industrial-based activities typically located within industrial zones and business park settings and commercial/professional services businesses typically housed in office space within commercial zones and also business park settings. The assessment of retail supply and demand in the Tweed was completed by Core Economics (2005) and is summarised in Chapter 2 of this strategy.

The Tweed Shire LGA contains three Statistical Local Areas (SLAs), or sub-regions as defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (see Diagram 3-1). The three SLAs are defined in the ABS’ 2006 Census geography. Prior to 2006, there were just two SLAs defined for Tweed Shire, the Tweed Heads and Tweed Part B SLAs. Therefore, some data in this report referring to the period before the 2006 Census is available for these two SLAs only, whereas data released from the 2006 Census provides information for the three SLAs.

(Note: In the following population tables “Tweed” refers to Tweed Shire. Tweed Heads refers to a “greater Tweed Heads” which includes Cobaki, Terranora, Banora Point, Fingal, Chinderah and Kingscliff. Tweed Part B refers to everything else not included in “greater Tweed Heads”. These localities are constructs of the ABS).


Diagram 3-1 Tweed Shire Statistical Local Areas, 2006 Census Geography

Source: ABS 2006 Census, AECgroup

3.2 Economic and Industry Profile

3.2.1 Gross Regional Product

The Tweed’s Gross Regional Product (GRP) in 2004-05 was estimated at $1.2 billion, approximately 0.4% of NSW’ (NSW) Gross State Product (GSP).

Value-added per capita in the Tweed was $15,200, considerably lower than the NSW average of $43,600. The main reasons for this difference are:

Lower labour participation rate in the Tweed;

Net outflow of resident workers for employment; and

Lower value-adding activities undertaken by Tweed industries.

NSW’ GSP increased by 1.2% per year on average, in real terms, between 2002-03 and 2004-05. Over the same period, the Tweed’s GRP declined by almost 1% per annum in real terms, despite strong population growth.

Much of the increased household expenditure generated by the additional population in the Tweed has occurred outside the region (e.g. on the Gold Coast) or has been met through increased imports of consumer goods rather than increased local production.

3.2.2 Industry Structure

The quaternary (business and information services) sector is the most significant economic contributor in the Tweed, accounting for 30.7% of GRP. However, while the sector (which typically includes high-value, high productivity industries) is the largest in the Tweed, its percentage share of economic contribution is


well below the NSW (40.5%) and Australian (35.0%) benchmarks. Conversely, quinary (household or personal) services account for only 14% of the NSW economy, but 23% of the Tweed’s GRP.

Currently, the Tweed relies heavily on the property and business services sector, with an estimated GRP at factor cost value of $177 million, contributing 14% of GRP at factor cost. Other significant industries include retail trade (13% of the Tweed’s GRP), health & community services (11%), construction (11%) and manufacturing (9%). These sectors have been driven by rapid population growth.

Historically, the Tweed economy has recorded a strong reliance on the primary (resource-based) sector, including agricultural commodities of sugar cane, dairy products, bananas and vegetable growing being traditional products. However, the agricultural sector in the region has been in decline. The Tweed Rural Land Use Study undertaken by the Tweed Economic Development Corporation (TEDC) in 2002 identified traditional agriculture in the Tweed was declining at 7.4% per annum, almost three times faster than the industry’s decline nationally.

In terms of location quotients, which measure the relative significance of each individual industry in the Tweed relative to a benchmark region (in this case NSW), the Tweed records a considerably greater economic reliance (i.e. where the quotient is highest) in the areas of accommodation, cafes & restaurants (2.1), retail trade (1.9), personal & other services (1.7), and health & community services (1.5). Industries underrepresented in the Tweed economy compared to the NSW economy are mining (0.2), finance & insurance services (0.3), wholesale trade (0.6), manufacturing (0.7) and property & business services (0.8). There are reasons for some of these industries being underrepresented in the Tweed (e.g. a significant mining industry has not developed because of the small, largely not economically viable mineral deposits in the region, although there is some interest in sand mining).

Of note is that several of the region’s largest, high value-adding industries are underrepresented in relative terms, meaning that although they are important at the regional level, they are still not as important as at the State level in relative terms. The Tweed is underrepresented in goods-producing industries and knowledge-based services industries, which are typically high value-adding activities, offer considerable scope for productivity increases and the potential for moving up the value-chain. As knowledge-intensive industries continue to increase in importance in global trade, the key to securing long-term economic security is to attract and retain these industries. Local initiatives are required to drive economic development in the Tweed. The provision of employment lands to attract desired industries is one channel to achieve this.

The industries the Tweed is currently overrepresented in are population-servicing industries, typically characterised by low value adding, low productivity and limited opportunities to move up the value chain. The reliance of these industries on population and tourism for continued growth makes the economic base of the region relatively more vulnerable. The Tweed’s industries are largely engaged in low value-adding activities either because firms are concentrated in low value-adding activities (e.g. personal services) or at the low value-adding end of high value-adding industries (e.g. retail banking in the finance and insurance industry).


Table 3-1: Industry Structure – Contribution to Gross Regional/State/National Product

Location Quotients Tweed NSW Australia

Tweed / NSW

Tweed / Australia

Primary (resource-based) 3.3% 4.6% 10.1% 0.7 0.3

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 2.9% 2.3% 3.7% 1.3 0.8

Mining 0.4% 2.3% 6.4% 0.2 0.1

Secondary (goods-based) 20.0% 23.4% 23.7% 0.9 0.8

Manufacturing 8.7% 13.0% 13.1% 0.7 0.7

Electricity, Gas and Water Supply 0.7% 2.2% 2.7% 0.3 0.3

Construction 10.6% 8.2% 7.9% 1.3 1.3

Tertiary (commerce-based) 23.1% 17.7% 17.7% 1.3 1.3

Wholesale Trade 4.0% 6.2% 5.8% 0.6 0.7

Retail Trade 12.9% 6.8% 7.1% 1.9 1.8

Transport and Storage 6.2% 4.7% 4.8% 1.3 1.3

Quaternary (information-based) 30.7% 40.5% 35.0% 0.8 0.9

Communication Services 1.2% 3.2% 3.2% 0.4 0.4

Finance and Insurance 3.4% 11.4% 8.4% 0.3 0.4

Property and Business Services 14.2% 17.3% 14.4% 0.8 1.0

Government Administration, Defence 4.7% 3.8% 4.1% 1.2 1.1

Education 7.2% 4.8% 4.9% 1.5 1.5

Quinary (household-based) 22.9% 13.9% 13.6% 1.6 1.7

Accommodation, Cafes, Restaurants 6.4% 3.0% 2.7% 2.1 2.4

Health and Community Services 10.6% 6.9% 7.1% 1.5 1.5

Cultural and Recreational Services 2.4% 1.9% 1.6% 1.3 1.5

Personal and Other Services 3.5% 2.1% 2.2% 1.7 1.6

Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 1.0 1.0 Note: Location Quotient represents the relative reliance of the regional economy on an individual sector compared to NSW i.e. a quotient of 1 means identical reliance, a quotient of 2.3 implies that the regional economy is 2.3 times more reliant on that sector than the NSW average. Source: TEDC/Tweed Shire Council (Tweed Economic Model), ABS, AECgroup


Diagram 3-2: Contribution to the Economy by Industry, Tweed and NSW, 2004-05

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

Primary (resourcebased)

Secondary (goodsbased)

Tertiary (commercebased)

Quaternary (informationbased)

Quinary (householdbased)

Per

cent

age

of V

alue

-Add

ed (%

)

Tweed New South Wales

Source: TEDC/Tweed Shire Council (Tweed Economic Model), AECgroup

3.2.3 Employment Structure

The Tweed records a significantly greater amount of employment in the household and commerce-based service sectors relative to Tweed GRP and NSW and national employment by industry benchmarks. This generally reflects the lower value adding of these activities predominantly based on servicing the fast growing Tweed population.

The Tweed records the highest proportion of its employment in the quinary (household-based) sector as opposed to the higher value adding and productive quaternary sector (information-based) sector. The differences in employment contributions to GRP contributions are reflected by the relative value adding of each sector per employee.

Currently, the Tweed relies heavily on retail trade for employment, contributing an estimated 4,850 jobs, 19% of the region’s total employment. Other significant industries include health & community services (12%), accommodation, cafes & restaurants (9%), property & business services (9%), and manufacturing (7%).

Compared to the NSW economy, accommodation, cafes & restaurants (1.9), retail trade (1.4), and health and community services (1.3) contribute a greater proportion of GRP for the Tweed region. Industries underrepresented in the Tweed compared to NSW are mining (0.4), finance & insurance services (0.4), communication services (0.7), manufacturing (0.7), wholesale trade (0.8), and property & business services (0.8).


Table 3-2 Employment Structure

Location Quotients Tweed NSW Australia

Tweed / NSW

Tweed / Australia

Primary (resource-based) 4.1% 3.7% 5.0% 1.1 0.8

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 3.8% 3.0% 3.8% 1.3 1.0

Mining 0.3% 0.7% 1.2% 0.4 0.2

Secondary (goods-based) 17.4% 21.5% 22.3% 0.8 0.8

Manufacturing 7.4% 11.3% 12.2% 0.7 0.6

Electricity, Gas and Water Supply 0.5% 0.8% 0.9% 0.7 0.6

Construction 9.5% 9.4% 9.2% 1.0 1.0

Tertiary (commerce-based) 27.2% 23.5% 23.3% 1.2 1.2

Wholesale Trade 3.9% 4.9% 4.8% 0.8 0.8

Retail Trade 19.2% 13.4% 13.6% 1.4 1.4

Transport and Storage 4.1% 5.2% 4.9% 0.8 0.8

Quaternary (information-based) 23.3% 30.7% 29.1% 0.8 0.8

Communication Services 1.2% 2.2% 2.0% 0.6 0.6

Finance and Insurance 2.1% 5.1% 3.9% 0.4 0.5

Property and Business Services 9.1% 12.6% 11.7% 0.7 0.8

Government Administration, Defence 3.9% 4.5% 4.9% 0.9 0.8

Education 7.0% 6.3% 6.6% 1.1 1.0

Quinary (household-based) 28.2% 20.5% 20.3% 1.4 1.4

Accommodation, Cafes, Restaurants 9.4% 4.9% 4.5% 1.9 2.1

Health and Community Services 12.2% 9.1% 9.3% 1.3 1.3

Cultural and Recreational Services 2.8% 2.5% 2.5% 1.1 1.1

Personal and Other Services 3.8% 4.0% 4.0% 0.9 1.0

Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 1.0 1.0 Note: Location Quotient represents the relative reliance of the regional economy on an individual sector compared to NSW i.e. a quotient of 1 means identical reliance, a quotient of 2.3 implies that the regional economy is 2.3 times more reliant on that sector than the NSW average. Source: TEDC


3.2.4 Recent and Future Economic Trends

Despite high population growth, the Tweed’s economy is shrinking in real terms, and does not appear to be diversifying into high-value, knowledge-intensive industries.

The key economic trends affecting the economic development of the Tweed regional economy over the past 2-3 years are detailed below. Unless action is taken to address or mitigate against these trends, it is expected these trends will continue to impact the local economy over the short to medium term. The relevant trends are:

Negative real growth: Despite high population growth, the Tweed economy contracted in real terms between 2002-03 and 2004-05;

Reliance on quinary services: The Tweed economy is more reliant on quinary services than the NSW economy as a whole, reflecting the growing importance of tourism to the region and the ageing population. Tourism is increasing its significance as an activity generator for related sectors of the Tweed economy such as retail;

Decline of agriculture: The agriculture industry was traditionally a key industry for the region, but changes in global markets have eroded the competitiveness of traditional agricultural outputs. However, agriculture does not record a high location quotient in the Tweed and State land use policy protects fertile lands;

High “leakage”: A relatively high proportion of potential economic activity in the Tweed leaks to neighbouring regions (in particular, the Gold Coast), as do skilled workers for employment opportunities;

Low local linkages: The intra- and inter-industry linkages within the Tweed are relatively weak, with many inputs to production sourced from outside the region; and

Lower levels of value-adding: Firms in the Tweed appear to be clustered around the lower value-adding activities in their respective industries.

3.3 Demographic and Social Profile

3.3.1 Population

Rapid population growth and a trend toward coastal living have had a significant impact on the region, driving unprecedented residential and tourism development and giving rise to environmental, economic and social pressures. Despite the rapid growth, the Tweed has actually recorded population growth below that projected by the State government.

Population in the Tweed has grown at a faster rate than both NSW and Australia over the past decade. In the past five years, the Tweed has averaged 2.1% annual growth compared to State growth of 0.7%. This is reflective of the popularity of the coastal and hinterland lifestyle on offer in the Tweed and the relative attractiveness of the ‘sea-change’ lifestyle proximate to the major urban centres of the Gold Coast and Brisbane.

Within the Tweed, Tweed Heads has recorded the fastest growth and largest change in population, accounting for the bulk of the increase in population over the past five years, growing at over three times the average growth recorded in the State over the period.


The Tweed’s population is projected to continue to grow above the level of NSW to year 2031, with the most significant growth expected to occur in Tweed Heads. Key drivers of current and future population growth include:

In-migration from the Sydney Greater Metropolitan Region and other areas of NSW;

Population flow from SEQ; and

Greater accessibility due to the upgrading of the Pacific Highway.

In terms of migration trends, the national trend of sea/tree-change for those over 55 years of age has driven the considerable intra- and inter-state migration to the region. Improved accessibility to SEQ, principally through the completion of the Tugan Bypass, is likely to increase the viability of the Tweed as a place to live, offering a different lifestyle and more affordable housing than other areas in the region.

Table 3-3 Population, Usual Residents

Tweed

Heads

Tweed

Part B

Tweed Richmond-

Tweed

New South

Wales

Australia

Population

1996 n/a n/a 63,607 196,015 6,006,206 17,752,829

2001 45,051 26,568 71,618 211,884 6,326,579 18,769,249

2006 50,455 28,869 79,321 219,329 6,549,179 19,855,288

Total Population Growth

1996-2006 n/a n/a 24.7% 11.9% 9.0% 11.8%

2001-2006 12.0% 8.7% 10.8% 3.5% 3.5% 5.8%

Annual Population Growth

1996-2006 n/a n/a 2.2% 1.1% 0.9% 1.1%

2001-2006 2.3% 1.7% 2.1% 0.7% 0.7% 1.1% Source: ABS Census 2006

The NSW Department of Planning has produced medium series population projections at the Statistical Local Area (SLA) level, published in NSW State and Regional Population Projections, 2001-2051 (2005 Release). Tweed’s population is projected to increase by 35,000 persons over the next 25 years to 2031, relatively consistent with the estimated yield of 1.9 persons per dwelling from the target of 19,100 additional dwellings outlined in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy. The projected average growth rate of 1.4% is below the 2.2% growth rate historically recorded between the 1996 and 2006 Censuses.


Diagram 3-3: Historic and Projected Estimated Resident Population, 1996–2031

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

1996 2001 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031

Est

imat

ed R

esid

ent P

opul

atio

n ('0

00s)

Tweed Part A - Historical Tweed Part A - Projected Tweed Part B - HistoricalTweed Part B - Projected Tweed - Historical Tweed - Projected

Sources: ABS 2006 Census; Department of Planning (2005)

Table 3-4 Population Projections

Tweed

Heads

Tweed

Part B

Tweed Richmond-

Tweed

New South

Wales


2006 53,317 29,706 83,023 229,359 6,843,858

2011 58,932 31,939 90,871 242,700 7,145,170

2016 63,928 34,167 98,095 255,321 7,437,260

2021 68,795 36,388 105,183 267,715 7,725,260

2026 73,629 38,547 112,176 279,686 8,002,499

2031 78,147 40,607 118,754 290,769 8,259,181

Total Growth

2006-2031 46.6% 36.7% 43.0% 26.8% 20.7%

Annual Growth

2006-2031 1.5% 1.3% 1.4% 1.0% 0.8% Source: Department of Planning (2005)

The population projections released by the Department of Planning in 2005 projected the population of the Tweed in 2006 would be 83,023. The preliminary Census data indicates that the population of the Tweed was 79,321, almost 5% lower than the projected population. The discrepancy with the 2005 projections can be explained by their marking to the ABS’ estimated resident population series which was also different from the Census actuals. The incorporation of the additional information gathered during the 2006 Census would be expected to improve the accuracy of the base from which population projections are made. However, the discrepancy highlights the considerable variability in population projections that can exist over relatively long forecast horizons.


Table 3-5 Projected and Usual Resident Population (for 2005 Projections)

Resident Population in 2006 Difference

Projected Actual Census Number Percentage

Tweed Part A 53,317 50,455 -2,862 -5.7%

Tweed Part B 29,706 28,869 -837 -2.9%

Tweed 83,023 79,321 -3,702 -4.7% Sources: ABS, Census 2006; Department of Planning

This issue is further illustrated by the accuracy of the population projections produced in 1999. The 2005 projections differ from the projections released in 1999 as updated information was used in developing the newer projections, including more recent fertility and migration trends. The 1999 release projected the population of Tweed Part A at 53,700 in 2006, whereas the actual population as measured by the Census in 2006 was 50,455. The difference between the projected population and the actual population is about 3,300 residents, or 0.4 percentage points of growth between 2001 and 2006. While the projected level for Tweed Part B was higher than the Census actual in 2006, the actual population growth rate was actually lower than projected. Overall, for the 10-year period 1996-2006, the projected population growth of 2.5% was 0.3 percentage points higher than the actual experience as measured by the Census.

Table 3-6 Projected and Usual Resident Population (for 1999 Projections)

Resident Population 2001-2006 1996- 2006

1996 2001 2006 Change Avg

Annual

Growth

Change Avg

Annual

Growth

Tweed Part A

Projected 39,100 47,100 53,700 6,600 2.7% 14,600 3.2%


Tweed Part B

Projected 25,900 27,700 29,700 2,000 1.4% 3,800 1.4%


Tweed

Projected 65,000 74,577 82,955 8,378 2.2% 17,955 2.5%

Actual (Census) 63,607 71,618 79,321 7,703 2.1% 15,714 2.2% Sources: ABS, 3218.0, 2006 Census; Department of Planning

3.3.2 Age Distribution

The Tweed has recorded an increasing average age and a high proportion of persons over 55 years of age, primarily due to the popularity of the region as a ‘sea/tree-change’ retirement destination. This can impact the local availability of skilled labour.


Over the past 10 years, the average age of residents of the Tweed has grown more rapidly than the NSW average and is now almost 20% higher than the State average. This is most likely attributable to a high proportion of over 55 aged persons reflecting the national trend toward sea/tree-change communities, particularly for retirement aged persons and a low proportion of youth in the Tweed compared to NSW, reflecting the trend for youth to move to nearby metropolitan areas (Brisbane and the Gold Coast) in search of education, employment opportunities and urban lifestyles. The rapidly increasing average age is most prominent in Tweed Heads, which currently sits at 45.3 years. Tweed Part B has retained the greatest proportion of persons aged 15 to 24 years, but is still below the levels recorded for Richmond-Tweed and NSW overall.

Table 3-7 Age Distribution, Usual Residents

Tweed

Heads

Tweed

Part B

Tweed Richmond-

Tweed

New South

Wales

Australia

Average Age

1996 n/a n/a 39.4 37.1 35.5 35.1

2001 43.8 37.3 41.4 39.0 36.5 36.3

2006 45.3 38.6 42.5 40.5 37.6 37.4

2006 Population Breakdown

0-14 years 16.8% 21.3% 18.4% 19.5% 19.8% 19.8%

15-24 years 10.2% 11.5% 10.7% 11.7% 13.3% 13.6%

25-34 years 8.8% 9.2% 8.9% 9.5% 13.6% 13.5%

35-44 years 11.7% 14.6% 12.7% 13.4% 14.6% 14.8%

45-54 years 12.9% 16.8% 14.3% 15.6% 13.8% 13.9%

55-64 years 13.1% 11.9% 12.7% 12.3% 11.0% 11.0%

65+ years 26.5% 14.7% 22.2% 18.0% 13.8% 13.3% Note: In the 2006 Census, Tweed Part B was separated into two parts, Tweed Coast and Tweed Part B Source: ABS, Census 2006

The percentage of the population over 55 years of age in Tweed Heads is 40%, compared with 27% in the remainder of the Tweed Shire, 30% in Richmond-Tweed and 25% in NSW. This trend is expected to continue, with the median age in Tweed Heads forecast to rise from 46 in 2006 to 56 in 2031, and in the rest of Tweed rising from 41 to 50. By comparison, Richmond-Tweed is forecast to increase from 42 to 51, and NSW is forecast to increase from 37 to 42.


Table 3-8 Forecast Median Age

Tweed

Heads

Tweed

Part B

Richmond-

Tweed

New South

Wales

Median Age

2006 46 41 42 37

2011 48 44 44 38

2016 50 45 46 39

2021 52 47 48 40

2026 55 49 50 41

2031 56 50 51 42 Source: NSW Department of Planning (2005)

Tweed’s population is projected to skew further toward the older age groups, with the number of persons aged over 65 years projected to more than double to 41,000 persons by 2031. The population in the primary working age groups between 25 and 54 years is projected to average growth 0.6%-0.7% per annum over the period. The 15-24 years age group is projected to remain unchanged in number.

Diagram 3-4 Projected Population by Age, Tweed Shire

0

20,000

40,000

60,000

80,000

100,000

120,000

140,000

2001 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031

65+55-6445-5435-4425-3415-240-14

Source: NSW Department of Planning (2005)

3.3.3 Labour Market

The Tweed labour force has been increasing steadily over the past two years, rising above the historical levels recorded for the region with the majority of the labour force residing in Tweed Heads due to its prominence as the major urban centre in the Shire.


Employment has also increased steadily over this period, however, employment growth has been below the level of NSW.

Despite a declining unemployment rate, comparison with NSW reveals the Tweed has a relatively high level of unemployment. However, the Tweed’s unemployment rate has been declining at a faster rate than NSW in recent times.

Table 3-9: Unemployment Data

Tweed Coast

Tweed Part B

Tweed Shire

Richmond-Tweed

NSW Australia

Unemployed Persons

December 2005 1,477 1,086 2563 8,756 178,600 536,700

March 2006 1,426 1,018 2444 8,395 179,400 540,700

June 2006 1,412 974 2386 8,188 182,600 539,500

September 2006 1,347 930 2277 7,837 186,300 535,300

December 2006 1,270 880 2150 7,404 184,400 524,000

Unemployment Rate

December 2005 7.7% 8.8% 8.1% 8.9% 5.2% 5.1%

March 2006 7.5% 8.3% 7.8% 8.6% 5.2% 5.1%

June 2006 7.4% 8.0% 7.6% 8.4% 5.3% 5.1%

September 2006 7.0% 7.5% 7.2% 7.9% 5.4% 5.0%

December 2006 6.5% 7.0% 6.7% 7.3% 5.3% 4.9% Source: DEWR

In 2001, employment in the Tweed had a greater reliance on retail trade (18.5%), health and community services (11.6%), construction (7.9%), education (7.7%), accommodation, cafés and restaurants (7.3%), and agriculture, forestry and fishing (6.9%) sectors compared to NSW.

The dominance of these industries is mainly due to:

A traditionally strong agriculture, forestry and fishing sector with high production from the key sectors in the region such as sugar, horticulture (e.g. bananas, berries, vegetables), seafood (aquaculture and fishing), forestry and timber plantation and agriculture (beef and dairy);

A strong tourism sector that leverages scenic hinterland and ‘sea-side’ holiday locations of the region utilising a strong local accommodation, food and beverage, cottage arts and crafts, cultural, and retail services sector; and

A strong retirement culture and the migration of over 55 year olds to the region in search of the popular coastal ‘sea/tree-change’ lifestyle. This has the potential to place pressures on aged and health care facilities and recreational services due to increased demand in the Tweed.


Table 3-10 Employment Shares by Industry, 2001

Tweed Coast

Tweed Part B

Tweed Shire

Richmond-Tweed

NSW Australia

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 2.1% 10.7% 5.4% 7.5% 3.4% 4.0%

Mining 0.2% 0.3% 0.3% 0.2% 0.5% 0.9%

Manufacturing 6.7% 7.7% 7.1% 8.3% 11.5% 12.2%

Electricity, Gas and Water Supply 0.5% 0.4% 0.5% 0.5% 0.7% 0.7%

Construction 9.2% 9.4% 9.3% 7.3% 6.9% 6.7%

Wholesale Trade 3.7% 3.8% 3.7% 4.3% 5.6% 5.3%

Retail Trade 20.4% 16.1% 18.7% 17.7% 14.2% 14.6%

Accommodation, Cafes, Restaurants 10.6% 6.2% 8.9% 7.3% 5.2% 4.9%

Transport and Storage 3.6% 4.2% 3.8% 3.2% 4.6% 4.3%

Communication Services 1.3% 1.2% 1.2% 1.3% 2.0% 1.8%

Finance and Insurance 2.2% 1.4% 1.9% 2.0% 4.8% 3.8%

Property and Business Services 9.0% 8.0% 8.6% 7.9% 12.2% 11.1%

Government Administration, Defence 3.1% 4.8% 3.8% 3.6% 3.9% 4.5%

Education 6.2% 7.4% 6.7% 8.6% 6.8% 7.2%

Health and Community Services 11.6% 10.7% 11.3% 11.9% 9.4% 9.7%

Cultural and Recreational Services 2.9% 2.2% 2.6% 2.3% 2.5% 2.4%

Personal and Other Services 4.0% 2.9% 3.5% 3.5% 3.6% 3.6%

Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% Note: 2006 data is scheduled for release in December 2007 Source: ABS, Census 2001

3.3.4 Journey to Work

A relatively high proportion of the Tweed’s employed residents leave the region for employment, decreasing the labour force available to support economic development within the Tweed.

Of the 23,880 employed residents who lived in the Tweed in 2001, only 15,060 (63%) work in the Tweed. Of the 8,820 workers who leave the Tweed for employment, the majority are employed on the Gold Coast (4,213 or 18% of total employed Tweed residents) and elsewhere in NSW (2,010 or 8%).


Only 3,426 people enter the Tweed for employment, meaning total employment in the region is 18,486. Of the people who enter, 2,571 workers come from the Gold Coast, meaning there is a job deficit with the Gold Coast of more than 1,600 jobs, reflecting the difference in employment opportunities between the two regions.

Table 3-11 Working Population Profile in the Tweed, 2001

By Destination By Origin

Number Percentage Number Percentage

Tweed 15,060 63.1% 15,060 81.5%

Other Northern Rivers 388 1.6% 382 2.1%

Balance of NSW 2,010 8.4% 195 1.1%

Gold Coast 4,213 17.6% 2,571 13.9%

Balance of Queensland 937 3.9% 199 1.1%

Other 1272 5.3% 79 0.4%

Total 23,880 100.0% 18,486 100.0% Source: TEDC, Economic Growth Management Strategy 2007-2010

The Tweed records net employment deficits in every industry sector, with the greatest deficits recorded in construction (-1,099 workers), property & business services (-572), manufacturing (-460) and accommodation, cafes & restaurants (-442). The manufacturing, wholesale trade and transport & storage sectors, typically referred to as the industrial land sectors, record more than 800 residents employed outside the Tweed.


Table 3-12 Reside and Work in Tweed by Industry, 2001

Reside in Tweed

Work in Tweed

Net Balance % Residing in Tweed

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 1,289 1,162 -127 -9.9%

Mining 57 24 -33 -57.9%

Manufacturing 1,679 1,219 -460 -27.4%

Electricity, Gas and Water Supply 115 85 -30 -26.1%

Construction 2,209 1,110 -1,099 -49.8%

Wholesale Trade 883 714 -169 -19.1%

Retail Trade 4,440 4,057 -383 -8.6%

Accommodation, Cafes, Restaurants 2,107 1,665 -442 -21.0%

Transport and Storage 904 706 -198 -21.9%

Communication Services 284 178 -106 -37.3%

Finance and Insurance 451 328 -123 -27.3%

Property and Business Services 2,036 1,464 -572 -28.1%

Government Administration, Defence 898 771 -127 -14.1%

Education 1,583 1,438 -145 -9.2%

Health and Community Services 2,668 2,295 -373 -14.0%

Cultural and Recreational Services 619 394 -225 -36.3%

Personal and Other Services 842 687 -155 -18.4%

Total 23,880 18,486 -5,394 -22.6% Note Net difference is total difference between those residing and those working the Tweed Note: 2006 data is scheduled for release in December 2007 Source: ABS, Census 2001

3.3.5 Qualification Profile

In both qualification and occupation profiles, the Tweed is concentrated at the lower end of the skills spectrum when compared with NSW averages

Overall, the Tweed has a low proportion of population with bachelors degree, although advanced diplomas and diplomas, as well as certificates, are close to the state and national averages. This reflects the prominence of tourism and personal services employment in the region. Tweed Part B has a considerably higher proportion of persons with tertiary qualifications than Tweed Heads, however it is below the level of NSW.

Compared with NSW, the Tweed has a high proportion of employment concentrated in relatively low-skill, low value employment, such as elementary, clerical, sales and service workers, as well as labourers and related workers. However, the Tweed also has a high proportion of tradesperson and related workers,


typically higher-value employment. Conversely, the Tweed has a low proportion of managers/administrators and professionals.

Table 3-13 Proportion of Persons Aged 15 years or over with a Qualification, 2001

Tweed Heads

Tweed Part Br

Tweed Richmond-Tweed

New South Wales

Australia

Postgraduate Degree 0.6% 0.7% 0.6% 1.0% 2.2% 1.8%

Graduate Diploma, Graduate Certificate 0.7% 1.1% 0.9% 1.2% 1.2% 1.4%

Bachelor Degree 4.5% 5.8% 4.9% 6.8% 10.1% 9.7%

Advanced Diploma, Diploma 4.7% 5.0% 4.8% 5.5% 6.3% 6.0%

Certificate 18.0% 18.0% 18.0% 17.2% 16.4% 15.8%

Not stated 13.8% 12.4% 13.3% 12.4% 12.3% 11.5%


Table 3-14 Proportion of Workers by Occupation, 2001

Tweed Heads

Tweed Part Br

Tweed Richmond- Tweed

New South Wales

Australia

Managers/Administrators 4.9% 11.0% 7.2% 9.2% 9.5% 9.2%

Professionals 13.0% 14.4% 13.6% 15.9% 19.1% 18.2%

Associate Professionals 13.0% 10.9% 12.2% 12.0% 11.6% 11.8%

Tradespersons, Related 14.4% 13.9% 14.2% 12.5% 11.9% 12.3%

Advanced Clerical, Service 3.7% 3.6% 3.7% 3.4% 4.2% 3.7%

Intermediate Clerical, Sales, Service 17.9% 13.5% 16.2% 15.5% 16.5% 16.5%

Intermediate Production, Transport 7.7% 8.5% 8.0% 7.5% 7.8% 8.1%

Elementary Clerical, Sales, Service 13.7% 10.2% 12.3% 11.1% 9.3% 9.5%

Labourers, Related Workers 9.3% 12.0% 10.4% 10.8% 8.0% 8.6%



3.3.6 Household Structure

Compared to NSW, the Tweed Shire has a high proportion of families without children and, subsequently, a low proportion of couples with children. This is most likely attributable to the high proportion of over 55 year old couples without dependent children moving to the region for retirement. This is most prominent in Tweed Heads, where almost one in three households is a couple with no children, and only one in five is a couple with children. Like most regions, the Tweed has recorded a declining average household size and fewer families with children.

Table 3-15 Household Structure, 2006

Tweed Heads

Tweed Part Br


New South Wales

Australia

One family households:

Couple family with no children 32.4% 28.2% 31.0% 28.5% 25.3% 26.2%

Couple family with children 21.7% 29.7% 24.4% 26.0% 33.0% 32.3%

One parent family 10.9% 13.5% 11.8% 12.4% 10.9% 10.7%

Other family 0.8% 0.7% 0.8% 0.9% 1.2% 1.2%

Multiple family households 1.1% 1.4% 1.2% 1.1% 1.6% 1.3%

Lone person households 29.3% 23.7% 27.4% 26.9% 24.2% 24.4%

Group household 3.7% 2.8% 3.4% 4.1% 3.7% 3.9%

Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% Source: ABS, Census 2006

3.3.7 Household Ownership & Finances

The income levels of the Tweed are well below those for NSW, however, home loan and rent repayments for the Tweed are also below the level of NSW, implying that on average the cost of living is not too dissimilar to the NSW.

Average incomes in the Tweed are below the level for NSW across all industries. The industries in which the income gap is smallest are accommodation, cafes and restaurants ($437.64 for the Tweed compared with $459.91 for NSW) and education ($763.57 compared with $798.65).


Table 3-16 Average Weekly Income by Occupation, 2001

Tweed Heads

Tweed Part Br


New South Wales

Australia

Managers/ Administrators $823.77 $567.48 $677.36 $652.17 $1,033.70 $958.49

Professionals $809.67 $791.68 $802.35 $805.22 $970.02 $924.53

Associate Professionals $661.40 $616.12 $645.90 $641.92 $811.25 $765.11

Tradespersons, Related $557.69 $510.01 $539.69 $518.12 $652.16 $638.76

Advanced Clerical, Service $519.04 $496.86 $510.70 $511.81 $638.48 $608.19

Intermediate Clerical, Sales, Service $468.87 $439.68 $459.55 $455.38 $551.31 $524.79

Intermediate Production, Transport $509.19 $564.07 $532.17 $511.38 $628.99 $614.41

Elementary Clerical, Sales, Service $328.08 $316.20 $324.29 $319.55 $369.94 $350.53

Labourer, Related $395.05 $388.14 $391.96 $388.42 $446.41 $425.92

Total $546.34 $526.34 $538.64 $541.78 $702.75 $664.37 Note: 2006 data is scheduled for release in December 2007 Source: ABS, Census 2001


Table 3-17 Average Weekly Income by Industry, 2001

Tweed Heads

Tweed Part Br


New South Wales

Australia

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing $488.25 $427.14 $442.71 $449.15 $525.14 $514.41

Mining $834.38 $730.00 $801.06 $792.31 $1,230.16 $1,211.03

Manufacturing $567.86 $518.29 $546.89 $541.21 $746.92 $711.28

Electricity, Gas and Water Supply $742.77 $743.75 $743.13 $790.11 $998.34 $978.87

Construction $638.09 $621.94 $631.81 $595.54 $720.86 $705.40

Wholesale Trade $547.34 $506.25 $531.22 $526.67 $749.62 $699.88

Retail Trade $381.47 $356.72 $373.22 $380.87 $455.72 $435.65

Accommodation, Cafes, Restaurants $450.13 $403.80 $437.64 $417.20 $459.91 $428.77

Transport and Storage $589.73 $626.12 $604.97 $597.34 $789.01 $742.90

Communication Services $711.14 $695.28 $705.34 $675.10 $901.84 $837.53

Finance and Insurance $702.47 $650.78 $688.45 $692.28 $950.71 $881.85

Property and Business Services $612.38 $583.18 $601.92 $622.34 $872.52 $815.63

Government Administration, Defence $700.32 $653.80 $677.86 $713.85 $831.73 $812.33

Education $776.40 $746.39 $763.57 $766.00 $798.65 $759.94

Health and Community Services $592.54 $593.86 $593.02 $611.75 $671.49 $643.95

Cultural and Recreational Services $482.71 $482.92 $482.78 $457.79 $676.78 $598.47

Personal and Other Services $582.23 $483.70 $550.99 $530.53 $644.10 $610.21

Total $545.35 $526.29 $538.01 $541.76 $702.75 $664.37 Note: 2006 data is scheduled for release in December 2007 Source: ABS, Census 2001

Home loan repayments and weekly rent repayments are below the level of the State, indicating the Tweed may have a lower cost of living compared to NSW. While growth in home loan repayments has been about the same for the Tweed as NSW, the growth in average rents has doubled the NSW average over the past five years. This reflects high demand for coastal properties, as well as the increase in high-end rental properties on the Tweed Coast over the past five years.


Table 3-18 Average Weekly Rent Payments 1991-2006

Tweed Heads

Tweed Part Br


New South Wales

Australia

Average Rent Payments

1991 $118.87 $92.17 $109.65 $102.40 $127.92 $110.81

1996 $135.39 $116.41 $129.14 $126.34 $148.70 $129.03

2001 $152.90 $138.27 $148.16 $145.27 $186.74 $159.83

2006 $213.80 $194.47 $207.20 $195.10 $225.51 $202.36

Growth to 2006

1991 79.9% 111.0% 89.0% 90.5% 76.3% 82.6%

1996 57.9% 67.1% 60.4% 54.4% 51.7% 56.8%

2001 39.8% 40.6% 39.8% 34.3% 20.8% 26.6% Note: Rent payments are in nominal terms (i.e. have not been indexed to a constant base) Source: ABS, Census 2006

Table 3-19 Average Monthly Housing Loan Repayment 1991- 2006

Tweed Heads

Tweed Part Br


New South Wales

Australia

Average Loan Repayments

1991 $575.98 $554.08 $566.33 $537.91 $666.99 $602.49

1996 $785.05 $709.91 $754.09 $730.95 $856.77 $765.34

2001 $856.77 $770.54 $823.04 $794.66 $968.51 $853.61

2006 $1,356.49 $1,233.36 $1,308.03 $1,210.29 $1,595.60 $1,373.06

Growth to 2006

1991 135.5% 122.6% 131.0% 125.0% 139.2% 127.9%

1996 72.8% 73.7% 73.5% 65.6% 86.2% 79.4%

2001 58.3% 60.1% 58.9% 52.3% 64.7% 60.9% Note: Loan repayments are in nominal terms (i.e. have not been indexed to a constant base) Source: ABS Census 2006


3.4 Investment Trends

3.4.1 Dwellings

Dwelling investment in the Tweed has increased significantly over the past five years, largely driven by increases in the average value of both houses and units, as well as the sizeable increase in the number of units approved, since 2004-05. The rising average cost of dwellings is being partially driven by considerable increases in construction costs, due in some part to the shortage of construction labour.

The number of dwelling approvals peaked in 2002-03, and the decline in numbers since then reflects the trend experienced across NSW. Despite declines in the number of dwelling approvals for the Tweed and NSW, growth in dwelling investment was recorded in Tweed Part B, partially due to new unit and apartment developments along the Tweed Coast (including the $1 billion Salt development and the $1.5 billion Casuarina Beach Domain Resort township development).

Table 3-20 Dwelling Approvals, Number and Value, Tweed 01/02- 06/07

Number of Dwellings Value of Dwellings ($000) Average Value of Dwellings ($)

Houses Units Total Houses Units Total Houses Units Total

2001-02 674 137 811 $79,389 $15,769 $95,158 $117,788 $115,102 $117,334

2002-03 756 430 1,186 $97,875 $45,048 $142,923 $129,464 $104,763 $120,508

2003-04 563 160 723 $97,594 $29,523 $127,117 $173,346 $184,519 $175,819

2004-05 451 437 888 $106,105 $79,122 $185,227 $235,266 $181,057 $208,589

2005-06 434 323 757 $108,754 $90,417 $199,171 $250,585 $279,929 $263,106

2006-07 401 303 704 $99,791 $86,926 $186,717 $248,855 $286,884 $265,223

Source: ABS, 8731.0 – Building Approvals, Australia

3.4.2 Property Market

The median property prices have grown steadily in the Tweed over the past 5 years. The largest price growth was experienced in 2003, when median prices rose by almost 30% in Tweed Heads and almost 70% in the Richmond-Tweed Balance.

Growth in median prices has been lower in subsequent years, but are currently displaying growth considerably above that being achieved by NSW overall. In the past year, Tweed Heads (up 8.7%) and Richmond-Tweed Balance (up 6.3%) have experienced significantly higher growth in median house sales prices than NSW (up 1.1%), reflecting the increasing demand for housing due to the popularity of these regions.


Table 3-21 Mean and Median Property Sales

Tweed Heads Richmond-Tweed

Balance

Median

($000)

Mean

($000)

Median

($000)

Mean

($000)

December 2001 $175 $185 $178 $202

December 2002 $233 $241 $185 $228

December 2003 $300 $321 $310 $321

December 2004 $328 $345 $330 $359

December 2005 $345 $367 $350 $381

December 2006 $375 $400 $372 $410 Source: NSW Department of Housing, Rent and Sales Report

Median weekly rent for a 3-bedroom house in the Tweed was $320 during the December Quarter 2006, above the NSW median of $250. While growth in rents over the past five years has been high in the Tweed compared to the NSW average, high house price growth means that rental returns have reduced, but not to the same extend as NSW.

Table 3-22 Median Rents

Tweed Heads Richmond-Tweed

Balance

3 Bedroom

House

2 Bedroom

Flat/Unit

3 Bedroom

House

2 Bedroom

Flat/Unit

December 2001 $210 $145 $210 $145

December 2002 $223 $160 $223 $160

December 2003 $270 $170 $270 $170

December 2004 $300 $200 $300 $200

December 2005 $300 $225 $300 $225

December 2006 $320 $245 $320 $245 Source: NSW Department of Housing, Rent and Sales Report

3.4.3 Commercial and Industrial

Commercial investment has generally increased in the Tweed since 2001-02, but is highly variable year-on-year due to the timing of major projects. Demand was strongest in 2004-05 ($204.4 million) and 2006-07 ($149.7 million), accounting for significant proportions of the Richmond-Tweed total in these years.


Table 3-23 Non-Residential Building Investment (New and Alterations/Additions)

Tweed

Heads ($M)

Tweed

Part B ($M)

Tweed

($M)

Richmond-

Tweed ($M)

New South

Wales ($M)

2001-02 $52.6 $2.3 $54.9 $116.5 $4,389.8

2002-03 $42.3 $8.9 $51.2 $112.6 $5,816.0

2003-04 $86.0 $5.8 $91.7 $153.5 $5,155.9

2004-05 $164.9 $39.5 $204.4 $290.0 $6,380.8

2005-06 $17.9 $37.6 $55.5 $189.6 $6,572.6

2006-07 $145.0 $4.8 $149.7 $248.1 $7,328.9 Source: ABS, 8371.0 – Building Approvals, Australia

3.4.4 Major Projects

Major projects currently underway or recently completed in the Tweed region include:

Tweed City Shopping Centre, Stage 1 redevelopment, estimated construction cost is $36.5m expected completion date for stage one is November 2007;

Clinical Education and Research Institute, Tweed Hospital, $3 million continued expansion of the institute, including the construction of a new 30-bed ward;

Cotton Beach, Casuarina, Stage One, a $100 million five-star beachfront apartment building of 129 apartments with an array of resort facilities; and

A 4-star resort hotel of 118 rooms in Salt Village.

Proposed major projects in the Tweed region currently being processed by the Department of Planning are outlined in the table below. The majority of these projects are intended to service the residential and tourists industries, and do not significantly expand the economic base of the Tweed.

Table 3-24 Proposed Major Projects in Tweed Shire

Title Description Location

Residential

Residential Apartments Six-storey residential apartment building Tweed Terrace, Tweed Heads

Residential and Community Development, Cobaki Lakes

Residential development, town centre, schools, open space

Piggabeen Road, Tweed Heads

Mixed Use Development, Kings Forest

Residential, village centre, educational facilities, church, aged care facility, golf course and open space

Kingscliff

Coastal residential subdivision 178 lot residential subdivision and associated works

Fraser Drive, South Tweed

Accommodation/Retail

Pottsville North Holiday Park Alterations and additions to Pottsville North H lid P k

Tweed Coast Road, P tt ill


Title Description Location Holiday Park Pottsville

Chinderah commercial tourist development

Construction of shops, tourist accommodation and a car park.

Chinderah Bay Drive and Terrace St, Chinderah

Casuarina Town Centre subdivision Concept Plan for mixed use subdivision for Casuarina Town Centre at Casuarina Beach.

Coat Road, Casuarina Beach

Hastings Point Subdivision Proposed residential & tourist subdivision Creek Street, Hastings Point

Tweed Heads retail and commercial building

4 storey mixed use retail and commercial building with 2 levels of basement car parking

Wharf Street, Tweed Heads

Transport

Pacific Highway Upgrade Upgrade of the Pacific Highway at Banora Point, from the northern end of Barney's Point Bridge to the southern end of the Tweed Heads Bypass

Banora Point

Cultural, Recreational

Twin Towns Services Club Redevelopment of Twin Towns Services Club Wharf Street, Tweed Heads

Education

Southern Cross University, Tweed Heads Campus

Construction of a new 6-storey campus building, 128 space car park, landscaping and ancillary works.

Brett Street, Tweed Heads.

Mining

Dunloe Park Quarry The proposed extraction of sand, which includes:

Dredging up to 300,000 tonnes of sand a year;

Creating 2 dredge ponds;

Constructing an internal haul road; and

Progressively rehabilitating the pond banks and retention as recreational lakes.

Dunloe Park, Mooball-Pottsville Road, Pottsville

Cudgen Lakes Sand Extraction Project

The establishment of a new sand quarry at Cudgen, involving the extraction of up to 650,000 tonnes of sand a year and rehabilitation of the site.

Tweed Coast Road, Cudgen

Source: NSW Department of Planning, Register of Major Projects, August 2007

3.5 Economic Drivers and Influences The Tweed’s economy is being predominantly driven by its rapid population growth and demand for household-based services, with a decline in the traditional sectors such as agriculture. However, this population growth is also concentrated in the older, non-working age brackets, constraining the capacity of the labour force to some extent. A significant proportion of the resident workforce also works outside


the region in areas such as the Gold Coast. Competition for the highly valuable flat, coastal lands in the Shire between residential and employment uses is an important strategic issue.

Economic growth can be defined as the increase over time in the capacity of an economy to produce goods and services. Traditionally, economic development relied on the development of infrastructure, population and services around the use or exploitation of specific resources and natural assets. In the context of the Tweed region, this includes timber, land (primary agricultural production) and fishing. Where these resources are (or are close to) being fully exploited, without a specific development impetus additional economic development can only be achieved through organic growth and expansion.

Targeted action and activity has the capacity to generate economic development and prosperity through the manipulation of the key drivers of an economy to facilitate additional value adding opportunities, attraction of new business and increased labour productivity (technical, skill or management driven), over and above organic growth. The current resource base is extensively utilised within the Tweed, with the economy relying heavily on organic growth in recent years.

These factors and issues represent a fundamental challenge for the development and prosperity of the Tweed. How the Tweed responds to these challenges will be of great importance and will establish the region’s capacity to take advantage of emerging opportunities.

Economic growth can be defined as the increase over time in the capacity of an economy to produce goods and services. It is a function of factors such as:

Population growth and skill base;

Utilisation of natural resources;

Capital availability;

Infrastructure development;

Technical innovation;

Attitudinal trends; and

External factors such as global market forces and government policy.

Each of these factors in relation to the economic development of the Tweed is interrelated. A change in one can have an effect on all others, whether positive or negative, significant or negligible. For example, an increase in capital investment in a region (e.g. new communications infrastructure) can attract new people to the area for work (during both the construction and operation of the investment project), improve the efficiency of labour, result in more efficient use of land and increase the production of the region. This then filters through the economy – the increase in production may lead to greater use of local infrastructure such as roads and ports, which may then lead on to greater investment in infrastructure in order to maintain or improve the efficiency of transport, and so on. Changes in these factors are the driving force of economic growth – without change or the impetus for investment an economy will stagnate.

Building on strengths, increasing value-adding in existing industries, attracting new industries and, to a lesser extent, increasing diversity and structural change are considered to be essential ingredients for the development of the Tweed economy into the 21st Century. However, to facilitate this an understanding of the characteristics of regional economic drivers and the factors influencing them is required. Key economic drivers, in the context of the Tweed region, are outlined below.


3.5.1 Population Growth and Skill Base

The size and mix of the regional population and its subsequent labour force or skill base is an important factor in economic development. The greater the population size the greater the need for infrastructure and services, while the population mix and skill base drives the type of infrastructure and services required. Similarly, the population size, mix and skill base also plays an important role in the type and level of output of an economy, which further influences economic growth.

Factors that can influence the population growth, mix and skills base, and subsequently economic growth from this source, include:

Fertility and mortality rates: Organic growth in population is a function of the fertility and mortality rates. Fertility and mortality rates also influence the population mix, with Australia’s aging population largely due to changing fertility and mortality rates;

Net migration: Migration to or from a region can change the size of the population, as well as the population mix and skill base of the region. In an age of globalisation, population growth and mix in a region is heavily reliant on the attractiveness of the region to increasingly mobile workers, which is influenced by factors such as:

– Lifestyle;

– Infrastructure (including social infrastructure);

– Employment opportunities;

– Climate;

– Location; and

– Cost of living.

Learning opportunities: The skill base of a region is also determined by the educational and learning opportunities available, both formal and informal.

Compared to NSW averages, the Tweed has a relatively high level of youth migration out of the region and older people migrating to the region. As a result, Tweed has an older than average population, with a relatively high proportion of persons aged over 55 years. This provides opportunities for the Tweed in terms of generating attractive opportunities for the retention of youth, as well as leveraging the trend of increasing aged persons migrating to the region through the addition of aged care services as well as matching their lifestyle requirements. Lifestyle migration also poses opportunity for the expansion of a knowledge industry within the region, pending infrastructure requirements. The demographics of the Tweed can constrain the skills capacity of the region unless there is increased net migration of people of working age.

3.5.2 Utilisation of Natural Resources

Tweed’s economy has historically been heavily reliant on the use and exploitation of natural resource asset base, predominantly through the use of timber, fishing and land (primary production) resources. Factors that can influence the development of industries utilising natural resources include:

Local and world markets: The demand and supply of the Tweed’s agriculture, forestry and fishing resources and their associated intermediate and final products, both domestically and internationally. This plays a significant role in how natural resources are utilised and their contribution to economic growth;


Government policies and legislation: Government policies and legislation can be used to dictate or guide the nature and extent that natural resources can be utilised by placing limits on production, usable area, emissions, royalties, etc.;

Labour market: Labour is a critical input to production. Efficient production requires an adequate skills-match between the local labour force and job opportunities;

Infrastructure: Adequate infrastructure to facilitate the production and transport of goods and services is essential for efficient production; and

Technical innovation: Technical innovation can lead to increased economic growth by:

– Improving the efficiency of resource use; or

– Developing new, higher value products from current resource stocks.

The implications of these drivers include the need to mitigate against the degradation of the natural asset as well as against the impact of changes in global market conditions on competitiveness and profitability. Key factors to focus on are increasing and maintaining value and product differentiation by marketing points of difference, generating additional value to the consumer and targeting niche markets.

The Tweed’s agricultural sector has declined rapidly in recent times. Infrastructure is improving in the region, including transport access to SEQ. Technical innovation take-up has been relatively low in the region with limited higher value-adding operations. Most of the existing sectors are labour intensive. The issue of residential versus economic lands may increase in prevalence with a declining stock of coastal plain land.

3.5.3 Capital Availability

Capital availability is essential to economic growth. Capital expenditure in developing identified opportunities is the catalyst to change, whether it be investing in new infrastructure, research or resources and the availability of capital is influenced by:

Risk: The risk inherent in an investment relative to other investment opportunities strongly influences the willingness of investors to provide capital for a project. The risk is influenced by factors such as:

– Skills availability and expertise;

– Regional infrastructure and development;

– Historical local economic performance;

– Community attitudes and cohesion;

– Cost of inputs;

– Exchange rates;

– Interest rates;

– Investor attitude to risk; and

Return on capital: The expected return on an investment also strongly influences the willingness of investors to provide capital for a project. The return on capital is influenced by the same factors as risk.

There is a need to provide an appropriate and acceptable level of return for the associated level of risk to attract capital, which is an ongoing challenge in regional areas. Other factors of particular relevance to


the Tweed include risks associated with the availability of labour and available infrastructure and inputs. Critical to the attraction of capital is the mitigation of risk associated with development.

3.5.4 Infrastructure

Transport, communication utilities and other infrastructure are necessary for the production and transport of goods and services as well as to increase the efficiency of resources. Factors that can influence the development of infrastructure (and subsequently economic growth from this source) include:

Availability of capital: Capital expenditure is necessary to purchase and/or hire the inputs needed to develop infrastructure. As such, the availability of capital, or lack-thereof, can have a significant impact on infrastructure development;

Population growth: Population growth can influence the need for infrastructure by placing excess pressure on the capacity of current infrastructure or in the planning and provision of infrastructure for expected population growth;

Population mix: The population mix influences the type of infrastructure required;

Technical innovation: Technical advancement can lead to the development of infrastructure, for example, where it is necessary to develop infrastructure before the advantages of the new technology can be fully achieved (e.g. communication infrastructure); and

Resource use: The manner in which resources are used influences the types of infrastructure needed.

There is a requirement to match infrastructure rollout to identified economic development opportunities, for example the development of broadband and communication services may be required to attract a knowledge industry, where as the continued Pacific Highway upgrading may be the impetus for increased transport and logistics in the Tweed.

The main road corridor is the north-south Pacific Highway. A major initiative of the State and Commonwealth Governments is the upgrading of the Pacific Highway to dual carriageway standard. The improvements to the corridor will provide greater transport efficiency and safety for residents.

The main Sydney-Brisbane rail corridor passes to the west of the Tweed and is operated by the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC). However, a rail corridor exists between Casino (where there is a planned transport hub) and Murwillumbah. The Far North Coast Regional Strategy indicates this rail corridor is to be protected. As the Gold Coast rail extension is planned, investigation will be undertaken to determine whether demand warrants extension of the route into NSW.

Air services are provided out of the Gold Coast Airport to the north, Ballina to the south and Lismore to the west.

3.5.5 Technical Innovation

Technical innovation influences economic growth by providing more efficient use of resources and therefore greater productivity per unit of input. Technical innovation is influenced by:

Investment: The level of investment into research and development (R&D), or into adopting the outcomes of R&D undertaken elsewhere, is a major contributor to the speed of technical advancement;


Technical Competence: The skill level and imagination of researchers and innovators strongly influences the quality and quantity of technical advancement;

Development and commercial application: The ability of research breakthroughs to address industry or community requirements is paramount to their commercialisation and uptake; and

History: Technology is highly reliant on what has been developed in the past, as this not only provides the foundation of knowledge for development but also the inspiration for new ideas.

There is a requirement for the Tweed to stay abreast of current and new technology uses and has the appropriate knowledge and skills to maximise the application of technologies that are developed. The take-up has been traditionally low in the region.

3.5.6 Attitudinal Trends

In spite of relatively consistent historical economic development, it seems clear that the Tweed is at a crucial turning point. The Tweed, NSW, Australia and indeed the world is changing rapidly. No longer is it a world where the major competitor is the shop owner down the street or the operator in the next shire, but one in which even domestic markets are now globally competitive. The economy of the Tweed will need to change rapidly to accommodate this. Areas of fundamental change currently occurring include:

Increasing pressures to halt environmental degradation: Environmental factors are currently among the some of the most significant components influencing development and this is expected to continue in to the future. Central to this is the concept of “sustainability” and “balanced” growth and development;

Emerging importance of climate change: Forecast warming of the earth’s climate due to accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere could constrain growth in the Tweed, including the tourism-based industry, and impact coastal sea levels. Consumers, businesses and industry are increasingly driving responses to minimise greenhouse emissions by both government and industry;

Community and lifestyle attitudes and their impact on long-term demographic trends: Attitudes and values are changing as the global village becomes a reality with many of those on high incomes seeking improved quality of life. A consequence of this may be business and residential migration to areas that provide a perceived “lifestyle” premium. Social values and their perception will also be important shapers of development and perceived attractiveness of the Tweed. Of particular importance is how the region is branded and perceived by those internal/external to the region; and

The advent of global e-commerce, including the age of “frictionless capital” and the advent of the “knowledge economy”: As knowledge becomes increasingly embodied in goods and services, resources, primary production and low value manufacturing become relatively less important. Intense global competition and market deregulation contributes to pressure on prices, volumes and the terms of trade generating the need to leverage the Tweed’s competitive advantage to attract new business and industry and develop or value add existing industry. The continuation of the status quo without significant impetus for change is unlikely to provide regional prosperity in the emerging knowledge economy.

The majority of these factors will be external to and unable to be influenced by the Tweed. Critical to managing the impact of these factors is the recognition and development of strategies to mitigate against or leverage from these drivers for the future economic prosperity of the Tweed.


3.5.7 External Factors

There are a number of external trends expected to significantly influence the structure of the world economy in the coming years. In some instances these factors will be forces relieving constraints to economic development.

The following key external factors shaping the process of future economic development are fundamentally linked and include:

Overarching government policies and legislation: set the context and parameters by which opportunities may occur and economic development facilitated;

National and international market deregulation: Influences the level of competition and market access, which can be both beneficial and detrimental. Many Australian industries have undertaken extensive investigation of ways to mitigate against and capitalise on market deregulation;

Opening of trade in goods and services: Domestic and international market access has is one of the most obvious factors of globalisation. Coupled with continuing declining terms of trade, this places the many regional Australian areas in a difficult position regarding the production and export of goods due to our relatively high cost of production compared to international competitors. At the same time, international competitors can often land goods and services on the Australian market cheaper than Australian suppliers can provide them; and

Fiscal components such as the exchange rate and monetary policy: these components influence the relative attractiveness of the Australian dollar, goods and services and investment opportunities.

The majority of these factors will be external to and unable to be influenced by the Tweed. Critical to managing the impact of these factors is the recognition and development of strategies to mitigate against or leverage from these drivers for the future economic prosperity of the Tweed.

3.6 Future Growth Scenarios The Tweed is projected to record population growth of between 1.2% and 1.7% per annum over the next 25 years, well below averages of above 2.0% recorded between 1996 and 2006. Interestingly, population projections have historically overstated growth in the Tweed. Economic growth scenarios will depend to a large extent on economic development in the region and associated employment opportunities, however an ageing of the workforce could constrain labour force capacity.

From the current turning point, there are a number of potential scenarios for the future economic development of the Tweed, hinging on future population growth and the type of industry development that occurs in the region.

3.6.1 Future Population Growth

For the Richmond-Tweed region overall, the 18 alternative scenarios produced by the Department of Planning result in total populations in 2031 that are within the range of 78.9% to 106.6% of the preferred series. A comparison of range of growth scenarios for Richmond-Tweed with the preferred series for Tweed Heads and Tweed Part B shows that the preferred series for the Tweed regions are equivalent to the higher series for the Richmond-Tweed region, meaning the Tweed’s population is forecast to grow considerably faster than that of the Richmond-Tweed region as a whole.


Table 3-25 Population Scenarios, Growth 2006–2031, Richmond-Tweed

Scenario Total Growth

2006-2031

Zero interstate migration 34.4%

Replacement fertility 34.6%

Low intrastate migration to Sydney 32.0%

Very high overseas migration 32.5%

Low interstate migration loss 30.6%

High overseas migration 29.6%

Constant fertility 28.6%

High life expectancy 28.1%

Preferred series 26.7%

Low life expectancy 25.4%

Low overseas migration 23.4%

Low fertility 22.8%

High interstate migration loss 23.0%

High intrastate migration to Sydney 21.6%

Constant life expectancy 20.5%

Zero overseas migration 14.5%

Zero internal migration 9.4%

Zero intrastate migration 8.4%

Zero all migration 2.1% Source: Department of Planning, State and Regional Population Projections, 2004-2051

High and low series population projections for the Tweed have been estimated by increasing and decreasing the average annual growth of the preferred series for each of the Tweed’s SLAs. The scenarios produce a 1.2%-1.7% average growth rate range for the next 25 years, with the population ranging between 110,691 and 127,281 persons.


Table 3-26 Population Projections by Scenario

Low Series Preferred Series High Series

Tweed Heads

Tweed Part B

TweedShire

TweedHeads

TweedPart B

TweedShire

Tweed Heads

TweedPart B

TweedShire


2006 53,317 29,706 83,023 53,317 29,706 83,023 53,317 29,706 83,023

2011 58,132 31,493 89,626 58,932 31,939 90,871 59,732 32,385 92,116

2016 62,188 33,218 95,406 63,928 34,167 98,095 65,692 35,129 100,821

2021 65,990 34,879 100,869 68,795 36,388 105,183 71,678 37,940 109,618

2026 69,637 36,425 106,062 73,629 38,547 112,176 77,790 40,760 118,551

2031 72,866 37,825 110,691 78,147 40,607 118,754 83,730 43,550 127,281

Total Growth

2006-2031 36.7% 27.3% 33.3% 46.6% 36.7% 43.0% 57.0% 46.6% 53.3%

Annual Growth

2006-2031 1.3% 1.0% 1.2% 1.5% 1.3% 1.4% 1.8% 1.5% 1.7% Source: Department of Planning (2005)

3.6.2 Future Economic Growth

Potential scenarios for the future economic growth of the Tweed region include:

Low Series: Without additional employment land or other economic development initiatives/catalysts to encourage and support the expansion of existing industries and the establishment of new industries, the current trend of declining real GRP will be expected to continue, worsening as the region’s population growth decreases. In this scenario, the region’s economy continues to shrink by 1% per annum in real terms on average over the business cycle;

Medium Series: Increased tourism activity and population on the Tweed Coast (driven by additional residential/tourism/retail developments) supports the continued development of the tourism and personal services industry in the region, resulting in higher economic growth but limited economic development in the region. Limited economic development means the economic base of the Tweed is still more vulnerable to external shocks. However, the scenario would still see a net employment deficit to the Gold Coast and other region unless there was structural/fundamental change to the economic base; and

High Series: Proactive, macro-economic activities undertaken to attract and retain new firms and industries in the Tweed, and strengthen local intra and inter-industry linkages, moving the focus of the economy from personal services to knowledge-intensive goods and services. There is economic growth and development, increasing the sustainability and reducing the vulnerability of the region’s economy. In this scenario, the region’s economy is expected to grow at rates more comparable to the State and SEQ economies, with potentially more rapid growth in the short-term as the region builds critical mass.


To drive the diversification of Tweed’s economic base, reducing vulnerability to external shocks and increasing value-adding by local firms, catalytic policies need to be implemented, to shift the focus from the quinary services and take advantage of the opportunities for higher value-adding activities in the region. As a nearby example, the Gold Coast has successfully accomplished the change from a tourism-based economy to a diversified economy over the past 20 years.


4. Economic Opportunities Assessment

4.1 Strategic Context This economic opportunities assessment is an overview of the strategic planning context of Tweed Shire, with analysis of the strategic and competitive position of the region for employment land development and identification of strategic industry growth and development opportunities, including joint venture partnership approaches.

4.1.1 National Industry Trends

The national manufacturing sector has reduced in economic significance due to increased international competition. There is increasing production occurring in regional areas proximate to metropolitan regions, particularly those with resource endowments. There has been a gravitational shift toward inexpensive industrial land and low cost buildings. Transport and access has increased in importance for the location of new lands.

To provide the strategic context for considering the potential for employment lands in the Tweed, the following brief synopsis is provided for the industrial land sectors:

Manufacturing: The manufacturing industry has traditionally been one of the most important in the Australian economy. During 2005-06 the manufacturing industry accounted for $94.0 billion in gross value-added, 11.0% of the Australian economy. Manufacturing was the second largest industry in the country after Property and Business Services, which contributed 12.4% of gross value-added. Manufacturing’s share of the economy decreased 0.4% compared with 2004-05. This continues the long-term trend decline in the importance of manufacturing, which had accounted for 30% of the economy in the middle of the 20th Century. All subdivisions experienced negative growth except for Non-Metal Mineral Products (11.5%) and Machinery and Equipment (5.7%). In 1993-94 the manufacturing industry was the largest in the country contributing 15.1% to GDP. The decline over the last decade has been largely caused by deregulation and the increase in imports into the country. Over the last 10 years the value of imports have risen 107.3% while exports only rose 54.9%. Local producers in some industries were not able to compete with cheaper imports, resulting in loss of market share and firm closures. The increased need for competitiveness in the industry has led to the trend of firms moving factories and operations overseas to take advantage of lower labour and operating costs;

Wholesale Trade: The wholesale trade industry involves the resale of new or used goods to businesses and institutional users. The wholesale trade industry contributed $42.5 billion to Australia’s GDP in 2005-06 which represented growth of 3.2% over the year. This was slightly higher than the economy as a whole they grew by 2.8%. In 2005-06 the industry accounted for 4.9% of the total economy. This has been stable over the last decade with the proportion of the economy down on slightly from 5.5% in 1996. The wholesale trade industry is a mature industry and is expected to grow at a rate comparably with the economy in the future; and

Transport and Storage: The transport and storage industry is made up of the moving of goods, services and people. The sector accounted for $41.2 billion in 2005-06, up 5.1% from the previous year. Transport and storage contributed 4.8% to Australia’s economy, making it one of the smaller industries in the economy. The size of the industry compared to the economy has remained very


stable at between 4.8%-4.9% since 2000. This indicates the industry is growing at a similar rate to the economy. Several trends have appeared in the industry in recent years. Increased fuel prices have had a big impact on transport providers with this cost becoming the biggest variable cost. Increased trade in the economy has also led to a trend of transport providers increasing their capability of moving goods overseas. There has also been an increased shift in the industry with firms specialising in providing services for particular industries.

Australia’s production regions have evolved through a number of phases. Initially they were concentrated in the inner areas of the major cities, orientated towards meeting domestic demand and capturing replacement opportunities (metals and engineering and textiles, clothing and footwear). They also developed in areas with resource endowments. In the post-war era period manufacturing dispersed from inner city areas to large industrial estates. These areas were favoured as international companies established operations to supply a growing Australian market. Many of these were branch plants, manufacturing to specifications provided by overseas parents and constrained from exporting. This was the age of large-scale systems of production, hierarchical corporate structures and standardised technologies. Interaction with local firms was minimal.

In the current phases, innovation is driving competitiveness. Knowledge-based industrial firms are clustering geographically around scientific and research institutions and are developing links into high-skilled labour pools, management and technological expertise, venture capital, and competitive and collaborative networks of firms. Interestingly, the economic future and location of Australia’s production regions is becoming dependent on a capacity to attract and develop high technology industries and adopt new methods of production. They are facing long-term structural challenges, especially in their move to a knowledge-based economy. Despite the existence of many innovation projects in traditional regions, they currently have insufficient value added industries, too many industries in declining sectors of the economy, and too high a proportion of routine production workers. This has created pressure for the manufacturing industry to become more dynamic as this is fundamental to competitiveness.

Transport and access is now the major factor behind the release of new industrial land. There has been a shift in the use of industrial land in Australia away from manufacturing and towards transport and logistic operations. This has meant that the location of industrial land close to transport hubs and with adequate access has become a lot more important. In regional areas there has been a trend towards industrial parks being developed in the vicinity of airports and ports to aid transport. There has been significant demand for these locations for operations looking to export and import goods. There has also been a trend with industrial parks moving closer to highways and major roads. This has been matched by the need for industrial parks and access roads to be B-double compatible meaning large trucks are able to get to the land without causing damage.

Over the past two decades nationally, development of industrial land and floor space has occurred at a rate slower than employment growth. This, however, has varied considerably between specific sectors. In manufacturing and wholesale trade, employment growth has either declined or remained stagnant. Contrasting with this pattern has been the performance of transport and storage, which has shown strong growth. The pattern reflects the long-term improvement of inventory with a consequential decline in the inventory/sales ratio. This is giving rise to the development of space built to facilitate the rapid movement of goods through the supply chain.

Businesses with low inventory turnover a gravitating toward inexpensive industrial land and low cost buildings. For those requiring storage, rent can account for a significant proportion of cost and hence relates to high rent sensitivity. In contrast, rents account for a much lower proportion of the overall cost


for businesses that have high inventory turnover and high value products and typically provide value-added functions, including product customisation, packaging and customs brokerage, meaning these are less rent sensitive. For these businesses, there is generally a greater willingness to pay a premium for excellent access to a large customer base and proximity in time and space to airports and port, explaining the appeal of Australia Trade Coast, for example, in Brisbane.

4.1.2 Growth in South-East Queensland

SEQ has exhibited strong and sustained population and economic growth over recent years, with high population growth resulting in consumption-led economic growth. SEQ’s population has grown considerably over the past few decades, increasing from 1.67 million in 1986 to 2.73 million in 2006. The largest growth was in the southern LGAs of (Beaudesert, Gold Coast, Logan and Redlands).

The population of SEQ increased by more than 1,000 people a week in 2005-06 (more than the total growth in NSW), with almost two-thirds of this growth coming through net migration. SEQ accounted for almost 70% of Queensland’s total population growth. The bulk of this increase came through interstate migration, followed by natural increase, then net overseas migration. Population growth in SEQ was driven by employment and sea-change trends, with the bulk of population growth along the coastal strip.

The Far North Coast Regional Strategy notes the planned consolidation of employment centres within SEQ will have implications for the economic growth of the Far North Coast Region. Accordingly, the Strategy identifies a need to strengthen economic activity and associated employment in existing industry sectors as well as encourage the diversification into new and emerging opportunities to take advantage of the region’s relationship with SEQ. The Regional Strategy encourages Councils to plan for future industrial needs and take into account economic markets, South East Queensland pressures for employment lands, lifestyle opportunities, and transport improvements within and from the region.

As outlined in the Regional Strategy, the pressure exerted by growth in SEQ is expected to influence growth and development in the Tweed, as the two economies are closely linked. Currently, Tweed residents commute to SEQ for employment, goods and services, and SEQ residents visit the Tweed for recreation purposes. The population of SEQ is expected to grow from 2.77 million in 2006 to 3.71 million in 2026, an increase of 50,000 per year, requiring 425,000 new jobs in the region. An adequate supply of suitable industrial land is essential for economic development in the Tweed.

The South East Queensland Regional Plan acknowledges the importance of industrial land to economic development, and has earmarked significant tracts of land for future development, protecting them for encroachment by incompatible land uses. The includes identification of the future extension of the Gold Coast rail link to the Coolangatta Airport by 2016 and the planned investigation of significant employment lands and housing at Bromelton. The Bromelton corridor represents a threat to the development of the Tweed, given it is linked by rail to more western areas of the Northern Rivers of NSW.

Demand for industrial land in SEQ remained strong during 2006, with land values across the market increasing by 30%. The scarcity of warehouse space and growing demand for distribution facilities has resulted in sizeable increases in average rents. Supply expanded considerably during 2006, with major additions totalling 655,000 square metres, with most activity concentrated in the Western Corridor, Gateway North and South, as well as the Brisbane-Gold Coast corridor (particularly the Yatala Enterprise Area).

In SEQ, land surrounding infrastructure, particularly road and rail, will continue to remain in strong demand, as locational factors compensate for higher prices and rents. The strong demand conditions in


the SEQ industrial property market means commercially attractive industrial land is rapidly being exhausted, and there is increasing pressure from residential development, meaning firms are forced to look further a field for suitable sites.

There is, therefore, an opportunity for the Tweed to capitalise on its capacity to provide suitable industrial land, changing both the Tweed’s industry structure and the nature of the interactions between the Tweed and southeast Queensland regional economies. Further, decreases in liveability in SEQ associated with increasing population and decreasing housing affordability could see additional migration from SEQ to the Tweed.

The experience with regions close to Sydney, such as the Lower Hunter, would support the potential for expansion of employment zones beyond the boundaries of the greater metropolitan area. In Sydney, the supply of employment land is becoming a constraint on the future growth and regional competitiveness of Sydney. Industrial land is reported to be diminishing despite new releases near the M7. Significant tracts of industrial land have been lost to residential development.

The pressures in SEQ are not constrained to the industrial land sector. The Brisbane commercial office market records the lowest vacancy rate of any capital city office market in Australia and record lows for Brisbane. The CBD vacancy at January 2007 sat at just 1.7%. Subsequent take-up has seen the rate fall to below 1%. Net absorption has averaged above 30,000 sq m per annum over the past decade, rising to more than 60,000 m2 per annum over the past three years and reaching 68,000 m2 in 2006. Office rents have reached new highs. Rents have increased by 35% to 40% over the past year.

The main implication from SEQ for Tweed’s commercial office sector is an increasing retention of activity from its residents i.e. reducing leakage within the services sectors from the Gold Coast and Brisbane. As these property markets tighten, there will be increased potential and need to provide these services locally within commercial centres.

4.1.3 Growth in the Gold Coast

The Gold Coast is the nearest area of SEQ to the Tweed. The Gold Coast has recently prepared and placed on public exhibition its Local Growth Management Strategy (LGMS) in response to the SEQ Regional Plan.

The Gold Coast currently has 9 major industrial land developments, with only two in the southern end of the Gold Coast (Burleigh and Currumbin). It is noted the bulk of the Gold Coast’s industrial land stocks are located in the Yatala Enterprise Area, at the northern end of the Gold Coast. There is limited land at the southern end of the Coast.

Discussions with Gold Coast City Council indicate approximately 10-15 year’s of industrial land supply remaining. This supply would be delivered through increased yield from the Yatala Enterprise Area and development of nearby canelands. Yatala is a regionally focussed enterprise area with transport links to Aus Trade Coast at the Port of Brisbane and Brisbane Airport. There are generally conflicting/competing land use issues at the Gold Coast’s other industrial areas which will limit further development. There is a reported shortage of service industry and bulky goods lands on the Coast, which may provide an opportunity for the Tweed.

Infrastructure and transport upgrades to Coolangatta such as the future extension of the Gold Coast rail link to the Coolangatta Airport by 2016 would improve the competitive position of the south end of the Coast and the Tweed. It is possible sequential development in the Tweed in 10-15 year’s time would


present the natural extension to the Brisbane and Gold Coast economic corridor as land supply decreases.

The Seamless Borders project, identified by the TEDC initiated Cross-Border Working Group, is being led by Gold Coast City Council, in partnership with TEDC and Tweed Shire Council, aims to reduce the regulations imposed by both local and state government on businesses operating in the cross-border region to create a more conducive environment for investment attraction to the region.

For the commercial office sector, the nearest commercial centre to the Tweed in the Gold Coast is Coolangatta, which is identified as a Major Regional Centre. The Coolangatta centre is closely linked to the Tweed Heads centre and are generally viewed as a single entity in regional planning terms. The recently completed Coolangatta Area Plan provides an overarching strategic direction for the local area, although it is intended this strategy will be reviewed in the next 12 months given the completion of the LGMS.

4.1.4 Growth in Far North NSW

The Tweed has close linkages with the Gold Coast, and effectively forms an extension of the greater Gold Coast urban area. Because of the linkages, the Tweed is facing many of the same growth management issues as SEQ, including:

Rapid population growth

High tourism visitations

Development pressures on natural areas, the coastal zone and agricultural lands; and

A requirement to invest in additional infrastructure and community services.

With the strong tourism and population-driven employment base (retail and services sectors) in the coastal areas of the Tweed, the availability of affordable land is becoming increasingly limited, and what is available is increasingly being utilised for bulky goods retailing. As such, land available for industries that generate export jobs is decreasing.

The Far North Coast Regional Strategy estimates that an additional 156 hectares of industrial land and an additional 76 hectares of commercial land would be required to provide employment opportunities for the projected regional population. It appears these figures are based on the historic take-up rate of industrial land at the regional level, rather than as a result of any identified opportunity to create regional employment growth through a visionary, proactive approach to investment attraction through enterprise land development.

The Regional Strategy notes the region’s western areas have the capacity to provide land to support industrial development, especially for those with an export focus. Casino and Kyogle are located on major transport routes with access to inter-state road and rail networks. Casino is presently taking advantage of this potential and is developing 53 hectares (ha) of land suitable for heavy industry and 24 hour operation. The development is accessible to both rail and road infrastructure and land prices are considered below other Northern Rivers areas and the metropolitan centres of Brisbane and Sydney. Strategically, the industrial areas link via the Summerland Way and North-South coast rail line with the emerging industrial area of Bromelton near Beaudesert in SEQ, which is being targeted as a major industrial node in Queensland.


The Northern Rivers Regional Industry & Economic Plan (NRRIEP) indicates support should be given to the upgrade of the Summerland Way-Beaudesert route as a major road freight corridor. The NRRIEP notes the opportunity for spin offs from the growth in SEQ for the manufacturing sector in the region. The NRRIEP projects a significantly higher 720 ha of serviced industrial land will be required in the region by 2031 in order to meet the projected supply driven forecasts / targets for export orientated employment in the region. The Plan acknowledges there is limited industrial land capacity in the Tweed but notes the cross border opportunities with the Gold Coast.

TEDC has estimated (based on typical employment lands to population ratios for SEQ), that an additional 400 hectares of enterprise land will be required in the short-term and 800 hectares will be required in the long-term in the Tweed region alone to support and facilitate industry creation and expansion in the Tweed. Previous research undertaken for TEDC (Spiller Gibbins Swan, 2001) also confirmed the need for large-lot enterprise/industrial land to support the attraction of new firms and industries to the region. Further, it also identified that large-lot enterprise land has the capacity to produce from 22 to 55 jobs per hectare, depending on the industry. If the Tweed were to achieve the availability of 400 hectares of employment-generating (enterprise) land in the short term, this could generate between 8,800 and 22,000 jobs and attract significant new investment into the region.

The Regional Strategy promotes a clear hierarchy of commercial centres consistent in scale and centrally located within each community. The Regional Strategy identifies Tweed Heads as a major regional centre and Murwillumbah as a major town. It is intended that major commercial development, such as large-scale office development, will be located within large centres. Other commercial development, which relates to the scale of adjoining urban areas, will be located within the boundaries of towns and villages, utilising existing commercial centres where possible, and integrated with the initial planning of new release areas.

4.2 Competitive Position The competitive position of the Tweed as a place to invest in industrial development will be central to the future demand for industrial land. The region’s competitive position can be assessed by an analysis of competitive strengths and weaknesses relative to key locational factors and industrial land supply and demand trends versus other regions, including remaining opportunities in SEQ (and the Gold Coast in particular), the western areas of the Far North Coast Region suited to export and transport industries, and Mid North Coast areas with large tracts of land suitable for industrial development.

4.2.1 Key Locational Criteria

There are many considerations for industrial developers and businesses when identifying and assessing potential locations for new industrial land development.

Recent business surveys by the AECgroup of industrial businesses in the Mid North Coast of NSW indicated the location of the site was a key factor considered for businesses that wanted to be close to suppliers and be in a visible site with profile, followed by the size of the land parcel to ensure sufficient land to meet their requirements and allow for expansion and transport access and price.

Based on industrial developer surveys, the location of a new site for industrial land development is believed to be contingent on several major factors:

The land must be flood free in order for businesses to feel secure;


Proximity to transport options including major roads and the port;

Easy access for trucks into the site;

The topography of the land for cost-effective development;

Proximity to existing industrial land to allow for less impact on the region;

Proximity to existing industrial land to allow industry clustering opportunities; and

A buffer between the land and conflicting land uses such as residential.

Searches of other literature confirms the criteria for industrial land selection is more selective than those for other urban land uses due to the potential conflict within the host community and the natural environment. The least amount of impact on the natural environment can be managed by selecting sites, if available, where little if any undue encroachment will occur. If areas of minimal environmental impact are not selected while adequate opportunity is available, pressures for economic development in the future will result in attempted invasions of left over areas on the urban fringe that are often environmentally sensitive resulting in sometimes severe community conflicts. Ultimately, industry will only be attracted to locations that are conducive to effective and efficient operational conditions.

To assess the competitive position of the Tweed for industrial development, the principle locational criteria includes the following factors:

Physical suitability: To facilitate construction, contain building costs and lessen the risks from natural disasters;

Environmental sustainability: To protect the natural environment and the amenity of the built environment;

Cost effectiveness for the provision of infrastructure: To rationalise the orderly provision of operational utility services and minimise their associated costs to Government, community and industry;

Efficiency of business: Opportunities for expansion, synergies, linkages and economies of scale, flexibility of site choices, affordable land readily available, appropriate tenure arrangements and favourable and expeditious local government planning and development climate;

Accessibility to markets: Frontage and access to the highway network, ready access to air/sea/rail ports and ready access to sources of materials for production and to locate markets and export facilities for product outlets;

Availability of workforce: Availability of a suitable workforce within acceptable work journey limits; and

Community acceptance: Acceptance levels of impacts on community’s amenity, appropriate employment opportunities, convenience of workplace trips, availability of public transport, acceptable visual impacts, avoidance of conflict over sensitive cultural or heritage factors.

4.2.2 Strengths & Weaknesses

The Tweed’s competitive position as a place to invest is improving given the heat in the property markets of SEQ, the depletion of lands at the Gold Coast and the improving access along the Pacific Highway. However, the region will compete with the Summerland Way/Bromelton/Casino corridor which is positioning to attract export business along the rail corridor.

The demand and take-up of industrial land provides some indication of the competitiveness of a region for industrial land development. In Tweed’s case, historical land take-up rates have been slow. However,


this observation needs to be tempered by an assessment of the commercial attractiveness and suitability of the land that has been available for market consumption. There are reports from TEDC that the Tweed has recorded some interest from major industrial land developers seeking information regarding possible industrial development sites for larger-scale subdivision. Non-residential building investment is also increasing rapidly in the Tweed.

The following comment is provided regarding the Tweed’s strengths and weaknesses relative to the locational criteria established above:

Environmental sustainability: The Tweed economy, particularly tourism and coastal residential migration, is largely built around its natural features and landscapes. This places pressure on the ability to site suitable industrial land and develop in a manner that does not threaten the environmental features and attributes of the region;

Cost effectiveness for the provision of infrastructure: In general, the Tweed has well developed infrastructure though faces the same challenge as many other regional and rural Councils with a dispersed settlement pattern to provide equitable and cost-effective levels of services infrastructure to all parts of the Council area. Large-scale industrial land development is likely to require significant infrastructure investment if it is to be suitably removed from residential areas and the urban footprint. It is estimated there are higher local infrastructure costs associated with more stringent environmental planning and higher development head charges in the Tweed versus SEQ. Land values are more affordable in the Tweed relative to most areas of SEQ;

Efficiency of business: There is a network of industrial estates throughout the Tweed, each with a different mix of industries and markets. Presently the operations are largely lower value adding businesses with a local service orientation. There are opportunities for greater synergies and critical mass;

Accessibility to markets: The Tweed is reasonably well placed relative to export markets via the Gold Coast Airport and the Gold Coast and Brisbane Ports. Further upgrades of the Pacific Highway will improve accessibility to northern and southern markets. The Tugun Bypass to the north will be integral to improved accessibility and integration with the SEQ economic corridor. In terms of rail, the Tweed is at a disadvantage to inland areas of the Far North Coast such as Casino which are located on the north-south rail line linking with the planned Bromelton industrial estate and SEQ markets. There may be consideration for extension of the Gold Coast rail link to the region which would improve competitiveness to some extent;

Availability of workforce: The Tweed’s skills base is low, labour force participation is low; qualifications are low and unemployment high. These trends are a reflection of the older demographic and a lack of local employment opportunities. A large proportion of the resident workforce currently leaves the region for employment. Despite this, only a relatively low proportion of the Tweed’s workforce is employed in the industrial land sectors. With expected continued migration of an older demographic, the ability for the region to provide the necessary skills base to support large scale economic development initiatives may be threatened; and

Community acceptance: The Regional Strategy notes the competition for coastal lands and the erosion of existing employment lands for retail use. These issues place further pressure on the residential vs employment role of the region and the availability of suitable lands that do not overly impact residential development. This, to some extent, is reflected by the conservative industrial land


projections outlined in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy and comments made regarding the availability and future development of coastal lands in the region.

In summary, the low take-up of industrial land in the Tweed is a reflection of a poor competitive position relative to SEQ, and lack of capacity and economic advantage.

4.2.3 Opportunities & Threats

The Tweed’s relatively slow economic growth and decline of traditional industry sectors presents potential to reinvigorate the economy through new development opportunities and diversification initiatives. A constraint to the region will be its employment capacity given its ageing and older demographic.

In general, the type of economic growth encouraged will determine the types of employment opportunities that will be created in the Tweed. In terms of employment lands and their role in economic development, the following is noted:

There are opportunities for the expansion of existing firms and industries and the establishment of new firms and industries that may currently be constrained by the lack of zoned, serviced, suitable land in the Tweed;

Provision of suitable employment land would increase employment opportunities to retain workers in region, reducing leakage to the Gold Coast, Northern Rivers, etc;

Provision of suitable employment land can produce positive employment outcomes with high employment per hectare for large-lot industrial land of between 22 to 55 jobs per ha (depending on industry and type of operation established);

Development of knowledge-intensive goods industries, such as electronic equipment, would provide greater value-adding and economic productivity in the region;

Clustering of firms in related industries (on the condition they are sufficiently developed to undertake clustering activities), would strengthen local linkages, encourage co-location of like businesses and encourage joint tendering;

Increasing knowledge-intensive, non-quinary industries, as part of commercial zones and business parks, would be expected to strengthen local linkages; and

Climate change and water accessibility are increasingly important. There is the opportunity to promote carbon neutral development.

There is an opportunity for the region to leverage from its location and linkages with the fast-growing SEQ region directly to the north. An economic corridor is consolidating between Brisbane and the Gold Coast, and there is the opportunity for a natural progression further south as access improves with upgrades to the Pacific Highway.

The Tweed has historically recorded relatively low industrial land take-up rates and limited interest from larger industry operations. In turn, the sector has not been a major driver of the local economy. The economy has, instead, been largely built around tourism and providing services to a growing population. There is an opportunity for the region to provide a supply catalyst to encourage large-scale industrial development by developing integrated and planned estates suited to high technology and value adding businesses.


The main constraints to the future expansion of the industrial land sector in the Tweed relates to the weaknesses outlined above and the ability for the region to provide commercially attractive land relative to competing areas such as SEQ, the Gold Coast specifically, the western areas of the region on the rail line and mid north coast areas to the south. The ability for the region to provide the required skilled labour may be an issue, suggesting the need for aligned property development and employment strategies. The ability to site suitable land free of environmental constraints and residential land conflicts and representing cost-effective infrastructure solutions will also be challenging.

The Gold Coast is a close example of an economy that was able to shift its industry structure from one largely built on tourism to a broad-based economy, with sizeable clusters of knowledge-intensive industries and a number of higher education facilities. This has seen a strong economic corridor develop between Brisbane and the Gold Coast, with significant industrial estates now located alongside or near the highway (e.g., Yatala Enterprise Area). The Gold Coast Economic Development Strategy lays out an action agenda for deliver on their goal to have the Gold Coast recognised as one of Australia’s leading globally-connected and integrated cities, with diverse, highly export-oriented industries providing high-value and sustainable jobs.

4.3 Strategic Sectors and Opportunities Substantial research has already been completed on economic development opportunities and strategic sectors for the Tweed. It is agreed there is potential in the tourism, health and community, manufacturing and agricultural sectors based on competitive strengths, and creative industries, information & technology and aviation as new sectors not based on existing competitive advantage. Land use policy directions should set an appropriate and flexible planning environment to encourage the development of opportunities.

4.3.1 Strategic Sector Identification Criteria

There are a number of criteria that need to be addressed in identifying the strategic sectors for the Tweed region, as detailed in the table below. These sectors must then be balanced against the competitive position of the region relative to the locational criteria established above so as to test the realism of the opportunity. The criteria are:

Substitute local inputs for imports;

Further value-adding to goods/services;

Capacity to develop local resources;

Capacity to build upon competitive strengths;

Size and structure of current operations;

Degree to which businesses can be linked;

Capacity to tap industry innovations;

Capacity to tap industry assistance programs; and

Likely sources and strength of competition


4.3.2 Review of Current Economic Development Initiatives

There has been significant research undertaken in regard to economic development opportunities in the Tweed, including those accommodated on employment lands.

Tweed Shire Council and the TEDC collaboratively developed the Tweed Ready for Business Economic Growth Management Strategy. The primary objective of the Strategy is to identify the actions required to facilitate sustainable economic growth in the Tweed region, consistent with existing plans (including the Tweed Futures Strategic Plan 2004 – 2024). The Strategy will also be used to identify and secure funding to drive the strategic economic development outlined in the document.

The strategic economic development activities in this Strategy aim to:

Give leadership and direction to increase job-creating growth and investment;

Promote, facilitate and assist competitiveness of new and existing industries;

Facilitate the provision of world-class infrastructure;

Foster a positive business culture and environment;

Facilitate the diversification of the industry base to support a robust economy;

Be creative and innovative in the approach to promoting economic vitality; and

Maintain the ecological integrity and cultural fabric of the Tweed.

In terms of industry opportunities, the following industries were identified during the Tweed Economic Summit (held in October 2003) as having significant growth potential:

Health and aged care;

Film and creative industries;

Tourism;

Agribusiness;

Food manufacturing;

Marine industries; and

Education and training.

These opportunities are largely based on current strengths (health, tourism, agriculture, marine). While existing industries provide the knowledge and resource base to build on, they cannot always provide the “jump” required to attract or develop the “next generation” of industries (e.g. ICT goods and services, pharmaceuticals, etc).

Opportunities for identifying banks of land for the development of specific industry sectors also exist. One identified example involves the investigation of the development of a second airport for the Tweed, focused on growing and attracting general aviation-related businesses in the Shire. Discussions with Gold Coast Airport Ltd, confirm the growth and expansion of Gold Coast Airport is focused on passenger flights, with the often competing interests of general aviation businesses located on Airport land not considered as high a priority.

The TEDC has been progressing the investigation of the feasibility of a second airstrip in the Tweed. A report prepared by John Giles and Associates (2006) confirmed the predicted expansion of the Gold Coast Airport would create increasing pressure on the light commercial general aviation industries


located at the airport to consider relocating to other facilities. Subsequent desktop investigations for a suitable site in the Tweed highlighted a number of limitations at the existing Murwillumbah Airstrip which is located on flood prone land adjacent to cane fields in the Wardrop Vallet area. Other sites near to services have been identified but require further investigation and consultation.

The Coolangatta Airport Enterprise Park Feasibility Study examined a number of potential industries for their suitability for location in the land adjacent to the airport, based on a number of criteria. The final criteria (Compatible with adjacent airport use, compatibility with the Airport’s objectives for their business lands and environmental impacts can be readily managed) were considered “threshold criteria”, in that failure against any one of these would remove the industry from further investigation.

The industries examined were (preferred industries in italics):

Film, television and multimedia;

Niche education and business convention;

Lifestyle residential development;

Boat building/fibreglass;

Food and beverage manufacturing;

Gaming industry;

Aquaculture;

Storage and distribution;

Medical supplies manufacture and distribution;

Tree farming;

Turf farming;

Herbal industry;

Airport-related operations;

Aircraft charter and rental;

Aircraft maintenance and logistics; and

Aircraft parts manufacture and maintenance.

The italicised industries refer only to the land adjacent to the airport, and those not preferred may be suitable for other areas of the Tweed. The sectors identified focus on higher value-adding activities, but it is unclear which of these build on existing knowledge bases. It is noted some of the industries are short-term only.

The Tweed Prospectus created by the Tweed Economic Development Corporation (TEDC), promotes the Tweed as a prime location for the following industries:

Health and aged care;

Niche agriculture, including horticulture and small acreage forestry;

Education (domestic and international);

Advanced design and manufacturing, particularly food and marine;

Tourism and hospitality, especially ecotourism, agritourism and river-based tourism;


Aviation and related services;

Marine and leisure industries;

Medical and specialised education;

Transport, warehousing and distribution;

Information and communication technology;

Creative industries;

Environmental industries; and

Aquaculture and seafood.

The objective of the Northern Rivers Regional Industry and Economic Plan (NRRIEP) is to provide guidance to the region's stakeholders on strategies and actions to develop a sustainable and robust regional economy, which is able to respond to changing global economic conditions and capitalise on the opportunities open to the region. The NRRIEP acknowledges the competition for enterprise land in a coastal region, and will endeavour to ensure that adequate employment lands close to key infrastructure is available to support the economic growth and development of the region.

Industries targeted by the RIEP included:

Aged care services;

Aquaculture;

Building/construction;

Creative industries;

Education/training;

Horticulture;

Meat/dairy;

Sugar;

Timber;

Tourism; and

Transport.

Most of these industries have specific land requirements to be met in order for these industries to develop in the region. These industries will be supported through a number of initiatives, including specific industry development initiatives, industry leadership, governance and planning, skills development, public policy, planning, regulation and infrastructure, public awareness and regional identity, marketing and promotion.

4.3.3 Future Strategic Growth Sectors

Based on the above analysis, the sectors that build on current strengths include:

Tourism:


Ecotourism: With the decline in agriculture, some local farms could be transformed into eco-tourism or farm-stay tourist facilities. The Tweed has already established award winning eco tourism operations based on locations in and around the Border Ranges World Heritage rainforest areas.

Beach Tourism: With a warm climate, generally warm ocean currents and a range of clean, white sandy beaches, the Tweed offers a tourism experience that cannot be matched by many other regions in NSW. It also offers unrivalled access to the tourist attractions of the Gold Coast and easy access to the attractions of Byron Bay to the south.

Health and Community Services:

Aged Lifestyle Products: With the decreasing mortality rate, there is an opportunity to design lifestyle products for older people, a growing market in most developed countries. This could extend to the design of retirement villages, maximising the liveability of these facilities for active individuals, and to accommodate the transition between independent and assisted living.

Medical Research: With the expansion of the education facility at Tweed Hospital and the aging population, there is an opportunity to expand medical research facilities in the region, including clinical trials of products for older people.

Pharmaceuticals: Generic pharmaceuticals manufacturing could be targeted for the Tweed. Tweed is second only to Daintree in terms of biodiversity and this provides an opportunity for new products based on locally existing genetic material. Tweed is also close to major universities with existing research facilities.

Nutraceuticals: Tropical Fruit World’s research into the health benefits of tropical fruits could be built upon to develop a nutraceuticals research base in the region.

Manufacturing:

Marine: The continued development of infrastructure supporting the development of the marine industry in the region, including the proposed 29-berth marina at Chinderah and the refurbishment of the Tweed Heads Slipway, can be capitalised on by local marine manufacturing and services firms.

Food and Beverage Manufacturing: The decline in agriculture in the Tweed is largely in homogenous products, in which local producers are competing on price. Additional processing and marketing of these commodities can differentiate these products, offering a potential market for local producers.

Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing:

Aquaculture: While there are some aquaculture production facilities currently in the Tweed, and additional facilities have been proposed (e.g., Australia Bay Lobster Producers), this industry is expected to grow significantly over the long-term, as overfishing depletes wild fish stocks. Aquaculture could provide current commercial fishers an opportunity to build on their existing knowledge and move into a sustainable industry.

The sectors that could broaden the Tweed’s economic base but don’t directly stem from current strengths include:

Creative Industries:

Advertising, graphic design and marketing (brand current strengths in tourism)

Film, television and software (build on established film and game industries on Gold Coast and Byron region)


Performing arts

Architecture, visual arts and design

Music composition and production (such as the School of Audio Engineering in Byron Bay)

Writing, publishing and print media.

Information and Communication Technology:

Electronic equipment manufacturing: Continued development of the marine and aviation industries may provide a market large enough to support local production of electronic inputs.

Aviation:

Avionics or avionics repair: Continued expansion of aviation infrastructure in the Tweed, including the proposed development of a general aviation airport and business park, could provide the critical mass required for the development of avionics repair or avionics manufacturing in the region. However, a suitable site for a second airport would need to be identified. It is also noted there has been closure of a regional airport close to the Tweed. Aviation training would also be boosted by the proposed development of a general aviation airport.

4.4 Joint Venture/Private Partnership Opportunities There is the opportunity for Council to play an active role in the industrial property marketplace and lead development, along with creating the appropriate planning and investment friendly environment to promote investment by the private sector. There are a number of financial and non-financial incentives that could be considered by Council.

4.4.1 PPP Legislation

The Local Government Amendment (Public Private Partnerships) Act 2004 (NSW) has amended the Local Government Act 1993 (NSW) and sets out a process for NSW local councils entering into or considering entering into, public private partnerships (PPPs). These amendments are relevant for developers who may be entering into PPPs with local government in NSW. The Act also extends the application of section 55 of the Local Government Act 1993 (NSW) to require Councils to:

Invite tenders from interested parties if a Council is seeking private sector parties to a PPP; and

Use section 55 if the Council has any interest in the relevant entity (eg, if the council has formed a joint venture, the joint venture is subject to the tendering requirements).

The Act will significantly affect Councils’ approach to, and conduct of, PPPs and is likely to motivate a clear shift by Councils towards vigorous project management and risk management procedures and principles across all projects, whether PPPs or otherwise.

4.4.2 Management Models

There are a number of management models that could be considered for the future development of industrial land in the Tweed involving both the public (specifically Council) and private sectors at different stages of the project:

Public sector consent/develop/own/manage

Public sector consent/develop/own → private sector manage


Public sector consent/develop → private sector own/manage

Public sector consent → private sector develop/own/manage

Private sector consent/develop/own/manage.

There are certain requirements and advantages/disadvantages for each management model. The central question is the role Council should play. This can be affected by a number of factors, including private sector interest and demand trends.

The present situation suggests there is market demand and development interest in the industrial land sector in the Tweed. This is evidenced by expressed market interest in larger development. In a situation where there is private sector interest, Council should limit its role to creating an investment friendly environment by appropriately managing the planning process. Council can demonstrate leadership on these issues through the preparation of a clear Employment Land Strategy, establishment of high quality design guidelines, identification of industrial land development opportunities through this Strategy and subsequent landowner consultation/environmental studies, preparation of inward investment attraction material and working closely with the private sector to attract business.

In a market situation where there is little market demand and private sector development interest, a catalyst is required to set development in motion and deliver on Council’s economic agenda. In this situation, it is recommended Council consider an active development role in the marketplace. This could include banking parcels of land suitable for industrial purposes and developing as per previous experiences. Council would then take these parcels to market. There is financial risk associated with this approach, largely represented by the holding costs of the land and development. This strategy again needs to consider the financial capacity of Council.

4.4.3 Incentives

Council could also, as part of its investment attraction, consider financial and non-financial incentives for industrial development such as:

Provision of hard infrastructure;

Incentives to specific targeted industries which yield significant job and wealth creation e.g. rate holidays and/or substantial discounts for specified periods, or free and/or concessional water rates for up to 10 years for major industries etc.;

Assistance with the construction of internal roads;

Assistance with effluent disposal;

Leasing out of Council-owned and developed land for specific periods at minimal rates with an option to purchase;

Exemptions from application fees; and

Pre – approval procedures for employment generating applications

These types of incentives represent considerable capital cost. If Council were to subsidise these costs it would need to be borne from Council’s existing budget at the expense of other items.

There is also legislation that local government must comply with in relation to processing development applications and licensing operations. Given the current State government direction in standardisation of


planning instruments it may be difficult to provide an incentive in the Tweed that is not available throughout the State.

Estimating costs on these incentives is difficult, as each prospective development would need to be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

The provision of such incentives would need to consider the financial capacity of Council. The benefit-cost argument for the incentives could be demonstrated through additional employment and residential development and associated rate revenue to Council.

Council has previously reviewed its position on financial incentives to industry and did not adopt any change. Council presently supports the development of employment industries through non-financial means, such as fast tracking specific infrastructure required for development and developer bonuses in some commercial zones. It also uses cost off-set techniques such as the sale of Council land (for future employment uses) at discounted rates, discounts on S.94 plan road contributions, and not applying some other S.94 contributions to employment generating development.

To attract a preferred type of employment generating industry to the Tweed it is important to have a consolidated approach to investment incentives which should be reviewed periodically as circumstances change. This will also need to be done in conjunction with incentives offered by State and Federal governments.


5. Future Employment Land Needs

The future employment land needs assessment involves an analysis of the future demand and need for employment land based on economic, industry and population projections and strategic growth potential and opportunities which consider competitive factors.

5.1 Industrial Land

5.1.1 Existing Industrial Land Supply

There are currently six industrial zoned areas in the Tweed, covering a total of 231.0 ha. Of this, 92.5 ha (or 40%) is developed and is being used for industrial purposes with the remaining 138.5 ha (or 60%) undeveloped or is being developed (Table 5-1).

The largest industrial precinct in terms of total zoned area is the Murwillumbah Industrial Estate (126.0 ha). This includes the recently developed Tweed Valley Enterprise Park which, when fully developed to 40 ha, has the capacity to generate from 880 to 2,200 jobs. As the Tweed Valley Enterprise Park was still under construction at the time of preparing this Strategy it has been counted as undeveloped land.

The 138.5 ha of undeveloped land is located at Murwillumbah (70.0 ha), Chinderah (52.5 ha) and Tringa Street in Tweed Heads West (16.0 ha).

Table 5-1 Tweed Industrial Land Supply (4a Zoned Land)

Area (ha)

Industrial Estate Locality Total Zoned Land

Developed Land

Undeveloped Land

Discounted Undeveloped

Chinderah Road Industrial Estate

Chinderah 61.0 8.5 52.5 42

Greenway Drive Trade and Industry Estate

South Tweed Heads

13.5 13.5 0.0 0.0

Ourimbah Road Industrial Estate

Tweed Heads 10.5 10.5 0.0 0.0

Tringa Street Industrial Estate West Tweed Heads

16.0 0.0 16.0 12

Murwillumbah Industrial Estate/

Tweed Valley Enterprise Park

South Murwillumbah

126.0 56.0 70.0 8.0

Condong Sugar Mill and Power Station

Condong 4.0 4.0 0.0 0.0

Total 231.0 92.5 138.5 62 * Assumed to be fully occupied however not all development on-the-ground as yet Sources: TEDC, GHD, AECgroup


Light industrial uses are also permitted in the 3(c) Commerce & Trade Zone in South Tweed Heads. Analysis of the business mix in these zones suggests the traditional industrial sectors of manufacturing, wholesale trade and transport & storage account for approximately 15% of businesses in these zones.

5.1.2 Constraints on Existing Industrial Land Supply

The undeveloped industrial land at Murwillumbah (70 ha) includes 40 ha in the Tweed Valley Enterprise Park which is currently under construction. This land is likely to come onto the market in the short term and early interest suggests that it will be quickly absorbed by pent up demand for serviced industrial land. Given the long term nature of this Strategy, it is appropriate to discount this land from the future long term supply.

Of the remaining 30 ha of Murwillumbah industrial land, approximately 11ha is located on the floodplain in the older part of the estate near the old Pacific Highway. This area is currently used for sugar cane production and is in part affected by high flood flow. Previous flood impact assessments associated with this land revealed its importance as part of the South Murwillumbah flood storage basin, and that any net loss of flood storage due to filling in the area would adversely impact on urban development in South Murwillumbah and Murwillumbah CBD. This will constrain its development for industrial use. It should be discounted for the foreseeable future as a source of industrial land. A further 7 ha (approximately) of zoned land is currently occupied by a small quarry operation based on an on-site resource. It is not known when this resource will be exhausted and whether the site will then be suitable for industrial use. This area should be discounted for the foreseeable future as a source of industrial land. A further 4 ha (approximately) of zoned land immediately to the east of the Tweed Valley Enterprise Park is constrained by a steep gully that will make it difficult to develop. This area should also be discounted for the foreseeable future as a source of industrial land.

So, the actual bank of land that may yield additional industrial lots in the Murwillumbah Industrial Estate (excluding the Tweed Valley Enterprise Park) is approximately 8 ha. However, this land is fragmented and in multiple ownership and the likelihood of a significant yield is unknown.

The Tringa Street industrial land at Tweed Heads West (16 ha) is an isolated patch of industrial zoned land south of the Gold Coast airport and adjacent to a residential area. Its legal access is also through this residential area. Although it has had consent for filling and development for some time it has been unable to obtain a satisfactory source of fill (its flood prone land) or a satisfactory way of accessing the site to get the fill onto the land. It is likely that this land will remain undeveloped until an alternate access can be established, most likely through the Tweed Heads STP and /or the ex drive-in theatre site to the east of the land. The options for access will become clearer when the Tugun bypass is completed in 2008. It is unlikely that this area will deliver industrial land to the market in the short term, but it probably will produce industrial land in conjunction with surrounding sites in due course. Applying a 20% discount for buffers to the water way and the adjacent residential area will reduce the useable area to approximately 12 ha.

The undeveloped Chinderah industrial land (52.5 ha) is entirely floodprone, although it is not subject to high hazard flooding. Approximately 6 ha of the zoned land is located north of the Pacific Motorway and of this, approximately 3 ha is currently a dredge pit from which sand has been extracted in the past. Of the land south of the Pacific Motorway there are some small areas of ecologically sensitive vegetation, but it is not known if these warrant preservation in the context of future development. Large amounts of fill will be required to bring the zoned areas above flood heights and there is an application currently being processed to excavate material nearby for this purpose. About 80% of this land should be


regarded as being available for future industrial development subject to resolution of the flooding issue. This is an amount of approximately 42 ha.

5.1.3 Recent Demand Trends

The Potential Industrial Land Investigation for Tweed Shire (2000) reported average industrial land take-up of around 4 ha per annum between 1995 and 2000. However, recent increases in non-residential (commercial and industrial) investment in the Tweed signal increasing development pressure and demand in the Tweed.

Additionally, the initial expression of interest in the Tweed Valley Enterprise Park is reflective of an element of pent-up demand from local service-based businesses (i.e. those serving local catchments) in the Tweed seeking to expand, in addition to demand from new business, business relocations and local investor speculation, including light industrial businesses located in the 3c Commerce & Trade zone seeking to relocate to a 4a Industrial zone.

The TEDC has received, and continues to receive, enquiries from businesses seeking to identify, purchase and or establish enterprises on land zoned industrial in the Tweed, mainly from regionally significant and export orientated businesses more sensitive to regional location. The TEDC indicates it has received a number of enquiries from potential investors/developers, requesting information on various aspects and opportunities for the development of employment-generating (enterprise) land in the Tweed.

5.1.4 Projected Future Demand

Demand for industrial land can be projected using a per capita or employment-based approach, although the employment-based approach is preferred given it considers the employment capacity of the region.

Demand for new industrial land can be sourced from two channels: (1) expansion of the existing industrial sector; and/or (2) attraction of new businesses to the region. Anecdotal evidence suggests there is latent demand in the market and expansion intentions by existing business if suitable land was available.

As a starting point, the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (prepared by the Department of Planning) forecasts an additional 156 ha of industrial land and an additional 76 ha of commercial land would be required to provide employment opportunities for the projected regional population. It is suggested this projection relates to the traditional share of employment in these sectors applied to additional population growth in the region, rather than as a result of any identified opportunity to create regional employment growth through a proactive approach to investment attraction through enterprise land development. The previous industrial land demand analysis prepared for Tweed Shire in 2000 projected 80 ha of industrial land would be required over 20 years based on an average take-up of 4 ha per annum between 1995 and 2000.

There are two approaches to projecting future industrial land demand in the Tweed:

1. Per capita approach based on current and benchmark land supply per capita; and

2. Queensland Department of State Development employment methodology.

Both methodologies are discussed in the sections below to provide indications of additional land requirements relative to employment and population growth. Scenarios have been developed within each methodology to analyse potential implications of structural change in the industrial land market.


5.1.5 Land Demand Per Capita Methodology

The Tweed records a relatively low supply of industrial land per capita (14 m2) when compared with benchmarks (30 m2 and higher). Projecting demand for land into the future on the basis of a higher per capita suggests significant increases in demand.

The TEDC has referred to studies by Queensland’s Department of State Development suggest that in terms of enterprise land, in regional growth areas there is a need for:

50 m2 per head of population short term; and

100 m2 per head of population long term.

The TEDC has used this formula to estimate the Tweed’s land need as 400 ha in the short term and 800 ha in the long term. Previous research by the TEDC (Coolangatta Airport Enterprise Park Feasibility Study, 2001) identified that large lot enterprise land has the capacity to produce from 22 to 55 jobs per hectare in the region. This compares with generally adopted ratios of 20-30 persons per hectare by the Queensland Government.

The above ratios of industrial land supply per capita far exceed other benchmarks presented by the Queensland Department of State Development that suggest 3 ha per 1,000 persons (or 30 m2 per capita) is a more reasonable measure of industrial needs. This measure, however, does not distinguish between local, district and regional needs or demand for business and industry lands. The measure also does not include allowance for strategic export industry opportunities.

The Tweed’s current ratio of industrial land per capita is approximately 14 m2 per capita. However, it is noted that more than 80% of this industrial land supply in some estates is for non-industrial uses. The ratio is well below the benchmark ratios quoted by the Queensland Department of State Development.

The projections range between a total of 160-180 ha under the current per capita ratio (14.3 m2) in 2031, increasing to 330-380 ha for the 30 m2 per capita ratio and 1,110-1,270 ha under the 50 m2 short and 100 m2 long-term ratios. The latter outcome is more than 10 times the size of the existing industrial land demand in the Tweed (Table 5-2).

In incremental terms, if the current occupied land quantum is estimated at just less than 120 ha, then there could be demand for an additional 40-60 ha under the current per capita scenario, increasing to 210-260 ha under the 30 m2 per capita ratio and 990-1,150 ha under the 50 m2 short and 100 m2 long-term ratios.

The key issue is whether the Tweed could generate adequate demand to provide for the higher land supply requirements and whether there is employment capacity to do so, given the ageing population and older demographic. The second methodology considers this employment capacity. Attaining a benchmark 30 m2 per capita ratio requires the Tweed to double its ratio and projects 3-4 times existing land demand in 25 year’s time.

Table 5-2 Projected Industrial Land Demand in Tweed (Per Capita Approach), (ha)

Region 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031

Current Per Capita (14.3 m2)

Low Population Projections Scenario 120 130 140 140 150 160


Region 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031

Medium Population Projections Scenario 120 130 140 150 160 170

High Population Projections Scenario 120 130 140 160 170 180

Higher Per Capita (30.0 m2)

Low Population Projections Scenario 270 290 300 320 330

Medium Population Projections Scenario 270 290 320 340 360

High Population Projections Scenario 280 300 330 360 380

Maximum Per Capita (50.0m2/100.0 m2)

Low Population Projections Scenario 450 480 1,010 1,060 1,110

Medium Population Projections Scenario 450 490 1,050 1,120 1,190

High Population Projections Scenario 460 500 1,100 1,190 1,270 Source: Department of Planning (2005), AECgroup

5.1.6 Land Demand Per Employee Methodology

The more reliable employment-based methodology, which considers the employment capacity of the Tweed, projects demand for between 110 and 250 ha of industrial land over the next 25 years, still well above that projected by the Department of Planning and high compared with historic take-up rates. This land demand covers the spatial requirements of the economic and industry development opportunities.

In basic terms, industry is generated servicing the demands created by providing goods and services to the local population, value adding to locally generated products and value adding to products generated elsewhere in other regions.

Important demand drivers of industrial land demand include:

Economic growth: The demand for goods and services stimulates investment in productive capacity, which in turn results in increasing demand for land to locate production facilities and accommodate employees;

Labour productivity: There is a positive relationship between labour productivity and the demand for industrial land;

Levels of employment: As economic prosperity rises so too does employment and assuming labour productivity remains strong, the level of production increases accordingly. Therefore, by predicting employment levels it is possible to estimate the demand for industrial land; and

Changes in industry structure: Certain industries tend to locate within industrial estates and have different value adding outcomes. The significance of these industries to a region will in part determine the demand for industrial land.

Each of these factors is considered in the Queensland Department of State Development’s model for determining land requirements for types of industrial land. The model represents the most


comprehensive method of estimating industrial land requirements and involves the following estimation process:

Projecting likely population growth into the future;

Projecting employment demands of the projected population base;

Determining the percentage of employment required for specific industry sectors;

Using predetermined density benchmarks, calculating employees per unit areas; and

Estimating likely spatial demand.

5.1.7 Population Projections

The Department of Planning’s 2005 population projections have been adopted, with low and high series modifications as reported earlier.

5.1.8 Workforce Availability Rate

The net available employment rate is the percentage of the Tweed population employed in the Tweed i.e. the proportion of the total population seeking employment within the boundaries of the Tweed. It is calculated by multiplying the labour force participation rate, by the employment rate, by the retention rate of employees within the Council area.

Adjustments to the net available workforce rate provides sensitivity analysis for increased economic concentration in the industrial land sector moving forward and opportunities to attract a greater share of export industry. For this reason, the future available workforce of the Tweed is based on the following scenarios:

Base workforce availability;

Base workforce availability plus 10%; and

Base workforce availability plus 20%.

5.1.9 Employment Requirements for Specific Industry Sectors

Based on the 2001 percentage share of employment in each of the key industry sectors, and making an allowance for other support uses and categories, the projected number of employees in the sector moving forward is presented in Table 5-3.


Table 5-3 Projected Additional Employed Persons, Tweed (Medium Series Population)

Region 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031

Baseline

Manufacturing 183 351 516 678 831

Wholesale 106 204 299 394 482

Transport 105 202 297 390 479

Supporting/Other Industry 108 207 305 401 491

Total 502 963 1,416 1,863 2,283

Baseline + 15%

Manufacturing 210 403 593 780 956

Wholesale 122 234 344 453 555

Transport 121 232 341 449 550


Total 577 1,108 1,629 2,143 2,626

Baseline + 30%

Manufacturing 237 456 670 882 1,081

Wholesale 138 265 389 512 627

Transport 137 262 386 508 622


Total 652 1,252 1,841 2,422 2,969

Baseline + 45%

Manufacturing 265 508 748 983 1,205

Wholesale 154 295 434 571 700

Transport 152 293 430 566 694


Total 727 1,397 2,053 2,701 3,311 Source: ABS 2001 Census, ABS 2001 Journey to Work Data, Department of Planning (2005), AECgroup

The employment servicing capacity of the Tweed is an important consideration in terms of the potential to meet future employment land demand needs. It is acknowledged that any successful supply catalyst in the region for new employment lands could change to some extent the demographic trends in the Tweed, and attract a larger proportion of younger families and working-age individuals.


To place the projected employment figures and the scenarios for net workforce availability into perspective, the table below outlines the percentage share of the labour force that would be employed in the industrial sectors. The scenarios below indicate that the scenarios assume between 14% and 21% of additional employed persons in the Tweed will be employed in the industrial land sectors (Table 5-4).

For comparison, the 2001 percentage share for industrial land sectors was 14.6%, although the Tweed recorded a net deficit of around 25% of residents employed in these sectors working outside the Tweed. Therefore, the scenarios consider both an increasing retention of future employees in these sectors and an increase in the significance of these sectors in the employment structure of the region.

Table 5-4 Projected Share of Additional Employed Persons in Tweed in Industrial Sector

Region % share

Baseline 14%

Baseline +15% 16%

Baseline +30% 18%

Baseline +45% 21% Source: ABS 2001 Census, ABS 2001 Journey to Work Data, DIPNR 2005 Population Projections, AECgroup

5.1.10 Allowance for Other Supporting Industry

While it is accepted that not all businesses in the above sectors will locate in industrial estates, it is reasonable to assume that a significant majority will. This is the same as making an allowance for the infiltration of bulky goods uses into industrial zones. Also, it is not uncommon for businesses from outside these industry sectors to locate in industrial estates in an effort to maximise linkages and synergies with other industries.

Examples of this might include:

Depot and service facilities for the construction industry;

Communications facilities (e.g. call centres);

Retail outlets for manufactured goods or servicing the industrial estate;

Financial and property service providers supporting industry; and

Personal services.

It is difficult to determine the extent to which other sectors might locate on industrial estates, however previous studies have estimated that, in terms of employment, approximately 5% of other sectors locate in industrial estates, which is approximately 4% of the total employment.

5.1.11 Employees per Land Area by Specific Industry Sector

Each of the categories of industrial land accommodates different levels of employment due to the differences in land use requirements. The adopted yields based on the Queensland Department of State Development methodology for the categories are:

Manufacturing employs 30 employees/ha


Wholesale trade 20 employees/ha

Transport & storage employs 20 employees/ha

Supporting land uses employ 20 employees/ha.

5.1.12 Allowance for Roads, Utilities and Open Space (Buffers)

Forward planning exercises for industrial land must also consider the accommodation of services (such as roads and utilities) and open space. Queensland benchmarks indicate requirements for services of between 5%-10% of the total industrial area (as such 7.5% will be used in this analysis) and open space equivalent to 30% of land used by industry. This open space represents an indicative allowance for buffering, although site-specific developments will require more detailed buffering calculations depending on environmental studies, proposed uses, surrounding land uses and buffering technique.

5.1.13 Projected Land Demand by Specific Industry Sector

Based on the Queensland Department of State Development methodology and analysis described above, the projected demand for additional industrial land in the Tweed over the next 25 years is estimated at 110-250 ha (see Table 5-5).

This projection range includes the current per capita forecasting outcome of 180 ha, but is below the higher per capita (30 m2) outcome of 330-380 ha. The reason for this is that this methodology inherently considers the employment capacity of the region to meet the demands of industrial land, which is an important issue for the Tweed given its older demographic. The per capita approach does not consider this capacity constraint.

There is an estimated deficit (number of residents less number of workers) of 800 employees in the manufacturing, wholesale trade and transport & storage sectors in the Tweed. If there were improved industrial land opportunities in the Tweed with increased retention of local labour and increased attraction of labour from adjacent regions, then this would increase demand by around 20 ha.


Table 5-5 Projected Additional Industrial Land Demand in Tweed, (ha)

Region 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031

Baseline




Baseline + 15%




Baseline + 30%




Baseline + 45%



High Population Projections Scenario 50 100 150 200 250 Source: ABS 2001 Census, ABS 2001 Journey to Work Data, DIPNR 2005 Population Projections, AECgroup

In summary, the future additional land demand is projected at between 110 and 250 ha in the Tweed over the next 25 years based on projected employment capacity and sensitivity analysis on higher growth outcomes (+15%, +30% and +45%). It is suggested the employment-based methodology is a more reliable projection technique given it considers the employment capacity of the region. The per capita approach, with increased per capita supply, is largely a benchmark methodology that does not specifically consider the Tweed’s opportunities and constraints.

The projections prepared under the employment methodology significantly exceed the requirements for industrial lands set out in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy of 156 ha for the entire region which were based on meeting the employment needs of population growth. Additionally, the 110-250 ha projections indicate average take-up of up to 25 ha per annum, significantly above historic rates. The projections also suggest a substantial increase in industrial land demand from the currently occupied 92.5 ha. Therefore, in all respects, the projected land demand for the Tweed of 110-250 ha over 25 years can be considered significantly higher than historic take-up rates and reflective of the strategic position, economic opportunities and employment capacity of the region.

It should also be noted that the employment-based projections consider a continuing role for heavy industry in the region consistent with present supply. It may be challenging to promote heavy industry in the Tweed given competing and conflicting residential land uses. The Tweed may also be at a


competitive disadvantage when compared with areas to the west such as Casino and Lismore with superior rail infrastructure. This is generally the preferred approach of the NSW Department of Planning.

5.1.14 Future Additional Land Requirements

A 25-year industrial supply is recommended, possibly staged with larger land release in 10-15 year’s time when the Gold Coast’s land stocks deplete. There is the opportunity for integrated master planned estates and business technology parks.

Projecting industrial land demand is a separate issue to assessing what represents the appropriate supply of industrial land. The appropriate supply should consider existing take-up and vacant land, projected demand based on population and employment growth, the flexibility to respond to any surge in demand beyond that anticipated due to a structural change to the market, and the impacts on land values and affordability across the region. The majority of stakeholders believe there is inadequate industrial land to cater for future growth (both from internal and external forces) in the Tweed.

There is no clearly or widely accepted definition of what constitutes an adequate supply of industrial land relative to projected demand. Both the State Governments in Victoria and South Australia have indicated that 15 years supply is sufficient to satisfy short-and long-term market demands for land. This timeframe recognises the lead-time required for identifying land suitable for industrial uses and the need to maintain the current stock of industrial land allowing for a variety of lot sizes and industry precinct types. For a local government example, the former Hastings Council, in the Mid North Coast Region of NSW, resolved in 2003 that two times the 20-year projected industrial land demand should be supplied to the market within its planning process.

It is noted there is presently more than double the supply of zoned land (231 ha) relative to occupied land in the Tweed (92.5 ha). When determining the appropriate supply of land relative to demand, the following needs to be considered for the Tweed:

25 year planning timeframe;

Strategic location of the Tweed;

Previous weak take-up and demand trends in the Tweed;

Settlement characteristics of the Tweed and industrial vs residential;

Possibility of unprecedented take-up rates/structural market change;

Strategic economic opportunities and spatial requirements;

Advantages of Tweed over competing regions;

Possibility of greater regional decentralisation of industrial activities;

Affordability of land supply in the Tweed vs SEQ;

Buffering requirements for sensitive uses; and

Choice and range of land options across the Tweed.

The Far North Coast Regional Strategy indicates the use of existing vacant industrial land should be considered prior to the release of any new major industrial areas. There are presently around 20 ha of vacant developed land and 132 ha of vacant undeveloped land zoned for industrial uses in the Tweed. This supply of land, if not physically or commercially constrained, could meet the minimum demand requirement of 110 ha.


Generally, it is considered providing a 25-year supply of industrial land is appropriate. Therefore, a supply of 110-250 ha of land would be required. Subsequent stages of the employment lands strategy will determine the commercial attractiveness, physical suitability and environmental issues associated with the existing vacant zoned land. The Strategy will also consider the ongoing suitability of some industrial zoned parcels (potential for alternative uses). At the same time, the Residential Lands Strategy will review the ongoing suitability of some residential zones and their suitability for employment lands purposes in the long-term.

It is clear a staged and sequential land supply approach will need to be adopted for the Tweed’s industrial land. The Gold Coast currently attracts the major proportion of large-scale and strategic export-orientated industry, but only has 10-15 year’s of supply left based on Yatala and surrounding canelands. Therefore, it may be prudent to restrict any major land release in the Tweed to beyond this period, and provide a focus on the consolidation and intensification of use in the existing precincts in the interim. It is also noted bulky goods retail dominates some industrial zones. Relocating these uses over time would provide additional land area for industrial activities in existing precincts.

For new land release, there are a number of approaches that could be considered, including different positioning of each industrial estate. Some opportunities for new land releases include:

Integrated master planned estate with specific precincts;

Business and industry clusters (such as aviation, marine and transport); and

Business parks with technology focus and campus style offices.

There are some innovative models occurring in the United Kingdom integrating residential and industrial uses through industrial warehouses uses in ground and first floor levels with residential above. The strategies are generally designed to better integrate the two traditionally conflicting uses through improved design.

5.2 Office Space This section assesses the future market demand and need for commercial and professional office space development in the Tweed based on an assessment of current supply and market trends, and forecast market trends and demand drivers.

The following business types are generally accommodated in commercial and professional services office space in the Tweed:

Business services (business, management and other consultants);

Computing services (InfoTech, graphic design, other computing);

Property services (building services, real estate, construction);

Financial services (accountants, finance, insurance);

Legal services (solicitors, lawyers);

Government (Council, state and federal government, community);

Health services (medical practitioners, physiotherapists, dentists);

Employment and education services (training, recruitment); and

Other (veterinary services, religious organisations, other).


5.2.1 Commercial Centres Hierarchy

As noted previously, the Far North Coast Regional Strategy promotes a clear hierarchy of commercial centres consistent in scale and centrally located within each community. It is intended that major commercial development, such as large-scale office development, will be located within large centres. Other commercial development, which relates to the scale of adjoining urban areas, will be located within the boundaries of towns and villages, utilising existing commercial centres where possible, and integrated with the initial planning of new release areas.

The Regional Strategy identifies Tweed Heads as a major regional centre and Murwillumbah as a major town. With regard to the Tweed Heads Major Regional Centre, the Strategy notes the revitalisation of Tweed Heads CBD will become the focus for the Tweed urban area, enabling it to provide a high level of services, employment and housing to complement those provided in the adjoining SEQ. For Murwillumbah, a Major Town’s role is defined in the Strategy as providing a level of services and employment to support the surrounding catchment of villages and rural settlements.

The SEQ Regional Plan defines the nearby Coolangatta/Tweed Centre as a Major Activity Centre, serving catchments of regional significance and accommodating key concentrations of employment. In terms of office, as a secondary sub-regional focus of administration, they accommodate district and branch offices of government and cultural and entertainment facilities of regional significance. The Coolangatta Centre, in terms of the SEQ Regional Plan, is grouped with Tweed. This is also the way the Gold Coast City Council views the two Town Centres in its planning and LGMS.

5.2.2 Existing Commercial Office Space Provision

There is presently an estimated 58,970 m2 of office floor space in the Tweed, evenly distributed between Tweed Heads (18,600 m2), South Tweed (15,300 m2) and Murwillumbah (16,200 m2). The next largest clusters of space are located at Kingscliff (4,400 m2) and Banora Point (1,800 m2) (Table 5-6).

Anecdotal evidence suggests current shortages of office space throughout the Tweed, evidenced by low vacancy rates and business turnover. There is limited new office development providing additional supply to the market in the Tweed. These commercial property investments are generally lumpy in nature. These developments, in many respects, require the certainty in planning that is presently being undertaken for the Tweed Heads and Tweed Heads South centres.


Table 5-6 Existing Office Floorspace by Centre, Tweed Shire

Type Tweed Heads

Tweed Heads South

Tweed Heads West

Bilambil/Terranora

BanoraPoint

Fingal Chinderah

Kingscliff

Cabarita HastingsPoint

Pottsville Murwillumbah Rural West

Total

Businesses

Professional Services 80

36 2 1 3 0 0 22 12 0 5 70 9 249

General Commercial Office 21

14 0 0 5 0 0 1 0 0 0 17 0 58

Total 101 50 2 1 8 0 0 23 12 0 5 87 9 307

Floorspace (m2)

Professional Services 15,031

13,531 192 51 1,135 0 0 4,136 900 0 372 11,655 1,082 48,084

General Commercial Office 3,608

1,764 0 0 644 0 0 309 0 0 0 4,561 0 10,886

Total 18,639 15,295 192 51 1,779 0 0 4,445 900 0 372 16,216 1,082 58,970


In terms of benchmarking the office space supply in the Tweed, the average office floorspace per capita in the Tweed is estimated at 0.74 m2. This is in the middle of the scale of nearby regional centres in SEQ from the most recent 1999 estimates, including the Gold Coast. Interestingly, the Tweed records a relatively larger supply of office floorspace per capita when compared with sub-regional areas such as Ipswich and Caboolture (Table 5-7).

Table 5-7 Supply of Commercial Office Space in the Tweed and Elsewhere

Location Average office floor space per capita in m2

Toowoomba 1.05

Brisbane 0.92

Tweed 0.74

Gold Coast 0.56

Maroochydore 0.52

Ipswich 0.35

Caboolture 0.19 Source: AECgroup, QDLGP (1999)

5.2.3 Business Tenancy Mix

Table 5-6 indicates approximately 82% of the office floorspace supply in the Tweed is described as professional services. The Tweed Retail Strategy describes professional services as consisting of businesses that provide professional service and advice to the public and business community. Such businesses include accountants, lawyers, doctors, dentists, chiropractors and physiotherapists.

The remaining 18% of floorspace supply is described as general commercial offices, which consists of businesses that do not have a primary focus of servicing the public. These businesses are generally not location dependent and are likely to export their service/product outside of the area. Murwillumbah records the highest share of commercial office floorspace, reflecting its administrative role to the region.

Therefore, this suggests the demand for approximately 82% of the current office market in the Tweed is driven by local population growth, with the remaining 18% driven by strategic export opportunities and the location of the Tweed to do business. The two largest centres of Tweed Heads and South Tweed Heads record the largest amounts of professional service floorspace, reflecting their major centre roles.

In terms of a tenancy mix, there are around 300 professional and commercial office businesses in the Tweed, distributed as per the graph below (Diagram 5-1). A large proportion is classified as businesses services (65%), along with property services (24%) to support the strong housing market. There are small proportions of other service businesses.


Diagram 5-1 Distribution of Professional and Commercial Businesses in the Tweed

Tweed Professional and Commercial Services Firms by ANZSIC Subdivision

Communciation Services, 0.7%

Finance, 2.9%

Insurance, 1.2%

Government Administration, 1.7%

Services to Finance and Insurance, 4.3%

Property Services, 24.0%

Business Services, 65.3%

Source: Australian Online Business Database

5.2.4 Projected Office Space Demand

Based on the current 0.74 m2 per capita office supply (which is likely to decline as the market matures) and projected population growth, the demand for office space is estimated at between 19,800 and 29,100 m2 over the next 25 years, refer to Table 5-8. Tweed Heads and Tweed Heads South are projected to account for 65% of future demand.

The demand for commercial office floorspace is directly linked to population, economic and business growth. The more people there are living in a particular region, the more commercial and professional business services will be required to service residential demand. Likewise, strong economic growth will drive commercial needs for these same business services. There are currently reported shortages of office space in the Tweed, suggesting some latent demand in the market.

In terms of projecting future demand for office space, the projected population growth of the region and continued business and economic growth is likely to result in the creation of new businesses and office space requirements. It is unlikely given current supply there will be increases to government services in the region. However, there is likely to be increased demand across other office sectors.

There is presently 0.74 m2 per capita of other office space in the Tweed. Assuming this per capita supply remained constant, despite the likelihood there would be some consolidation and economies of scale (which has been the case with other regional centres), but balanced against potential critical mass for larger-scale office development, then the Tweed would record demand for an additional 19,800 m2 of office space under the low scenario and 29,100 m2 under the high scenario by 2031.


Table 5-8 Projected Additional Demand for Office Space in the Tweed (m2)

Scenario 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031

Office space ratio of 0.74 m2 per capita

Low 2,700 7,600 11,900 16,000 19,800

Medium 2,700 8,600 13,900 19,200 24,400

High 2,700 9,500 16,000 22,500 29,100 Source: AECgroup

It is likely that there will be a period of consolidation in the office sector in the Tweed given the region has reached critical mass and most local professional services are represented in each local area and at the main centres. What is likely to occur is an increasing share of commercial office floorspace, or strategically export orientated business, given the location of the region and the future growth potential of the centres. Many of these services are presently located in Gold Coast centres and many local Tweed residents also work in these offices outside the Tweed.

It is possible to provide an indicative analysis of the future distribution of this projected office floorspace demand across the individual commercial centres in the Tweed. It is noted there are no other Major Regional Centres, Major Towns or Towns defined in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy in the Tweed Shire for regional planning purposes. The remaining centres are classified as local centres, serving only the needs of specific local catchments. Their growth potential, therefore, is largely dictated by the population growth in their local areas.

The majority of additional commercial and professional office space development and supply is outlined for the larger, more regionally focussed Tweed Heads and Murwillumbah centres, as per the Regional Strategy. It is also noted the Tweed Heads South Centre is increasingly becoming retail focussed, whereas the Tweed Heads Centre, along with Coolangatta, is well placed for additional high order commercial office floorspace. Both centres have the opportunity to benefit through improved transport links with SEQ and the Gold Coast. Additionally, the pent up demand in the SEQ office market could provide a potential flow-on of demand for some smaller, less location-orientated businesses, to relocate to the Tweed and its emerging centres.

The analysis below considers the current and potential future distribution of office floorspace across the Tweed. Tweed Heads is assumed to record a higher 40% share of additional development due to an increasing share of commercial office development. Tweed Heads South is assumed to retain a relatively unchanged share of activity, reflecting its co retail and professional office role, and considering population growth in its local catchment. Murwillumbah’s share is assumed to decline to 20%, given a large share of its existing space is reflected by Council and government services, which are not expected to increase. There is an assumed 15% share for existing and additional town/village/rural centres throughout the Tweed, distributed consistently with future settlement patterns and residential activity outcomes.


To place the demand projections in context, the Tweed Heads projection equates to between 42% and 62% increase over the next 25 years compared with existing supply. At Tweed Heads South, the projected increase is 32% and 48%.

Table 5-9 also translates these projected floorspace demand figures into job targets, based on an average of 20 m2 per employee. Overall, the floorspace provision could yield somewhere between 990 and 1,460 jobs in the Tweed’s additional office space. Targets are provided for each of the individual centres.

Table 5-9 Current and Projected Distributions of Office Floorspace in the Tweed

Market Share (%) Projected Additional m2 Projected Jobs Target

Centre/Location Current Additional Low Medium High Low Medium High

Tweed Heads 32% 40% 7,900 9,800 11,600 400 490 580

Tweed Heads South 26% 25% 5,000 6,100 7,300 250 310 370

Murwillumbah 27% 20% 4,000 4,900 5,800 200 250 290

Town/Village/ Rural 15% 15% 3,000 3,700 4,400 150 190 220

Total 100% 100% 19,800 24,400 29,100 990 1,220 1,460Source: AECgroup

5.2.5 Strategic Development Opportunities

The existing office space in the Tweed is generally of low quality, providing redevelopment opportunities to provide newer space. This could occur within a range of accommodation types, including towers, business parks or smaller office buildings.

The future demand for office space in the Tweed can be accommodated in three ways:

Construction of new office space; and/or

Redevelopment of existing office space; and/or

Occupation of existing vacant or under utilised office space.

Much of the existing office floorspace is of lower quality according to Property Council of Australia definitions. There will be opportunities to possibly reinvest in these properties, or identify opportunities for site consolidation and redevelopment.

The projected demand analysis suggests there will need to be consideration for the construction of new office space to provide improved range and choice of supply, particularly at the upper end of the market.

There is little vacant floorspace presently in the Tweed, a signal of pent up demand.

In terms of the nature of the floorspace itself, options include:

Taller office towers;

Sleeved low-density office buildings;

Offices within retail strips and shopping centres;


Business parks and campus style offices; and

Home-based offices (discussed below).

Traditionally, the Tweed has recorded limited office tower development, with most supply mixed in with retail centres and along retail strips. There are some low-density office buildings. There are limited office developments occurring in the enterprise/business parks in the Tweed. However, this is a trend in the Gold Coast market, but has occurred at the expense of some traditional CBDs.

There are opportunities to consolidate office floorspace in the Tweed more so than is currently the case. This could be achieved through precinct approaches within the commercial centres and relocation of existing businesses to redeveloped premises.

The master planning for the Tweed Heads and Tweed Heads South Centres will determine the opportunities for these forms of development, considering development capacity and options relative to the projected floor space requirements.

It should also be noted that in new urban areas such as Cobaki Lakes and Kings Forest Council anticipates that there will be some opportunity for employment land provision. A ratio of 1 ha per 1000 population is an indication of the yield. Although much of this is likely to be used for neighbourhood retail uses there will be a proportion that is available for office space.

5.2.6 Home-Based Office Trends

Overall, employees working at home for more hours than elsewhere (home based business operator) accounted for around 7.0% of all persons employed in Australia in June 2001, almost double that estimated in 1995 (3.7%).

According to Home-Based Business Australia (HBBA), 12% of households in Australia operate a business from home with the sector reported to be growing strongly.

The rapid growth in home-based businesses is due to factors such as:

Downsizing and outsourcing in large organisations;

Relatively high unemployment levels in some areas;

Increasing participation of women in the workforce;

Potential of new information and communications technology;

Changing lifestyle expectations (semi-retirement etc); and

Changing levels of skill in the workforce.

Telstra estimates that 25% of the Australian workforce will be working from home in the next decade, translating to approximately two million people, or three times as many as recorded in 2001.

The lifestyle promoted by the Tweed encourages home-based offices, similar to places like Noosa Heads, on the Sunshine Coast.

5.2.7 Need for Additional Office Space Provision

There are a number of public need arguments for additional office floorspace in the Tweed. The following brief comments highlight the ability of commercial office development in meeting public need:


1. Enable the Entry of Larger Tenants: Attracting major accounting, legal and financial organisations, along with local and state government departments, are key challenges for the Tweed. This represents a specific opportunity for Major Regional Centres such as Tweed Heads to provide larger-scale, high quality office space capable of accommodating such tenants. Without the provision of such space, large tenants looking to position themselves to cater for the Tweed’s growth may not consider the Tweed as an office location. An opportunity for employment and economic growth may be lost. In particular, the pent up demand in the SEQ office market may present opportunities for the Tweed office market, particularly for businesses that are not location-orientated in their clientele.

2. Provision of Business Support Services: As the Tweed economy continues to grow, businesses will need to have their support services such as accounting and legal services closer to their operational location and limit the need for outsourcing to competing commercial centres such as the Gold Coast. As the population grows, there will be significant demand for professional services in the Tweed and it is imperative the Tweed is able to provide facilities that can attract business to the area to cater for this growth. The development of new, strata-titled office accommodation would enable the clustering of service providers. The attraction of large tenancies such as government departments, accounting and legal practices would act as a catalyst for demand in business support services throughout the Tweed.

3. Facilitation of Economic Growth: Providing an incentive through additional office development in the Tweed for anchor tenants such as government departments and major accounting and legal services to locate in the region will further the investment in the Tweed, in turn increasing employment and incomes in the region. At present, the majority of professionals living in the Tweed transit to the Gold Coast for work. The associated employment impacts from providing additional office floorspace in the Tweed demonstrate the direct economic benefits of these services. Additionally, improved service delivery can mean reduced leakage of these services to the Gold Coast, thereby further retaining and increasing economic activity.

4. Lessen Market Fragmentation: The development of significant, quality office accommodation in the key commercial centres in the Tweed would help improve any existing fragmentation in the office market. There are opportunities to consolidate office floorspace in the Tweed more so than is currently the case. This could be achieved through precinct approaches within the commercial centres and relocation of existing businesses to redeveloped premises.

5. Ensure Adequate Service Provision: The provision of additional office space is determined by a floorspace per capita methodology. The methodology is based on the belief there is a particular amount of service provision for each commercial office type that a population catchment requires to function adequately, and then this can be summarised by a specific floorspace provision for each person. Not providing some of these services by inadequate office space provision would be to the detriment of the community’s well being. The comparison of the office floorspace per capita benchmarks at more mature commercial office markets indicates there is some potential for a reduction in this per capita over time as the market matures.

6. Allow for the Expansion of Existing Businesses: There is anecdotal evidence of shortages of office space presently for new businesses and the expansion of existing businesses. Many existing businesses are constrained by their present accommodation and/or locations and require new or redeveloped space that better meets their needs.

7. Improve the Quality, Range and Choice of Space: Providing additional office space, in sustainable amounts, would improve the quality of the Tweed’s office market, which is presently dominated by


lower quality office buildings, reflected by low rents and reinvestment by landlords. Providing newer quality space provides improved range and choice for attracting both new businesses and meeting the expansion needs of existing businesses in the Tweed.


6. Land Suitability and Infrastructure

6.1 Land Suitability The Tweed Shire is subject to a number of environmental constraints which affect the ability of land to be used for employment purposes. The type of constraints and how they effect Tweed Shire is discussed in Appendix A. The extent of the constraints is shown in Figures 2-13.

Using this information on constraints and opportunities a land suitability analysis was undertaken for Tweed Shire. The methodology used in this strategy aims to identify and evaluate a range of constraints, which will impact upon the ability of the Shire to accommodate further employment lands development.



The land suitability analysis is outlined in Appendix B.

6.2 Infrastructure It is important that new employment lands areas are economically and efficiently serviced in terms of water, sewer, roads and public transport and that the cost of providing such services does not impose an unacceptable burden on existing residents. Issues relating to the servicing of proposed release areas are discussed in Appendix C.


7. Planning Principles and Locality Recommendations

7.1 Key Planning Principles It is important in guiding the identification of future employment lands development in Tweed Shire over the short, medium and long term that a set of principles be adopted that acknowledge Tweed’s potential competitive strengths. They should also lead to a diversification of the economic base in a sustainable manner. Finally, they should acknowledge the work already undertaken in the Tweed and in the Northern Rivers Region. The principles are as follows (not in order of importance):

The Tweed economy is fundamentally linked to the economy of South East Queensland and the employment strategy needs to reflect this.

Tweed acknowledges the changing nature of employment and technology and the need to promote mixed use developments in proximity to urban areas that allow innovation and sustainable employment.

In order to reduce the likelihood of supply shortage it is appropriate to have a 25 year supply of industrial land and a similar supply of potential office space to satisfy reasonable demand estimates.

Employment land needs to be available in a range of locations in order to create choice in the market.

Climate change needs to be recognised as both a constraint and an opportunity in the economy of Tweed Shire and the region.

Precinct based planning principles for new or redeveloped employment lands areas needs to be incorporated into Council planning controls and planning policy to encourage co-location of similar employment generators or industries

Diversity in lot size in industrial and mixed use areas will be required to promote the attraction of specific tenants that fit the competitive strengths of the Tweed.

Focus the attention of new employment areas on the potential for export industries and employers without neglecting the service industry needs of the Tweed community.

Consider new or expanded employment areas with existing or potential access to regional transport links such as the Gold Coast airport, Pacific Motorway and the future extension of the railway system from South East Queensland into northern NSW.

Make provision for local service industries and employment areas in suitable locations relevant to existing and future urban areas.

Acknowledge the current and future roles of urban centres in the urban hierarchy of Tweed Shire and how these fit with existing and future employment areas.

Home based employment opportunities need to be maintained and if practical expanded in future planning controls and planning policy to recognise the contribution this option can make to sustainable employment and changing technology.

Encourage co-location of similar employment generators to create synergies.

Capitalise on the availability of water and sewerage infrastructure to encourage movement of significant employment generators into the Tweed.


7.2 Potential Employment Areas in Tweed Shire Using the land suitability analysis in this report and the scoping studies, site analysis and strategic work undertaken previously by Tweed Shire Council there are a number of areas that, subject to further investigation may be suitable for rezoning to accommodate future employment growth. These areas are summarised in Table 7-1 and shown in Figures 14 to 17. They are discussed in the context of the key planning principles later in this chapter.

Table 7-1 Potential Employment Areas in Tweed Shire

Location Gross Potential Area (ha)

Comment

Airport Precinct

(Area 1)

14 Located immediately south of the Gold Coast airport and adjoins on its southern side the existing Tringa Street industrial area. Provides a logical extension to this area in conjunction with other neighbouring lands.

Note that Area 1 is recommended for deletion from the Employment Lands Strategy.

Airport Precinct

(Areas 2 )

29 Located between Tringa Street industrial area and the Tugun bypass and currently is partly vacant, partly Tweed heads STP and partly a landscape and garden supplies operation.

Border Race Track

(Area 3)

11 Located on the border between NSW and Queensland and immediately east of the current Pacific Highway alignment. Currently used by the Tweed heads Coursing Club for greyhound racing.

Chinderah East

(Areas 4)

37 Located east of the Tweed Coast Road immediately south of existing industrial zoned land. This site includes the disused Kingscliff STP.

Wardrop Valley West

(Area 5)

63 Located between the Wardrop Valley Road and the Tweed Valley Way immediately to the west of the Tweed valley Industrial Park. Currently predominantly grazing land.

Wardrop Valley East

(Area 6)

60 Located east of the Wardrop Valley Road adjacent to the industrial zoned Tweed Valley Industrial Park. Currently predominantly grazing land.

West Pottsville

(Area 7)

144 Located west of Pottsville south of Cudgera Creek Road and East of the Pacific Motorway. Currently predominantly grazing land with one small rural residential estate (Kudgeree Avenue).

7.3 Airport Precinct (Areas 1 and 2) This fairly flat area is situated immediately to the south of the Gold Coast Airport in Tweed Heads West. It is in an area of high airport noise impact and is therefore unsuitable for residential development. Building heights would need to be limited to coincide with flight path requirements. There will also be limitations on the types of industry that can locate in this area in view of possible emissions that may constitute controlled activities under the Federal Airport Act. External illumination will be restricted and reflective roof surfaces prohibited. The first one kilometre in distance from the end of the runway is also a


designated public safety area in which the concentration of people is to be avoided. This may further restrict the type of employment activities that can take place in this area.

It is also likely to be affected by road noise from the Tugun bypass after mid 2008. Area 1 is currently used for a horse riding facility, while Area 2 is used partly for the Tweed Heads STP (proposed to be decommissioned in due course with flows diverted to the Banora Point STP) and a garden and landscaping supplies business. Two other parts of the site are vacant land. Areas 1 and 2 have a combined total of 43 ha and this could be used in conjunction with the existing 16 ha of land zoned industrial known as Tringa street. All together a future employment precinct would have approximately 59 ha of land (gross). It should be noted that Tweed Shire Council may yet require some or all of its land for a future STP. Note that Area 1 is recommended for deletion from the Employment Lands Strategy. This would leave Area 2 (29 ha) and the Tringa street industrial zoned land with a combined area of 45 ha (gross).

Access to this precinct is proposed from the Tugun bypass which will be an important asset to the site. There is also existing access off Kennedy Drive into West Tweed Heads. However Kennedy Drive has capacity issues and this would be a limitation. The proximity to the Gold Coast Airport makes it ideally suited to export businesses that rely on air transport in some way. In the longer term it will also have excellent potential links to the heavy rail terminal proposed for the airport precinct. The Tweed Shire Potential Industrial Land Investigation (TSC, 2000) identified this area as a potential Gold Coast Airport Enterprise Park site and ranked it as a high priority subject to resolution of buffer issues with neighbouring residential land, acid sulfate soils, potential contaminated lands (STP), stormwater and drainage. Council has also advised that a flood impact analysis would be required. Given the land is in multiple ownership there will also need to be a co-ordinated approach to internal access and staging of the development of the area to co-ordinate the supply of services and decommissioning of the STP.

The TEDC commissioned a report in 2001 which specifically assessed the options for this land in a local and regional context (SGS, 2001). The report concluded that the site had potential for development and particularly for the following industries – boat building; food and beverage manufacturing; storage and distribution; herbal industries; aircraft parts and manufacturing; and turf farming.

Water supply is not considered an issue for this locality as any development would have access to the existing storage and conveyancing system. Sewerage would be supplied via the connection points that exist at the Tweed Heads STP on Area 2. Although the Tweed Heads STP is to be decommissioned this may not be a permanent closure. It is still possible that a new STP may be built on the same site and in any case it is likely that storage will be maintained on the site for the situation where pumping to Banora Point may need to be suspended. If a new STP is not built on the site then any land contamination issues will need to be resolved before it is rezoned to a higher order use.

Area 1 and 2 is within an area identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy as part of the existing urban footprint and is therefore consistent with that Strategy.

7.4 Border Race Track (Area 3) This triangle shaped piece of land is located at the northern edge of Tweed Shire and shares a lot boundary with the Queensland /NSW border. It also borders onto the existing Ourimbah Road industrial estate. Most of the site is occupied by the race track with the remainder being car parking and club facilities. It is identified in this Strategy on the basis that the existing racing facility may not be viable in the long term. It is not intended to suggest that the existing use is not appropriate, but if it were to cease


then an employment land use would be preferred over residential or retail development. It is relatively free of physical constraints, but has residential development on two sides and this will restrict the type of industrial use that might be undertaken on the site. It is ideally placed to provide for uses that relate to the Gold Coast Airport and is an alternate site for a Gold Coast Airport Enterprise Park. It has excellent services, access and infrastructure and this will improve as heavy rail is linked to the Gold Coast Airport. The opening of the Tugun bypass may allow revision of access arrangements to this land, but that is yet to be determined.

Currently Gold Coast Water supplies water to the property and it cannot be guaranteed that this arrangement would be maintained if employment uses are proposed. Bringing a trunk main from the Tweed may be problematic but that would need further investigation. Sewerage is currently connected via a private pump station and this would need to be upgraded and made part of the public infrastructure. The amount of work involved would be dependent on the amount of sewage to be generated from the employment lands and this would be a function of its end use.

Area 3 is within an area identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy as part of the existing urban footprint and is therefore consistent with that Strategy.

7.5 Chinderah East (Area 4) This area is located on the eastern side of the Tweed Coast Road south of the Pacific Motorway at Chinderah. A small industrial estate exists to the north at Ozone Street. As stated previously in this report there is unused industrial land in other locations nearby. The main limitation to development in this area is flooding. Council’s DCP Section A3 restricts site coverage of structures and permanent improvements within the industrial zoned land to 50%, in order to retain areas available to flood flow. Fragmented ownership and the willingness of owners to undertake employment lands development may also be a factor on some sites. Area 4 is relatively flat and suited to industrial uses.

Access to the Pacific Motorway via the Chinderah interchange is excellent though Council’s Road Development Strategy indicates that the RTA will need to expand the capacity of the Pacific Motorway “on ramp” as traffic numbers increase. The industrial use of this land has the potential to fit in with the water based commercial use of land at Chinderah north of the Pacific Motorway. The land is also well placed for future employee accommodation at the proposed west Kingscliff and Cudgen Heights residential areas and is a short commute to higher density development at Tweed Heads. Access to the Gold Coast and Brisbane will be advanced by the Tugun bypass. The site is also within easy driving distance of the Gold Coast airport.

Area 4 is 37 ha and this could be used in conjunction with the existing 52 ha of unused land zoned industrial in the locality. All together a future employment precinct would have approximately 89 ha of land (gross). An employment lands node of this size in this location will provide an opportunity to both service the northern Tweed coast community as well as providing enough land to entice export manufacturing type employment to this locality.

Water supply poses no problems in this locality. Sewerage could be linked into the existing sewered industrial land at the northern boundary to the site. Decontamination of the former Kingscliff STP site is anticipated by June 2010.

Area 4 was specifically identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy for employment lands purposes in conjunction with existing zoned lands.


7.6 Wardrop Valley West and Wardrop Valley East (Areas 5 and 6) These two areas are located in proximity to the existing Tweed Valley Enterprise Park which is itself part of the Murwillumbah industrial area. They provide a logical extension to the existing industrial development and Area 6 is likely to be developed before Area 5 because of its proximity to services and access off Wardrop Valley Road. They are both predominantly used for grazing with some small patches of vegetation. Area 6 has a cluster of rural residential lots at its north eastern edge but these are now adjacent to industrial land on two sides and have been identified for industrial use. Preliminary consultation from the owners has raised no objections. The additional traffic generated from Areas 5 and 6 will likely require a review of the intersection with Reserve Creek Road and the Tweed Valley Way. A fresh access to Area 5 from the Tweed Valley Way south of Murwillumbah should also be investigated to allow for through traffic movement to the south. There are also capacity problems on both Reserve Creek Road and the Tweed Valley Way. The Tweed Road Development Strategy would need to be reviewed prior to these lands being zoned to assess the traffic impacts more closely. The undulating nature of these sites mean that considerable earthworks will be required to obtain useable industrial land. This will add to upfront costs of land development.

The placement of more employment lands in this location is consistent with the residential options available around Murwillumbah and in the nearby Kielvale area which will provide a place for workers to live in proximity to their place of work.

Area 5 was identified in the Tweed Shire Potential Industrial Land Investigation (TSC, 2000) as a potential employment lands site and ranked it as a high priority. The study noted that there may be issues with an existing quarry and there is a potential quarry resource to the east of the lands.

Areas 5 and 6 have a combined total of 123 ha (gross) which is a significant addition to the existing zoned areas. Council should also consider back zoning to rural some of the existing zoned industrial areas that are subject to high flow flooding unless it can be shown that this hazard can be overcome in a manor consistent with Council’s flood policy.

Water supply can be extended to Area 6 via the upgrading of trunk mains along Tweed Valley Way. Area 5 may need to be connected via the trunk main along Alma Street/River Street but this would require several kilometres of trunk water main connection.

Sewerage options will need to be examined, including the possibility of a package STP that would service the new employment lands and possible residential development in the Kielvale area. A new STP would require a new outfall or effluent disposal option. This would require an EIS and DECC licensing. Upgrading of the Murwillumbah STP (duplication) may be an option particularly if the treated water can be supplied to the Condong sugar mill. This would require extensive transport system upgrading. The opportunity for dual reticulation should also be canvassed as part of any future employment lands development particularly if large scale water users are envisaged.

It is noted with regard to the Far North Coast Regional Strategy that these sites were partially identified and the Wardrop Valley area is shown in that strategy as the focus for employment lands. Concentrating additional opportunities in this location will have benefits in terms of synergies between businesses. The sites meet the sustainability criteria in Appendix A of the Far North Coast Regional Strategy.


7.7 West Pottsville (Area 7) This area is situated west of Pottsville, south of Cudgera Creek Road and east of the Pacific Motorway. It is currently predominantly grazing land with one small rural residential estate (Kudgeree Avenue). It is understood that most of the landowners in this estate have an interest in pursuing the employment lands option. There may also be localised flooding and drainage issues in the vicinity of Cudgera Creek. These would need to be investigated prior to rezoning. Some of the undulating land may require considerable earthworks to make it suitable for industrial development and this will add to development costs.

The area is well located to provide service industry opportunities for Pottsville and the southern part of the Tweed Coast, which currently does not have any significant industrial zoned land. The size of the area (144 ha gross) would also allow genuine export employment opportunities to take up part of the site. One attraction of the site is easy access to the Pacific Motorway via the Cudgera Creek Road interchange. However access through the site will be a critical issue to resolve early in the site planning stage. In particular, there is a major sand quarry with a life span of 25 years planned further to the south that will need to gain access through this area to the Pacific Motorway. A suitable creek crossing will also need to be identified if the Pottsville Road is not used.

Water supply for this area is adequate though dependant in the long term on the proposed Koala Beach Reservoir site. Sewerage is not currently available. There is insufficient capacity in the Hastings Point STP and little opportunity for augmentation. Given the size of this area and its proximity to the proposed area at Dunloe Park, a new STP will be required to service this development and should also take into consideration long term urban growth in the vicinity. A new STP may also take some load from the southern part of Black Rocks and reduce septicity problems in this system. A new STP requires an EIS and must be licensed by DECC.

The southern part of Area 7 was specifically identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy for employment lands purposes. The balance of the area meets the sustainability criteria in Appendix A of the Far North Coast Regional Strategy. Limiting this site to only that area identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy would severely curtail the opportunity for anything more than neighbourhood style employment and make the balance of the area vulnerable to pressure for inappropriate uses such as rural residential development. Further rural residential development would likely make this land unavailable for employment use in the longer term.


8. An Urban Centres Hierarchy

8.1 Urban Centres Hierarchy This Employment Lands Strategy (as with the Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Strategy) puts forward an urban centres hierarchy that gives direction to the existing and future size, role and function of the urban areas of Tweed Shire. In preparing its metropolitan strategy for Sydney the NSW Government published work on the role and definition of urban centres (Dept of Planning, 2005). Much of the centres definition work in the Tweed Shire Urban Land Release Strategy and this Employment Lands Strategy is based on that structure. This is consistent with the urban centre hierarchy outlined for the Kingscliff coast in the Tweed Coast Strategy (DCP 2007, section B9). It is also consistent with the Tweed Shire Retail Strategy (TSC, 2005).

This approach is largely consistent with the urban centres hierarchy contained in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (Dept of Planning, 2006) and discussed in Chapter 5 of this Strategy. However, in light of the additional detail and findings of this Strategy it is suggested that the Far North Coast Regional Strategy will need to be reviewed to recognise this more recent work.

8.1.1 Centre Types

Defining the different centre types helps to guide planning and development in the different places in which we live and work. We need a common language to be able to talk about places as they are and what they might become. For example, a Village may evolve to become a District Town Centre in the future.

The key differences between centre types are the density of residential development, the amount of employment and the amount and type of retail and services that are provided in a centre. These are not hard and fast definitions and are not intended to be used to ‘standardise’ different places. Some centres have more employment, less residential or other differences. The numbers of dwellings and commercial and retail elements is a function of development and redevelopment over a number of decades. Therefore these attributes do not necessarily fit with existing centres in newer, outer or less dense places. The role of centres is the most reliable and constant feature across the Tweed Shire and surrounds.


Table 8-1 Urban Centres Hierarchy

Regional Cities

Regional Cities will offer a full range of business, government, cultural, entertainment and recreational activities, taking advantage of their location as a focal point for regional transport and providing jobs closer to home for people living in their catchment. These Regional Cities will also develop stronger mixed use villages around the centres to provide space for supporting activities and residential communities.

A commercial core is recommended for the most accessible part of the centre, without a residential component. The Regional Cities aim to provide a focal point for high quality jobs in the region, and current trends suggest a high proportion of residential uses within the core may adversely affect the continued development of a commercial office market. The commercial core should provide capacity for growth and change in commercial and retail uses.

Mixed use zoning is recommended for areas surrounding the commercial core, to cater for a range of support services and activities. A significant proportion of residential development in this area adjacent to the commercial core may be a catalyst for revitalising the central areas of a Regional City, including waterfront redevelopment with river/parkland or ocean views.

The nearest regional city is the Gold Coast City.

Important role as major employment centre—major health (teaching hospital) and education facilities (university/TAFE) are commonly located in or on the fringe.

Planning instruments for each centre emphasise the importance of core commercial areas to support forecast employment growth.

Major administrative, retail, government, business, cultural, entertainment, recreational, community and transport focus for large, growing catchment areas.


Typical population range is 500,000 plus.

Accommodates a growing residential population in non–core areas.

Focal point for regional and local public transport networks.

Major collection of sporting assets and regional parkland.

Focus for social and community cultural development policies and facilities.

Requires significant investment from government and private organisations.


Major Regional Centres

Major Regional Centres are the main shopping and business centre for a district, usually with a full scale shopping mall, council offices, taller office and residential buildings, and central community facilities, with over 8,000 jobs defining these centres. Large firms are increasingly choosing to locate in, or split operations and employment among decentralised locations. Tweed Heads City Centre has an opportunity to capture some of this demand for office space.

Increasingly Major Regional Centres are dominated by large retail malls which are typically owned by financial institutions often backed by superannuation funds. The nature of the funds management industry means these significant assets will regularly seek to expand and refurbish, to ensure returns to

Tweed Heads is the Major Regional Centre for Tweed Shire.

A minimum of 8,000 jobs are located in these centres, by 2031 they will generally contain over 10,000 jobs.

The main shopping and business centre for a subregion, with a full scale shopping mall, council offices, regional education and health facilities, taller office and residential buildings and central community facilities.

An employment lands node has been identified in proximity to the Gold Coast airport to focus on airport related employment opportunities.

Existing light industrial areas in South Tweed Heads will likely evolve into a greater retail focus as employment uses requiring larger land areas migrate to new opportunities at Chinderah, Murwillumbah and west of Pottsville.

Typical dwelling range 9,000—28,000.


shareholders. Long–term planning for Major Centres needs to understand this cycle, and plan to achieve the best outcomes for the whole centre, surrounding activities and streets if these malls expand.

Major Regional Centres should retain a commercial core zone, able to accommodate projected commercial office space and other retail uses. Capacity should be maintained for some commercial office growth in the long–term. Mixed Use Zones should be located around the commercial core, and this may be a significant proportion of the centre. Residential components of a mixed use building can form an important element in revitalising the major centres and provide more housing choices for the area.


Residential units will be focussed in the Tweed Heads Town Centre with a minimum of 40 % of all new dwellings to be units. Unit density will decrease radiating out from this centre but with a target of 30% overall for Tweed Heads, Tweed Heads South and West Tweed Heads.

Commercial core with a focus on office space provision is located on a heavy or light rail network, serviced by strategic bus corridors and local bus networks.

Major Centres provide employment close to public transport which helps minimise the negative environmental impact of private vehicle use.

Accessible to significant parklands, a civic square, cinemas and sporting facilities.


District Town Centres

A District Town Centre is a larger group of shops and services generally with one or two supermarkets, sometimes a small shopping mall, a variety of specialist shops, community facilities such as a local library, and a medical centre. They are a focus for a large residential population and must strive for a highly liveable atmosphere.

District Town Centres need to balance activities including customer parking, service vehicles and through–traffic whilst making a pleasant residential and pedestrian environment. They also have to integrate malls/large stores into the main outdoor centre.

District Town Centres include Murwillumbah, Kingscliff and Banora Point.

Large group of more than 50 retail outlets and services with one or two supermarkets, sometimes a small shopping mall.

A medium or high density residential origin location.

Both Murwillumbah (Wardrop Valley) and Kingscliff (particularly Chinderah) are identified as employment lands nodes with a focus on export jobs rather than service industries.

Have some community facilities, specialist medical care, schools and restaurants.



Medium and high density housing mixed within the commercial centre and within walking distance of shops, services and transport. Between 20% and 40% of dwellings will be units.

Strategic bus and local bus networks.

Need to balance parking, service vehicles and through–traffic with making a pleasant residential and pedestrian environment.

Town square, main street, library, sports facilities, reasonable access to parkland.


Villages

A Village is a strip of shops for daily shopping which typically includes a small supermarket or general store, butcher, hairdresser, restaurants and take away food shops. Villages also need to develop an enjoyable public environment with a mix of uses and

Villages include Bilambil, Chinderah, Bogangar, Casuarina and Pottsville.

By 2031, Cobaki Lakes, and Kings Forest will also be villages.


good physical links with the surrounding area.

10–50 retail spaces.

May include a butcher, bank, hairdresser, café, restaurants and take–away food and a supermarket.

Child care centres, schools and other compatible activities in the immediate vicinity.

Strip of shops and residential area within a 5–10 minute walk serving daily shopping needs.

The only planned employment lands opportunity related to a village is west of Pottsville on a “greenfield site”.

Typical dwelling range 750 – 5,000


Medium density housing in and around the main streets and neighbourhood business area, including shop top housing. Between 20% and 40% of dwellings will be units.

Strategic bus and local bus services.

Villages need to develop an enjoyable public environment with a mix of uses and good physical links with the surrounding neighbourhood.

Villages need to manage air quality and amenity by locating a block away from very busy roads/ enterprise corridors.

Access to a local park, may have a market which shares space in school grounds out of school hours.


Small Villages

A Small Village is a cluster of shops for daily shopping. It has more shops than a Neighbourhood Centre but does not have a supermarket. Small villages and other small local centres are serviced with bus stops, schools and small parks.

Examples of small villages include Hastings Point, Uki, Fingal, Tyalgum, Kielvale, Terranora, Cudgen, Mooball, Burringbar, Condong, Tumbulgum,.

By 2031, Tanglewood and Kunghur (Nightcap) will also be small villages.

1–15 shops and services.

Similar to village only smaller and without a supermarket.

A small strip of shops and surrounding residential area within a 5 to 10 minute walk serving daily shopping needs.

No significant employment lands focus planned in these urban areas.

Typical dwelling range 50 - 750.

Typical population range is 500 to 2000

Medium density housing, including shop–top dwellings in and around the main street. Less than 10% of dwellings will be units.

Local bus network.

Access to pocket parks or small urban outdoor space.



9. Employment Lands Release Program

9.1 Balancing Supply and Demand For Industrial Land As previously outlined, the Tweed Shire has approximately 138 ha of land zoned for industrial purposes that still remains vacant. However, after discounting for various factors this reduces to approximately 62 ha, the majority of which is located at Chinderah (42 ha). It can also be assumed that the Tweed Valley Enterprise Park will supply up to 40 ha of land (in two stages) to the market in the short term.

On the demand side, this Strategy has shown that there is a range of views as to what might be required between now and 2031. The Far North Coast Regional Strategy suggests 156 ha for the entire region. Spread this evenly over six LGA’s and it equates to just 26 ha per LGA. The Northern Rivers Regional Industry and Economic Plan suggested that 720 ha would be required for the same region. Spread evenly over six LGA’s and this equates to 120 ha per LGA. The TEDC nominated a figure of 400 to 800 ha of industrial land for Tweed Shire alone.

This Employment Lands Strategy estimates that between 110 and 250 ha of industrial land will be required between now and 2031. There should be a goal of maintaining a “rolling supply” of approximately 25 years supply of land to ensure that there is no restriction on supply, adequate competition between sites and a variety of locations to choose from. It is also noted that larger releases may be required in 10 to 15 years time when it is predicted that Gold Coast employment land opportunities may be depleted. Recent restrictions to water supplies in the Gold Coast area may also stimulate demand for employment lands in Tweed Shire. A conservative approach would be to take the higher figure of 250 ha of industrial land. This equates to about 10 ha per year on average.

Using this figure, the discounted bank of existing industrial zoned land correlates to about 10 years supply.

9.2 Balancing Supply and Demand For Commercial Office Space On the supply side, there is 58,970 sq m of commercial office floor space in Tweed Shire (as at 2005) spread predominantly across Tweed Heads, Tweed Heads South and Murwillumbah. It is not known exactly how much is vacant, but anecdotal evidence suggests that vacancy is low.

As at 2007 Tweed Shire had approximately 182 ha of land zoned specifically for commercial purposes. This included approximately 100 ha at Tweed Heads, Tweed Heads South and Tweed Heads West combined. A further 23 ha at Murwillumbah and Murwillumbah South and approximately 45 ha at Chinderah along the waterfront. A visual assessment of recent air photos overlaid with these commercial zones suggests that very little of this zoned land is vacant in Tweed Heads (including South and West) and Murwillumbah (including South). There is evidence of low density residential development in some commercially zoned areas but this is limited to approximately 1 ha in Tweed Heads (including South and West) and approximately 3 ha in Murwillumbah (including South). There is approximately 25 ha of vacant and /or under used commercially zoned land at Chinderah, but this commercial zone specifically targets marine, recreation and tourism uses and is unlikely to be available for commercial office development. Home based offices also contribute to the supply of office space for the sole operator type market.

On the demand side, this Strategy has shown that there is a range of views as to what might be required between now and 2031. The Far North Coast Regional Strategy suggests 76 ha of additional


commercial land will be required for the entire region (six LGA’s). However, this presumably includes retail uses. In any case, it is not clear if this estimate is for zoned land or for floor space.

This Employment Lands Strategy estimates that between 19,800 m2 and 29,100 m2 of additional commercial floor space will be required to meet expected demand with 65% of this expected to be located in Tweed Heads and Tweed Heads South. A conservative approach would be to take the higher figure of 29,100 m2. This equates to about 1160 m2 per year on average.

9.3 The Employment Land Release Program The purpose of the urban land release program is to guide the location of future employment lands over the life of the strategy. It includes a time frame of short (0-10 years), medium (10-20 years) and long term (20 years plus) to give an idea when this land should be considered for rezoning. These time frames refer to the period in which rezoning should commence if the land is to supply lots to the market at a future date. It is assumed that land takes up to six years to reach the market from commencement of the rezoning process.

Table 9-1 outlines each of the potential employment land areas and provides an indication of when the rezoning process will need to be considered if these areas are to supply employment land to the market at the appropriate time. The land in this program will probably be zoned for industrial type purposes rather than commercial purposes. It is not anticipated that any of this land will be used for retailing purposes other that that normally ancillary to legitimate manufacturing operations.

Table 9-1 Tweed Shire Employment Land Release Program

Potential Employment Locality

Gross Area (ha)

Net Area (ha)

Approximate Years supply (@ 10 ha per

yr Shire wide demand)


of rezoning

Comment

Airport precinct

(Area 1)

14 11 1.1 Medium Term Note that Area 1 is recommended for deletion from the Employment Lands Strategy and is not included in the supply calculations.

Airport precinct

(Area 2)


Border Race Track

(Area 3)

11

9

0.9

Short Term

Assumes 80% of land will yield lots.

Chinderah East

(Area 4)

37 26 2.6 Short Term Assumes 70% of land will yield lots due to vegetation buffers.

Wardrop Valley West

(Area 5)

63 44 4.4 Long Term Assumes only 70% of land will yield lots due to vegetation buffers and agricultural buffers


Potential Employment Locality

Gross Area (ha)

Net Area (ha)

Approximate Years supply (@ 10 ha per

yr Shire wide demand)


of rezoning

Comment

Wardrop Valley East

(Area 6)

60 48 4.8 Short Term Assumes 80% of land will yield lots

West Pottsville

(Area 7)

144 86 8.6 Short /Medium Term

Assumes only 60% of land will yield lots due to rural residential and riparian buffers

Collectively this land release program identifies 83 ha (net) or approximately 8.3 years supply of land for the Short Term, 86 ha or 8.6 years supply for the Short /Medium Term, 23 ha or 2.3 years supply for the Medium Term (excluding Area 1), and 44 ha or 4.4 years supply for the Long Term. If all land was developed at the assumed yields this equates to approximately 24 years supply of employment land that could be added to the existing land bank of zoned land. The distribution of land areas across the time frames reflects the current situation that there are significant areas of land in Tweed Shire that are already zoned for employment purposes. Ideally a strategy should be reviewed every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand or services and infrastructure. If needed, areas can be brought forward if development exceeds expectation or other areas are withheld from supply. If development falls short of expectation then areas can be deferred to a later time frame.

The Strategy includes areas that have been identified in the land suitability analysis as having ecological and physical characteristics that may make them suitable for employment land development. Areas in proximity to existing industrial zones were given preference over isolated lands. The Strategy also considers the need to provide land in a range of locations in the Shire, particularly west of the Pacific Highway to meet the requirement of the Department of Planning that a greater proportion of new development take place away from the coast.

This process is not exhaustive and is limited by the amount and quantity of available data and issues of scale. In most cases cadastre has not been a major influence, so some properties are only partly identified in the Strategy. In these cases the entire property should be considered in any detailed analysis to ensure that the best land (if any) is ultimately identified for future urban use.

Readers of this Strategy are also cautioned that this document has not been prepared for anyone as a basis for investment or other private decision making in relation to land purchases, sales or other land uses. Council recommends that it not be used by anyone in this way.

Refer to Figures 14 to 17 for the areas identified in the employment land release program as being potentially suitable for employment land development.

In the case of commercial floor space the area that may be most suitable for future commercial development is most likely to be located within an existing urban area. It may be currently zoned and/or is being used for residential or industrial purposes. It may be zoned for commercial purposes, but is capable of yielding much higher amounts of floor space than is currently on the site. It is not likely that it


will be located on a “greenfield site“ unless it is commercial floor space that is part of a master planned neighbourhood centre or the like.

The land release program for commercial floor space is as follows:

To incorporate an additional 19,000 sq m (approximately) of commercial office space in existing zoned commercial land within the Tweed Heads and South Tweed Heads urban areas;

To incorporate an additional 5,000 sq m (approximately) of commercial office space in existing zoned commercial land at Murwillumbah and South Murwillumbah; and

To allow the remaining 5,000 sq m (approximately) to be incorporated in existing commercially zoned land in other urban centres.

However, given the significant benefits of a major commercial office development to the Tweed Heads and South Tweed Heads area, Council should also consider allowing up to 2 ha of land to be rezoned for commercial office use in either of these areas, but particularly in the Tweed Heads town centre. The main proviso would be that this land adjoins an existing area already zoned for commercial use. The master planning for the Tweed Heads and Tweed Heads South centres that is currently underway will be a major influence on the location and timing of any rezoning for commercial office development.

It is also recommended that Council include provisions in its planning instruments that allow for home based offices (in all residential and mixed use zones) that play a significant role in supplying office space to sole operators and businesses that are starting out.


10. Strategy Evaluation, Implementation and Review

10.1 Strategy Evaluation It is useful to evaluate this employment lands strategy against the settlement planning principles in the State government’s Settlement Planning Guidelines (Department of Planning, 2007). The headings that follow are taken from Chapter 3 of that document.

10.1.1 Location

The potential employment lands nominated in this Strategy are predominantly within the employment land areas or existing urban footprint areas nominated in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy. In cases where there is variation in the boundaries to these areas this is because of the better quality land use suitability information available to Council. All nominated areas build on existing zoned urban areas or areas identified for future growth.

Where this Strategy nominates an area outside of the areas identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy it is an area that will have minimal environmental impact and will satisfy the sustainability criteria in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (Appendix A).

10.1.2 Land Suitability

Based on the best available information a land use suitability analysis was undertaken to ensure any areas nominated in this Strategy are predominantly located on land that is suitable for employment land use.

Significantly, the areas nominated in this strategy avoid the State and regional farmland mapped by the Department of Planning, avoid the 1% floodplain (other than Chinderah and Tweed), are located above areas likely to be affected by long term predicted sea level rise (other than Chinderah and Tweed), avoid lands that contain high biodiversity, are not affected by high bushfire hazard and are not excessively steep lands.

10.1.3 Land Release

The potential employment lands nominated in this Strategy are considered in a short, medium and long term land release program based on a 0-10 year, 10-20 year and 20+ year time frame.

This Strategy recognises the significant existing supply of zoned industrial land located predominantly at Murwillumbah and Chinderah and the role that these lands will play in supplying the needs of the Tweed over the next 10 years in particular.

This Strategy also examines commercial land demand and opportunities and emphasises the need to reinforce the existing commercial areas at Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff to supply quality office space for businesses in the Tweed Shire.

10.1.4 Settlement Form and Hierarchy

This Strategy builds on existing hierarchies of settlement identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy as well as Council’s own strategic work and comes up with an urban centres hierarchy from


regional cities down to small villages. This includes typical dwelling and population ranges as well as commercial and employment characteristics of the centres.

10.1.5 Urban Design and Heritage

Council has already embarked on a program of preparing locality based DCP’s and design guidelines to recognise and protect the local and regional attributes that contribute to centres such as Tweed Heads, Kingscliff and Pottsville and Murwillumbah. This Strategy has been prepared with this in mind, but does not specifically contain design guidelines for employment areas.

10.1.6 Infrastructure Provision

This Strategy builds on existing urban centres and where possible looks to the augmentation of infrastructure such as water and sewerage rather than stand alone systems. However, in some locations it will be necessary to provide considerable additional infrastructure and any rezoning will be dependant on the proper arrangements being in place. Similarly with traffic and public transport it is acknowledged that different sites may be dependant upon bridge or road upgrades or duplication and there will be a need to ensure that these can happen as the demand becomes apparent.

Infrastructure provided by the State government will also be needed including additional hospital, public transport and school services. Council acknowledges that potential development areas need to set aside sites for such services (and they will), but the provision of them is subject to State government programs. Importantly the infrastructure programs in South East Queensland are widely known (such as heavy rail links to the Gold Coast Airport) so it will be possible for the NSW government to work with Queensland to extend such services south of the border, if it chooses to.

10.1.7 Employment Lands

This Strategy ensures that future employment lands will be available in a variety of locations that relate to the existing urban hierarchy of the Tweed Shire and that relate to settlement areas, transport and access and environmental constraints. Tweed Shire Council is committed to ensuring that employment lands are made available for the long term to broaden the economic base of the Tweed Shire.

The economic, employment and transport relationship between Tweed Shire and South East Queensland is acknowledged in both this Strategy and the urban lands strategy and plays a significant role in estimating demand for employment lands over the life of the Strategy.

The emphasis on placing commercial floor space in the existing centres of Tweed Heads, Murwillumbah and Kingscliff is a principle in this Strategy that will ensure that it serves the major settlements of the Shire. This will reinforce these settlements as desirable places to work as well as reside.

This Strategy acknowledges the work of the Regional Industry and Economic Plan for the Northern Rivers and is consistent with it in embracing sustainability.

10.1.8 Tourism Opportunities

It is not intended that this Strategy identify tourism opportunities in new locations, but it is acknowledged as a significant part of the Tweed economy and as an employment generator. Some of the potential employment land areas may well relate to servicing the tourism industry of the Tweed and elsewhere.


10.2 Strategy Implementation and Master Planning Areas that are already zoned for industrial development will continue to supply land to the market over the life of this Strategy. The intention of this Strategy is to replenish these stocks of zoned land to ensure a continuous and long term supply. It is not appropriate that all areas identified in this Strategy proceed to rezoning at the same time and Council does not have the resources to do this. Only those areas within the identified time frame will be considered by Council.

Commercial office space will be supplied to the market mainly from existing commercial zoned land in the major regional centres and the district town centres identified in this Strategy. Any additional commercial rezoning will need to consider the Tweed Retail Strategy as well as this Employment Lands Strategy given that retail and office development are typically both permitted in commercial or business zones.

This Strategy will be implemented by the rezoning process. It is Council’s decision as to whether a rezoning should proceed, but in the first instance an interested landowner will need to contact Council’s Director of Planning to confirm the timing of the proposed rezoning and whether Council has the resources to proceed. Council will need to advise on the type and extent of studies required to support a rezoning and whether Council wishes to undertake this work (at the applicant’s expense).

Council is supportive of master planned business and employment parks and will consider reviewing the development assessment process for subsequent tenants where the issues relevant to the overall site can be addressed through the rezoning phase and the substantive development consent that is originally issued for the site meets Council requirements. Although this would be site specific, Council would consider identifying such locations as enterprise areas where employment generating businesses can commence operations quickly and with limited “red tape’ and delays that can be encountered at the development application stage.

Each potential employment land release area (or group of areas) will require an amendment to the Tweed Local Environmental Plan, and may require Development Control Plan provisions, a Section 94 contributions plan and/or a planning agreement with Council. A local environmental study may be required by the NSW State government.

10.3 Strategy Review It is recommended that Council review the strategy every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand or services and infrastructure.


11. References

AEC , 2007. Tweed Economic and Demand Assessment. Subconsultants report as input into the Tweed Shire Employment lands Strategy.

Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2002. 2001 Census. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australia.

Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2007. 2006 Census. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australia.

Core Economics, 2005. Tweed Retail Strategy. Core Economics, Queensland.

Department of Planning, 2005. NSW State and Regional Population Projections 2004-2051. Department of Planning, NSW.

Department of Planning, 2006. Far North Coast Regional Strategy.

Department of Planning, 2005. NSW SLA Population Projections 2001-2031. Department of Planning, NSW.

Department of Planning, 2006. Far North Coast Regional Strategy, 2006-31. Department of Planning, NSW.

Department of Planning, 2007. Settlement Planning Guidelines

DIPNR, 2004. Section 117 Direction – Interim Protection for Farmland of State and Regional Significance on the NSW Far North Coast. (NSW Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources).

DIPNR, 2005. Floodplain Development Manual. The management of flood liable land. (NSW Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources).

DoP, 2006. South East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program 2007/2026 (NSW Department Of Planning)

DoP, 2006. Far North Coast Regional Strategy. (NSW Department Of Planning)

DUAP, 1999. Extractive Industries and Minerals on the North Coast. (NSW Department of Urban Affairs and Planning).

Ecograph, 2004. Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy 2004

GHD, 2006. South Forster Structure Plan, prepared for Great Lakes Council

Giles Consulting International; Core Economics; Promedia Public Relations and Marketing Consultants, 2006. The Gold Coast/Tweed Transport, Aviation and Distribution Hub. Australia.

Gold Coast City Council, 2007. Gold Coast 2010: Economic Development Strategy. Gold Coast City Council, QLD.

Hunter Water Australia, 2006. Tweed Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy.

Kingston, M.B. Turnbull J.W and Hall P.W., 2004. Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy. Volume 2 of 3 Technical Reports.

New South Wales Government, 1979. Environmental Planning and Assessment Act


Newton,G., 2007. Climate Change Impacts on Australia’s Coast and Oceans. In : Waves Vol 13, Number 1.

Northern Rivers Regional Development Board, 2005. Regional Industry & Economic Plan for the Northern Rivers. Northern Rivers Regional Development Board, NSW.

NSW Government, 2007. Department of Planning, Internet Site: http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/plansforaction/northcoastKey_plans.asp

NSW PEC (Planning and Environment Commission), 1978. Technical Bulletin No.11. Guidelines for Siting Rural Dwellings in Coastal Areas.

Phillips, S., Callaghan, J., 1996. Koala Habitat Atlas, Project No. 4: Tweed Coast. The Australian Koala Foundation.

Spiller Gibbins Swan Pty Ltd, 2001. Coolangatta Airport Enterprise Park Feasibility Study, SGS Pty Ltd, Queensland. A Report commissioned by the TEDC.

Tourism Research Australia, 2007. Forecasts 2007 – Issue 1. Tourism Research Australia, Australia.

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited & Tweed Shire Council, 2006d. Tweed Economic Growth Management Strategy: 2007-2010. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited & Tweed Shire Council, NSW

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited & Tweed Shire Council, 2005. An Economic Model for the Tweed and Northern Rivers – An Overview. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited & Tweed Shire Council, NSW.

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, 2006a. Briefing Paper on Economic Sustainability; Tweed and Northern Rivers, Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, NSW.

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, 2006b. Discussion Paper on The Need for a Proactive Approach to Employment-Generating (Enterprise) Land. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, NSW

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, 2006c. Discussion Paper: Tweed Shire Economic Sustainability. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, NSW.

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, 2006e. Economic Structure of the Tweed Local Government Area 2004-05: Full Report. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, NSW.

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, 2006f. Employment-Generating (Enterprise) Land Research Report, Attachment A to Discussion Paper on The Need for a Proactive Approach to Employment-Generating (Enterprise) Land. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, NSW.

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, 2006g. Response to the Draft Far North Coast Regional Strategy. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, NSW.

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, 2007. Submission to the Cross-Border Transport Taskforce. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, NSW.

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, not dated. The Tweed Prospectus. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, NSW.

Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, not dated. Where Are We Now?, Section II of the Tweed Economic Vision and Strategy. Tweed Economic Development Corporation Limited, NSW.


Tweed Shire Council, 1992. Residential Development Strategy

Tweed Shire Council, 1995. Tweed Coastal Strategy, Discussion Paper

Tweed Shire Council, 1997. Tweed Shire 2000+ Strategic Plan

Tweed Shire Council, 2000.. Potential Industrial Land Investigation, Tweed Shire. Tweed Shire Council, NSW.

Tweed Shire Council, 2003. Development Control Plan No. 51 – Tweed Coast Strategy

Tweed Shire Council, 2004. Tweed 4/24 Strategic Plan 2004-2024

Tweed Shire Council, 2006. Tweed Local Environmental Plan

Tweed Shire Council, 2006. Water Supply Activity Management Plan

Umwelt (Australia) Pty Ltd, 2005. Tweed Coastline Management Plan

Vietch Lister, 2007. The Tweed Road Development Strategy- 2007. Update of Tweed Road Contributions Plan.


Appendix A

Environmental Constraints and Opportunities and Land Suitability


Environmental Constraints and Opportunities and Land Suitability

1. Introduction The Tweed Employment Lands Strategy has identified a number of environmental constraints and opportunities applicable to land in the Tweed Shire.

2. Flood Liable land Flood liable land presents a constraint to development as it has implications with regard to the provision and cost of infrastructure, roads and services installed within floodplains. Risks to public safety and increased property damages also need to be addressed. Filling to increase flood protection for development may be possible in some situations, but needs careful assessment to avoid adverse impacts elsewhere.

Flooding is a major constraint for urban land in the Tweed Shire. Figure 2 illustrates the areas of flood prone land in the Tweed Valley, from Murwillumbah to Tweed Heads. There are also floodprone areas in the Upper Valley and along the Tweed Coast. Council is currently undertaking work to identify the extent of flood constraints in the Coastal Floodplains, however this data was not available at the time of preparing this strategy.

3. Topography Slope is a significant factor influencing soil erosion, drainage and bushfire hazard. It also has implications with regard to the provision and cost of infrastructure, roads and services. Slope is a major constraint for urban land in the Tweed Shire. Figure 3 illustrates the extent of steeply sloping land in Tweed Shire particularly around the volcanic features of the Border Ranges and Mt Warning.

4. Vegetation Management

Wetlands (SEPP 14) The aim of SEPP 14 is to ensure coastal wetlands are preserved and protected for environmental and economic reasons. These areas have been identified and protected since 1985.

SEPP 14 Wetlands are associated with the lower floodplain and estuary of the Tweed River and the estuaries on the Tweed Coast, particularly surrounding Cobaki and Terranora Broadwater, Cudgen Lake and Pottsville. Refer to Figure 4.

Littoral Rainforest (SEPP 26) SEPP 26 aims to provide a mechanism for the assessment of development proposals that are likely to damage or destroy littoral rainforest areas. It has protected littoral rainforest since 1988.

Figure 4 shows there are very small areas of SEPP 26 littoral rainforest located sporadically along the Tweed coast from Wooyung to Tweed Heads.

Threatened Species and Vegetation Management There are a number of vegetation communities present within the Tweed Shire that have the potential to pose constraints to urban development.


Koala Habitat As shown in Figure 5, known koala habitat is located primarily in the eastern half of the Shire, particularly along the coast near Bogangar and Hastings Point and inland near Fernvale and Burringbar. However, the data on this constraint is limited by the extent of the original koala study which was confined to the eastern half of the Shire.

Vegetation Management Categories

Kingston et al, (2004) undertook a major vegetation study which identified high conservation value vegetation and ecologically sensitive vegetation throughout the Shire (Figure 4). The vegetation of value is spread throughout the Shire with the exception of areas that have been subject to intensive agricultural production such as sugar cane areas and grazing areas.

5. Acid Sulfate Soils ASS commonly occurs on coastal floodplains below 5 m AHD. The Tweed Shire is no exception with ASS occurring along the majority of the eastern part of Tweed Shire. ASS also occurs inland following the Tweed River towards Murwillumbah (Figure 6). ASS can be effectively treated, depending on how severe the problem is.

6. Groundwater A high water table in combination with certain soil types can have implications for foundation design and road and drainage construction. Further geotechnical investigations would be required to ascertain the implications for development in locations where groundwater and reactive soil types are likely to be present.

Figure 7 shows the spread of high groundwater vulnerability in the Tweed Shire. These areas generally follow the Tweed River and also tributaries in the western part of the Shire.

7. Agricultural Land In 2004 the State Government adopted a position that land identified in its Farmland Protection Project as either State Significant or Regionally Significant should not be regarded as being available for urban or rural residential use unless it had already been identified for such a purpose in an agreed strategy.

Figure 8, shows that State Significant or Regionally Significant Farmland is located between Tumbulgum and Murwillumbah along the Tweed River and following tributaries towards Tyalgum. Additionally there are scattered areas near Burringbar, west of Bogangar and Pottsville Beach, and west of Tweed Heads again primarily following tributaries. There are also the highly significant red soil areas of Cudgen and Duranbah and in the vicinity of Terranora and Bilambil.

8. Bushfire Hazard In planning development in rural areas or on the fringes of urban areas it is necessary to take into account the potential threat from bushfire. Bushfire hazard can be a major development constraint given the likelihood for extreme fire events periodically. The slope of the land, aspect and the vegetation types present, determines the level of bushfire hazard.

Figure 9 shows that bushfire hazard affects a large portion of Tweed Shire. The main hazard areas occur in the west, south-west and northwest of the Shire. Additionally, there are scattered areas within or near Fernvale, Burringbar and west of Bogangar.


9. Land Susceptible to Climate Change Climate change affects all land in one way or another through impacts on weather patterns, storm frequency and severity, flooding behaviour, reliability of water supply and rising sea levels. However, it is low lying areas that are affected directly by any changes to sea level and any increases in flood depth should they occur. For the purposes of this study areas below 5 m above sea level and between 5 and 10 m above sea level have been identified as a way of visually gauging one of the potentially direct impacts of climate change. It should be noted that a 5 m rise in sea level has not been predicted and is used in this study to illustrate the extent of low lying areas.

As can be seen in Figure 10 a considerable part of the Tweed Shire is below 5 m above sea level including the entire Tweed river valley, the areas around the Cobaki and Terranora Broadwater and the areas in the vicinity of the Tweed Coastal creeks floodplains. Considerable parts of the existing urban areas are below this level.

10. Contaminated Lands Portions of the Tweed Shire have been identified as potentially contaminated land due to the former use or current use of the land for banana cultivation. Cattle tick dip sites, are also scattered throughout the Tweed Valley and Tweed Coast and these are subject to a 200m radius of land suspected of contamination.

Figure 11 shows a fairly even spread of cattle tick dip sites across the Shire and banana lands are sparsely located throughout the Shire particularly near Burringbar and north of Uki.

11. Biting Midges and Mosquitoes Some areas of Tweed Shire are potentially affected by biting midges and mosquitoes, which may pose issues for urban development.

The main areas of biting midges and mosquitoes occur within the northeast portion of the Shire, surrounding Terranora Broadwater, Cobaki Broadwater and at small sections along the Tweed River (Figure 11).

12. Garbage Tips and Sewage Treatment Works Garbage Depots and Sewage Treatment Works exist within Tweed Shire. These facilities and areas should be regarded as contaminated sites.

Figure 11 shows the small area affected by Garbage Tips and/or Sewage Treatment Works at Stotts Island, which is located between Murwillumbah and Tweed Heads. A waste transfer facility and tip is also located in the Murwillumbah industrial estate off Wardrop Valley Rd.

13. Extractive Industries Extractive industries should be protected from encroachment by incompatible land uses (including urban development) until the resource has been exhausted. In Tweed these include both hard rock and sand resources.

There are scattered areas of extractive industries primarily in the eastern half of the Shire. Refer to Figure 11.


14. Aircraft Noise The Gold Coast airport is located at the northern edge of the Tweed Shire and has recently been expanded and upgraded. As can be seen in Figure 12, aircraft noise affects the north eastern section of the Shire, in close proximity to Tweed Heads. This includes some areas that are already zoned for a range of urban uses.

15. National Parks, Nature Reserves and State Forests Tweed Shire has three National Parks (or part there of) and numerous Nature Reserves (Figure 13). These are largely focussed on the Caldera of the Tweed valley, Mt Warning itself and some smaller areas scattered along the coast.

16. Land Suitability Analysis Using this information on constraints and opportunities a land suitability analysis was undertaken for Tweed Shire. The methodology used in this strategy aims to identify and evaluate a range of constraints, which will impact upon the ability of the Shire to accommodate further employment lands development.



Appendix B outlines the methodology in detail and how environmental constraints were ranked and examined.


Appendix B

Land Suitability Analysis


Land Suitability Analysis 1. Introduction This report provides a methodology for the assessment of environmental constraints within Tweed Shire. The methodology aims to identify and evaluate a range of constraints, which will impact upon the ability of the Shire to accommodate further residential and industrial development. This process is called a land suitability analysis.



2. Methodology The methodology for determining appropriate land use focuses on those features of the landscape that pose limitations to development. These areas may be divided into the categories of economic, social and environmental limitations.

Natural features primarily define the environmental limitations. These constraints will strongly influence the preparation of a ‘land constraints map’. The land constraints map is a composite map containing a number of overlays. These overlays include but are not limited to maps of environmental protection areas, bushfire hazard area, flood prone land, steep land and the location of prime agricultural land. The integration of the overlays enables the user to recognise areas of varying suitability for different land uses.

Some environmental constraints create prohibitions to development eg high hazard floodway. Other constraints identify less desirable areas that generate the need for mitigation measures eg bushfire hazards. A suitability analysis eliminates lands where development is prohibited and identifies land that is limited in the type or density of development that may be carried out based on agreed criteria.

Economic and social limitations don’t always lend themselves to being mapped in the same way as natural features. However, once Council has determined areas of low environmental limitations at a broad scale, this information can subsequently be used by investors to target areas for further investigation as part of their risk assessment and decision making process. Residential development and employment lands have a range of economic and social requirements which include the location of the site, its size, price, accessibility and the availability of infrastructure and services.

The land suitability approach used in this study identifies and ranks key environmental factors that are important for development. In assessing further economic and social factors, a number of elements must be considered to determine whether sustainable development can be achieved. These economic and social elements are based on industry standards relating to the final land use and are shown in Appendix Diagram 2.

In determining the areas that are potentially suitable for urban lands or employment lands development sites were preferred if they were within 2 km of an existing urban zone (at least in part) and were preferably greater than 5 ha in area. Areas already nominated in the Fart North Coast Regional Strategy were also preferred.

Broadscale Land Suitability Analysis Detailed Site Suitability Assessment Employment Lands Development

Environmental National Parks, Nature Reserves, State Forests Commercial Attractiveness Public Open Space Land affordability Acid Sulfate Soils Potential building construction costs High Groundwater or Vulnerable Groundwater Profile of the site Contaminated Lands Potential rents and yields Biting Midge and Mosquito Areas Development yield/and values/financing Garbage Depots and STP’s Flexibility if the site Extractive Industries Ability to attract tenants Data technology capabilities Vegetation Management Ability to create industry cluster SEPP 14 Wetlands SEPP 26 Littoral Rainforest Koala Habitat Threatened Species and Vegetation Management Accessibility High Conservation Value Vegetation Access and profile to highway/major road network High Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation Traffic implications and constraints Medium Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation Access to export markets from airport and rail Low Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation Access for consumers, workers and service vehicles Degraded Habitats Proximity to labour force and vehicle kilometres Agricultural Land State and Regionally significant farmland Locally significant farmland Physical suitability Bushfire Management Suitable size for intended role (i.e. large scale vs local) Vegetation Category 1 Elevation of land and fill requirements Vegetation Category 2 Previous uses Contamination/rehabilitation opportunities Topography Less than 10 degrees slopes 10 degrees – 14 degrees slopes Infrastructure Services Greater than 14 degrees slopes Access to required infrastructure and utilities Protected Lands Access to technology/broadband internet Land Susceptible to Climate Change Social Factors Land less than 5 m above sea level Archaeological sites Land less than 10 m above sea level Attitude of owners and tenure Acceptable levels of impact on community amenity Flood Liable Land Acceptable visual impacts High Flow Flooding Other Flone prone land Appropriate employment opportunities Airport noise Convenience of workplace trips ANEF 40 + Availability of public transport ANEF 30 to 40 Noise buffers ANEF 25 to 30 Appropriate buffers ANEF Less than 25

Appendix Diagram 1 Land Suitability Analysis Framework


The following assessment of environmental constraints determines the supply of land. Some of the constraints below create prohibitions against future development. Other constraints merely require further investigation or mitigation measures that may influence the location, type and density of development.

In determining land suitable for residential and employment development purposes a ranking system has been formulated and applied to the various constraints that apply to Tweed Shire. This identifies which constraints are limiting and highlights the constraints that can be overcome through mitigation measures and management. The ranking for each constraint can then be mapped for each land unit in the Tweed Shire.

The environmental constraints ranking system includes the following:

1. Most suitable for development (relatively unconstrained);

2. Suitable for development with some controls;

3. Marginally suitable for development – may require further investigation and / or specific engineering solution or exclusion of certain areas;

4. elective development only – subject to further assessment, limited and appropriately designed development may be possible; and

5 Not suitable for development.

A summary of the ranking as it relates to each constraint is located in Appendix Table 2.

2.1. Multi-Criteria Analysis Multi-Criteria Analysis requires consideration of the relative importance of each criterion compared to other criteria. A paired comparison method was selected for weighting of criteria. This approach required each criterion to be compared to each of the other criteria to determine which of the two (paired) criteria is considered more important, and by how much. By considering the number of times any particular criteria is rated as more important than any other, and the levels of importance, the criteria can then be ranked as a set in terms of importance. For this project, only environmental criteria were compared to each other. Weightings were normalised so that they are between 1 and 100 for each criteria.

2.2. GIS Analysis Once evaluation criteria and weightings were undertaken, a GIS modelling and analysis technique was used to overlay geographic data for each of the evaluation criteria.

The steps involved in the GIS analysis to identify areas that are overall more or less suitable for the urban or employment lands development are described below:

Datasets were sourced from Tweed Shire Council and were imported into an ESRI geodatabase;

The data applied for each evaluation criterion were compiled and analysed according to the performance ratings on a series of grids across the study area. In general, the grids were in the order of 5 m x 5 m cells, however in some cases the grid size was varied to ensure the data will be properly represented;

The weightings were applied to each criterion and the overall score for each evaluation criterion in each grid calculated. The GIS model then compiled scores across all the evaluation criteria for each grid and identified areas that are more or less suitable for urban or employment lands development.


The weighted overlays were added together and multiplied by a specified weighting. As a result, an overall sensitivity map was produced. The lower the score, the more attractive the site for development;

The Multi-Criteria Analysis was performed using ESRI’s ArcGis Version 9.1.

2.3. Limitations While the Multi-Criteria Analysis technique is a powerful tool for screening broad study areas, it must be noted that there are a number of limitations including:

Inability to represent all of the critical aspects that determine suitability for development in a geographic format;

Accuracy and currency of some data;

Absence of data for some locations (eg flood data not available for entire Tweed river catchment and not available for the coastal creeks and waterways);

Coarseness of some of the assumptions that may be made in determining performance ratings and weightings for evaluation criteria; and

Coarseness of some of the ‘rounding off” of areas that are identified by the modelling process as having some suitability for development

3. Environmental Criteria

3.1. National Parks, Nature Reserves, State Forests and Public Open Space National Parks, Nature Reserves, State Forests and Public Open Space areas are not available for development regardless of physical characteristics and a ranking of 5 will be used for the purposes of this study.

3.2. Acid Sulfate Soils Acid Sulfate Soils (ASS) generally occur in low lying areas below 5m A.H.D. The term ASS refers to soils that are producing acid (actual acid sulfate soils) and those that could become acid producing (potential acid sulfate soils).

Potential acid sulfate soils are naturally occurring soils containing iron sulfides (pyrite). They become actual acid sulfate soils when the pyrite is exposed to air, often because of human activity. Once oxidised the addition of water results in the production of sulfuric acid.

In July, 2000, The National Working Party on ASS released the National Strategy for the Management of Coastal Acid Sulfate Soils. The Strategy provides a framework for governments, industry and the community to manage development on these soils. It seeks an integrated approach to management and provides general background about the impacts of acid drainage.

Tweed Local Environmental Plan 2000 (LEP) generally states that when more than one ton of acid sulfate soil is disturbed it will require Council’s consent and an acid sulfate soil management plan in accordance with the Acid Sulfate Soil Manual. Acid sulfate soil areas are divided into 5 classes which indicate the risk of encountering problems with it and the depth in the soil profile at which it is likely to occur. Given the adverse impacts of exposed acid sulfate soils and the need for appropriate management within any development, areas of potential or actual acid sulfate soil (in accordance with


the acid sulfate soils mapping) within ASS classes 1 will have a ranking of 4, ASS classes 2 and 3 will have a ranking of 3, while areas within ASS classes 4 and 5 will have a ranking of 2.

3.3. Vegetation Management

Wetlands Wetlands are a key component of the water cycle, playing critical roles in maintaining the general health of rivers, estuaries and coastal waters. They assist in mitigating the effect of floods through water storage and retention, absorb pollutants and improve downstream water quality and provide habitats for animals and plants, include a number of species that are threatened or endangered.

State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) 14 –Coastal Wetlands identifies areas where the habitat values, ecological and hydrological process of wetlands need to be conserved and managed from the impact of development. Therefore, any SEPP 14 wetland will be ranked 5.

Littoral Rainforest Littoral rainforests are areas of high biodiversity and on the Tweed coast and typically contain threatened or endangered species. They are identified in State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) 26 which applies strict management controls. Therefore, any SEPP 26 areas will be ranked 5. Littoral rainforests also include a buffer zone of 100 metres from the edge of the mapped area to protect the core area from edge effects. Therefore, any mapped buffer area will be ranked 4.

Threatened Species and Vegetation Management Kingston et al (2004) noted that Tweed falls within the northern zone of the NSW North Coast Biogeographic Region. The Region has a rich assemblage of plant species forming complex mosaics of vegetation communities that includes the greatest diversity of rainforest types in NSW, some areas of which have been World Heritage listed. Over ninety species of Eucalyptus occur in the bioregion making it one of the richest areas on the continent for this genus.

Over the whole North Coast Biogeographic Region, large changes to the landscape have occurred due to European activities. In the past 150 years, over 44 % of the original vegetation cover has been cleared or heavily disturbed. Clearing on the coastal lowlands has been particularly extensive leaving only fragmented remnants on the steeper slopes. Most clearing has concentrated on the areas of low to moderate slope, fertile soil, higher rainfall and higher temperature. Other major disturbances include logging, grazing, drainage works, and the use of fire. The ecological consequences of such extensive habitat fragmentation and disturbance have resulted in major floristic and structural changes to the vegetation (and faunal) communities of the Region (Kingston et al, 2004).

Tweed LGA contains important habitat for a diverse array of native fauna and flora. Certain areas have high conservation value and contain a number of endangered ecological communities and regionally significant vegetation communities. The retention of remnant vegetation and their associated buffers establishes the basis for a network of habitat links and/ or corridors within the area.

The Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 and Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 aim to protect threatened species and significant flora and fauna corridors. It is also a requirement of the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (2006) and the North Coast REP, 1988 that significant vegetation be protected. It is therefore necessary to incorporate appropriate constraints for vegetation management in any land suitability analysis.


The Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy identifies 10 broad vegetation communities and 56 vegetation types within those communities. It then uses a very detailed methodology to assess the ecological status, ecological sensitivity and threatened species requirements of each area of remnant vegetation. It concludes that a combination of ecological attributes be used to determine priority areas that can be described as areas of High Conservation Value (HCV), Ecologically Sensitive Areas and Degraded Habitats.

HCV consists mainly of vegetation types of high regional status, bushland associated with riparian, estuarine, or wetland ecosystems or Critical Habitat. While many of these areas may not require immediate attention, this category includes the most valuable ecological assets in the Shire. It should be ranked 5.

Ecologically sensitive areas can be categorized as high, medium and low. For the purposes of this study those areas categorized as high will be ranked 4, medium will be ranked 3 and low will be ranked 2.

Degraded habitats may be in key locations such as dunes or riparian areas that are unsuitable for development for other reasons. In the absence of site specific information to the contrary degraded habitats will be ranked 2.

Koala Habitat

In 1996 the AKF prepared the Tweed Coast Koala Habitat Atlas (Phillips & Callaghan 1996) for the eastern section of the Shire. The 37608 hectare study area comprises approximately 29 % of Tweed Shire. The remainder of the Shire has not yet been studied in this way.

The Koala Habitat Atlas describes the following four categories of Koala Habitat:

1. Primary Koala Habitat (2.5% of study area). Tree species preferentially utilised by koalas in which tree utilisation is independent of tree density. Preferred trees are a dominant or co-dominant component of the overstorey vegetation.

2. Secondary Koala Habitat (10.7 % of study area) (Secondary (A) Habitat). Tree species preferentially utilised by Koalas, on average, constitute less than 35 % of the overstorey vegetation.

3. Marginal Koala Habitat (10.3 % of study area) (Secondary (B) Habitat). Tree species preferentially utilised by Koalas are largely absent or otherwise occur at very low densities (<10%).

4. Habitat Value “Unknown” (0.7% of study area). Composition of the vegetation remains unknown, but where it is possible for one or more preferentially utilised tree species to occur as a dominant or co-dominant component of the overstorey.

The remainder of the study area has either been cleared of native vegetation (66.3 %) or contains other categories of vegetation not listed above (9.5%).

As Primary Koala Habitat is likely to be critical in supporting breeding colonies of koalas it is important to prevent further clearing, disturbance, fragmentation or isolation of this habitat it will therefore be ranked 5.

Secondary Koala Habitat is likely to play a support role in the survival and distribution of koalas and it is important to minimise further loss, fragmentation or isolation of this supporting habitat it will therefore be ranked 4.

Marginal Koala Habitat will be ranked 2.


3.4. Agricultural Land In 2004 the State Government adopted a position that land identified in its Farmland Protection Project as either State Significant or Regionally Significant should not be regarded as being available for urban or rural residential use unless it had already been identified for such a purpose in an agreed strategy.

The objectives of this Farmland Protection Project are to ensure that the best agricultural land will be available for current and future generations to grow food and fibre; and to provide more certainty on the status of the best agricultural land, thereby assisting councils with their local strategic settlement planning (DIPNR, 2004). This has been further reinforced by the Far North Coast Regional Strategy (DoP, 2006).

State and Regionally significant farmland will be ranked 5. Locally significant farmland will be ranked 2.

3.5. Bushfire Hazard The Rural Fires Act 1997 requires the identification of bushfire-prone land areas based on bushfire hazard mapping and the provision of Asset Protection Zones (APZ’s).

Bushfire hazard can be a major development constraint given the likelihood for extreme fire events periodically. The slope of the land, aspect and the vegetation types present, determines the level of bushfire hazard.

Tweed Shire Council categorises bushfire prone land into Vegetation Category 1 and Vegetation Category 2. Vegetation Category 1 is bushfire prone land is that land within (or within 100 m) of a high bushfire hazard area. Category 2 bushfire prone land is that land within (or within 30 m) of a medium bushfire hazard area.

Opportunities exist to manage the interface between new development and surrounding vegetation, including perimeter roads, fuel reduction and building design. More detailed site based assessment of bushfire hazard needs to be undertaken in conjunction with future development to ensure that development is located and designed having regard to the degree of bushfire hazard.

Where adequate fire protection measures cannot be established, development should be prohibited. However, as mitigation is often an option, then the constraint should not be regarded as absolute. Vegetation Category 1 (including a 100m buffer) will be ranked as 3. Vegetation Category 2 (including a 30m buffer) will be ranked as 2 .

3.6. Topography Protected lands are listed under the Native Vegetation Conservation Act 1997 and represent land that generally has a slope greater than 18 degrees from the horizontal; and land situated in, or within 20 metres of the bed or bank of any specified river or lake or land that is in the opinion of the Minister, environmentally sensitive or effected or liable to be effected by soil erosion.

Slope is a significant factor influencing soil erosion, drainage and bushfire hazard. Slopes greater than 14 degrees are likely to have geological constraints and are susceptible to mass movement and high to very high erosion hazard. In addition, slopes greater than 14 degrees can cause installation and management problems for sewerage and water systems. Particularly within employment lands steeper slopes also make truck manoeuvres difficult. Therefore, lands with a slope greater than 14 degrees should be excluded from further development and ranked 5.


Slope between 10 degrees and 14 degrees present a high bush fire danger for dwellings, footings require a great deal of cut and fill, access is difficult and they present a greater erosion hazard. In areas with these grades development is more difficult. However, with specific engineering solutions development is possible and therefore slopes between 10 and 14 degrees will be ranked 3.

Relatively flat grades (less than 10 degrees) significantly reduce costs associated with the installation of infrastructure to service proposed development. Therefore due to the cost efficiency of lesser grades for industrial and commercial development a ranking of 1 will be used for slopes less than 10 degrees (NSW PEC, 1978).

3.7. Land Susceptible to Climate Change There is now broad scientific consensus that climate change is occurring and that early impacts of this change are observable (Newton 2007). Climate change refers to a directional change in climate, beyond natural bounds of variability, that is attributed to human activity and alters the composition of the atmosphere. The likely changes most relevant to this study are sea level rise and increased storm activity with resultant higher risk of inundation, flooding and shoreline erosion (Newton, 2007).

A general representation of the land most likely to be directly affected by these changes is land less than 10 metres above current sea level with land being progressively more at risk the closer it is to current sea levels.

Land less than 5 metres above sea level will be ranked 3 and land between 5 and 10 metres above sea level will be ranked 2.

3.8. Flood Liable land Flood liable land presents a constraint to development as it has implications with regard to the provision and cost of infrastructure, roads and services installed within floodplains, as well as risk implications for public safety and increased property damages.

The flood constraint for employment land is based on the predicted 1 in 100 year (1% AEP) flood level. Based on this predicted flood, Tweed Shire Council regards an area as being subject to “high flow” if flood velocity (v) multiplied by depth (d) is greater than 0.3 (v x d >0.3). Velocity-depth products can also be used as a measure of preliminary flood hazard (refer to NSW Floodplain Development Manual). For example, at flood water depths in excess of 2m (even at low velocities), there can be damage to light framed buildings from water pressure, flotation and debris impact. Motor vehicle instability by buoyancy will also occur at depths as low as 0.3m. At velocities in excess of 2.0m/s the stability of foundations and poles can be affected by scour (DIPNR, 2005).

High flow areas will be ranked 5. Other floodprone land will be ranked 3.

3.9. Ground Water A high water table in combination with certain soil types can have implications for foundation design and road and drainage construction. Additionally, groundwater has a greater potential to become contaminated by certain land uses. Further geotechnical investigations will be required to ascertain the implications for development in locations where ground water and reactive soils are likely to be present. As further investigations are needed for future development a ranking of 2 for identified vulnerable ground water areas will be used or where a high water table is known to occur. That is, areas where the water table is typically within 1 metre of the soil surface.


3.10. Contaminated Lands – Banana Lands and Cattle Tick Dip Sites Portions of the Tweed Shire have been identified as potentially contaminated land due to the former use or current use of the land for banana cultivation. Banana cultivation formally used arsenic and dieldrin as insecticides.

Cattle tick dip sites, are also scattered throughout the Tweed Valley and Tweed Coast and these are subject to a 200m radius of land suspected of contamination.

The Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1993 (EP&A Act) and State Environmental Protection Policy 55 (SEPP 55) require Tweed Council to consider the suitability of land for a proposed development. The risk to health and the environment from contamination must be included in a preliminary assessment, which includes a preliminary site inspection of the contaminated lands. SEPP 55 requires that Council be satisfied that a site is suitable for its proposed use or can and will be made suitable. A site can be made suitable through measures such as site remediation.

Therefore, for these reasons any lands affected by a cattle tick dip site or suspected of being used for banana production will be ranked 3.

3.11. Biting Midges and Mosquitoes Portions of the Tweed Shire have been identified as potentially affected by biting midges and /or mosquitoes. Both these flying insects raise problems of annoyance and health concerns (eg Ross River fever) for urban land uses. Some mitigation measures are possible and some land uses may be more compatible than others.


3.12. Garbage Depots and Sewage Treatment Works Tweed Shire has a major garbage depot and transfer facility at Stotts Island. It has other garbage facilities no longer in uses that should be regarded as contaminated sites. It also has a number of STP’s that provide sewerage to Tweed communities. In the absence of other information it is assumed that a 400 metre buffer around such facilities will be appropriate.


3.13. Extractive Industries Tweed Shire has many extractive industry sites including four identified by the Department of Urban Affairs and Planning as being of regional significance (DUAP, 1999). These sites should be protected from encroachment by incompatible urban land uses until the resource has been exhausted. The Department of Primary Industries (formerly Department of Mineral Resources) has identified in a Section 117 Direction a suitable buffer for each site and these should be regarded as unsuitable for urban development.

Existing extractive industry sites including a suitable buffer will be ranked 5.

3.14. Airport Noise Coolangatta airport has recently been expanded with runway extensions south into the Tweed Shire. It now accepts international flights on a regular basis. Australian Noise Exposure Forecasts (ANEF) are a way of identifying land affected by noise exposure at various levels.


The Tweed LEP 2000 places development controls on any construction work within ANEF 25+ in accordance with AS 2021 – 1994. Residential development is typically restricted to areas less than 25 ANEF with light industrial buildings acceptable in areas less than 30 ANEF. Conditions on acoustic design need to be enforced from 30 to 40 ANEF.

ANEF of 40 or more will be ranked 4. ANEF of 30 to 40 will be ranked 3. ANEF of 25 to 30 will be ranked 2. ANEF of less than 25 will be ranked 1.


Appendix Table 2 Land Suitability Analysis Ranking of Criteria

Constraint Criteria Ranking

National Parks, Nature Reserves, State Forests and Public Open Space 5

Acid Sulfate Soils

Classes 1 4

Classes 2 and 3 3

Classes 4 and 5 2

Vegetation Management:

SEPP 14 Wetlands 5

SEPP 26 Littoral Rainforest 5

Threatened Species and Vegetation Management

– High Conservation Value Vegetation 5

– High Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation 4

– Medium Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation 3

– Low Ecological Sensitivity Vegetation 2

– Degraded Habitats 2

Koala Habitat

Primary Habitat 5

Secondary Habitat 4

Marginal Habitat 2

Agricultural Land:

State and Regionally significant farmland 5

Locally significant farmland 2

Bushfire:



Topography:

Less than 10 degrees slopes 1

10 degrees - 14 degrees slopes 3

Greater than 14 degrees slopes 5


Protected Lands 5

Land Susceptible to Climate Change



Flood Liable Land

High Flow Flooding 5

Other Flood prone land 3

High Groundwater or Vulnerable Groundwater 2

Contaminated Lands 3

Biting Midge and Mosquito Areas 2

Garbage Depots and STP’s 5

Extractive Industries 5

Airport noise

ANEF 40 + 4

ANEF 30 to 40 3

ANEF 25 to 30 2

ANEF Less than 25 1

The above rankings has been used to compile a constraints map for the Tweed Employment Lands Strategy.


Appendix C

Infrastructure


Infrastructure

It is important that new employment lands areas are economically and efficiently serviced in terms of water, sewer, roads and public transport and that the cost of providing such services does not impose an unacceptable burden on existing residents. Issues relating to the servicing of proposed release areas are discussed in the following sections.

1. Water Supply The Tweed River catchment is the bulk source for all town water supplies in the study area. Almost all of the town water supplies are sourced directly from Bray Park Weir and treated at Bray Park Water Treatment Plant. The exceptions to this are the township of Uki which uses the Tweed River at Uki as the source for the Uki Water Treatment Plant and the township of Tyalgum which uses the Oxley River (a tributary of the Tweed River) at Tyalgum as the source for the Tyalgum Water Treatment Plant. Average runoff rates for the catchment are very high due to a combination of steep ranges in the upper catchment and relatively short stream lengths in the lower catchment (TSC, 2006 c).

The secure yield of the Tweed water supply system has previously been assessed at 27,500 Ml/year, capable of sustaining a future population of 189,000. In December 2006, Tweed Shire Council as an interim measure revised this figure down to an estimated 13,750 Ml/year supporting a population of 94,000 at the current demand rate of 145 kilolitres per person per year. This reduction in estimated yield has been brought about by improved modelling techniques, accounting for recent drought events and allowing for release of environmental river flows.

The above assessment whilst useful as an assessment of the current status of the bulk water supply does not allow for the impacts of climate change, the need for improved supply security and improved demand/recycling management. As an example the secure yield of 13,750 Megalitres per year could be reduced by 20% to 11,000 Megalitres per year to allow for climate change and the resultant need for extra system security. Simultaneously however it is envisaged that implementation of additional demand management and recycling initiatives may reduce extraction to say 125 kilolitres per person per year. The combined impact of these two factors would produce a system yield that would sustain a population of 88,000. This is slightly less than the current estimated yield of 94,000

The current connected population is estimated at 73,000 (about 90% of total population), with population growth of around 40,000 expected in the next 20 years there is a need to address the shortfall in bulk water supply expected in coming years.

The shortfall will be addressed by a combination of actions which include demand management (reduction) and recycling as well as the provision of additional bulk water supply sources. These matters and others are being addressed by Council's Tweed Integrated Water Cycle Management (IWCM) process (TSC 2006 c).

Council has been proactive in attempting to secure new water supply sources. Much of the land for the proposed Byrrill Creek Dam has already been acquired and Council has commenced investigating the potential yields of both the new Byrrill Creek Dam and the potential raising of Clarrie Hall Dam. At this stage raising Clarrie Hall dam is seen as the most likely preferred option.

The IWCM process will rigorously investigate these supply options as well as the options for demand reduction and recycling to produce a balanced and integrated water supply strategy. Whilst demand reduction and recycling will buy Council some time before bulk water supply becomes critical, there is a


need to act now to progress the approval process for a new water supply source. The potential system yield of an enlarged Clarrie Hall Dam or a proposed Byrrill Creek Dam will also be dependant on the environmental flow requirements of the NSW State government.

Due to the long lead time in bringing new bulk water supply sources onto line (particularly the environmental planning approval process), it is proposed to immediately commence environmental and detailed yield investigations into the raising of Clarrie Hall Dam so that once (and if) this supply strategy is confirmed, construction of the dam raising can be fast tracked. An early estimate of yield from a raised Clarrie Hall Dam is 16,000 Ml/year which if achieved would equate to a population of around 110,000 persons.

Council needs to consider a water supply worst case scenario such as increased environmental flows, inadequate demand management and worst case climate change scenarios such as back to back droughts with no increase in bulk water supplies. These are significant risks. In this situation, Tweed Shire may not have enough bulk water to supply existing urban zoned lands let alone additional potential urban areas.

However, the IWCM process is under way and Council is committed to bringing new bulk water supply sources to secure water for projected population increases over the long term. There are significant financial and environmental risks in securing these additional water resources and Council is well aware that the ultimate population capacity of Tweed Shire is dependant on a successful outcome.

2. Sewerage Supply The Tweed Shire wastewater system includes five major sewage treatment plants (Tweed Heads, Banora Point, Kingscliff, Hastings Point and Murwillumbah) and three minor plants. Tweed Heads, Banora Point and Kingscliff STPs require future augmentation in order to cater for predicted population increases, with Murwillumbah and Hastings Point STPs being recently upgraded (Refer to Appendix Table 3).

Around 7.5 gigalitres per annum of effluent is discharged to various receiving waters (the majority to the Tweed Estuary), with less than 5% of dry weather flows currently being reused. Future effluent volumes are likely to increase to around 13 gigalitres per annum by 2019 and 19 gigalitres per annum by 2034 (TSC, 2006c).

Approximately 80% of the total Shire population is connected to reticulated sewerage and approximately 98% of the urban population are connected (TSC, 2006 c).

Appendix Table 3 Current and Ultimate Capacity of Tweed Shire Sewage Treatment Plants


(persons)


Uki 600 600

Tumbulgum 700 700

Mooball / Burringbar (proposed) Zero(yet to be constructed) 620

Tyalgum 500 500



(persons)


Murwillumbah 16,000 16,000

Hastings Point 16,000 18,000

Tweed Heads West / Banora Point 62,500 80,000

Kingscliff 25,000 50,000

Total 121,300 166,420

Less 10% for non residential uses 109,170 149,778

Across the Shire the trade waste volume of effluent (i.e. non residential related effluent) is about 810 ML/a from a total volume treated of 7,810 ML/a (TSC, 2006c). If a similar capacity is required in the future then this would reduce the treatment capacity available for residential development by about 10%.

Banora Point STP and Tweed Heads STP service the major urban area of Tweed Heads and surrounding suburbs. Both plants will require future augmentation in order to cater for predicted population increases. Council has also adopted an effluent disposal strategy for the plants, which will involve enhanced effluent treatment via improved nutrient levels in effluent discharged to the Terranora Inlet. The ability to augment any STP is contingent on obtaining a licence to dispose or reuse the treated water in an environmentally acceptable manner. Although significant augmentation is planned they may not happen if this cannot be achieved.

The new Kingscliff STP has just been commissioned to cater for predicted population of 25,000 equivalent persons. Effluent quality from this plant has been significantly improved in order to more consistently achieve the EPA’s effluent quality criteria for the plant and in conjunction with augmentations proposed for Tweed Heads STP and Banora Point STP, will help to improve water quality in the lower estuary.

Hastings Point STP was augmented in 2004 with a view to achieving its ultimate capacity of 18,000 persons. To date it is estimated that the real capacity of the plant is 16,000 persons. The current method of disposing treated water into the coastal dune system is not ideal and may be a limitation that cannot be overcome. Although Council is investigating opportunities for providing effluent to a nearby turf farm and/or for irrigation of local sporting fields these options are not certain. If these disposal issues cannot be overcome then this STP may not reach its projected capacity. Urban development on the lower Tweed Coast that exceeds the capacity of this STP will more than likely require a new STP and effluent disposal system.

Murwillumbah STP was upgraded in 2001, with improved quality effluent being discharged into Rous River. The new plant has dramatically reduced nutrient and bacteria loadings on the Rous River and downstream estuary. However, nutrient accumulation still occurs downstream of the STP during dry periods due to poor flushing of the river. The Condong Sugar Mill Co-generations plant will soon be commissioned. This plant will utilise the average dry weather effluent discharges from the Murwillumbah STP for cooling tower water. This will significantly reduce the nutrient loading on the Rous River.

Tumbulgum STP was commissioned in 1996 and generally has a reliable effluent quality. Some effluent is currently used to irrigate taro crops on an adjacent farm. There is a current NSW Government Approval for Turf Farm to reuse a substantial proportion of the effluent from this plant.


Tyalgum STP performance is at times unreliable. Tertiary ponds are used for disinfection of secondary treated effluent, with the effluent from tertiary ponds being used to irrigate adjacent pastures. Pastures are not currently used for grazing. Investigations have identified that the reuse area could potentially be expanded with the planting of woodlots adjacent to the existing irrigation area. During extended wet periods, the irrigation ponds overflow into Brays Creek, upstream of the Oxley River confluence.

Uki STP was commissioned in 2004, with effluent being used to irrigate nearby koala feed trees. Any overflows, resulting from extended wet periods, from the irrigation ponds would discharge into Smiths Creek and eventually the Upper Tweed River.

The Tumbulgum, Tyalgum and Uki STP’s are all not affected by the outcome of this Strategy.

There are several smaller villages, including Burringbar and Mooball, which are currently not serviced by reticulated sewerage systems. Council has now made a commitment to construct a STP to service Burringbar and Mooball. A location for the STP has been chosen but the timing of its construction will be dependent on Council funding. A major hurdle with this STP will be to construct a system that produces treated water that is suitable for re-use or disposal in an environmentally responsible manner. The licensing of this STP and its disposal options presents Council with a significant challenge. It is not guaranteed at this stage that the system will have capacity to treat effluent beyond the existing population of the village areas of Burringbar and Mooball and this requires further investigation.

3. Transport The Tweed Economic Growth Management Strategy 2007 – 2010 identified the following transport infrastructure issues that provide opportunities for economic growth in the Tweed:

The planned $3 billion to be spent of the upgrading of the Pacific Motorway (Highway) between Sydney and Brisbane. This includes the road connectivity between Queensland and New South Wales to significantly improve inter-regional and regional traffic flow between the Tweed and Gold Coast (the Tugun bypass project in particular).

The Tweed and Gold Coast is a major entry point for non-bulk road freight from Sydney to Brisbane, with the Pacific Highway carrying over 70% of the Sydney to Brisbane traffic.

Ready access to two of the busiest and fastest growing airports in Australia – Gold Coast and Brisbane.

The extension of the Gold Coast Airport runway to provide the opportunity and potential for growth in airfreight and passenger capacity to international destinations.

Retention of the Murwillumbah rail corridor alignment provides future growth opportunities particularly in the area of freight movements to and from southern states.

The main Sydney-Brisbane rail corridor passes through the western part of the Region linking the Far North Coast to the east coast passenger and freight rail network, the capital cities and major shipping ports. The South East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program 2007- 2026 has identified the future extension of the Gold Coast rail link to Coolangatta airport by 2026 as a major infrastructure initiative. (Queensland Department of Infrastructure, 2007). It also indicates that a public transport corridor will link Helensvale railway station to Broadbeach and Coolangatta by 2015 (Queensland Department of Infrastructure, 2007).

South East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program 2007- 2026 identifies the Pacific Motorway Upgrade as one of four major issues in the Gold Coast area. The Pacific Motorway is a critical link for the


South East Queensland region and its use for inter-regional and intra-regional trips must be preserved. Additional lanes between Nerang and Tugun, and improved local transport connections, are essential investments.

The Pacific Motorway complements other modes of transport like the Gold Coast rail line. It links to the South East Busway and transit lanes to the north providing ease of travel to the centre of Brisbane.

The Tugun Bypass is a major road project planned for the Gold Coast / Tweed Heads Region. It extends from Stewart Road in Currumbin to the Tweed Heads Bypass just north of Kennedy Drive, passing to the west of the Gold Coast Airport. It is due for completion in mid 2008.

On the Tweed Coast the main focus is on distributor and collector roads for local traffic generated by new residential development and tourism opportunities. The Tweed Coast Road will be the main distributor road for local traffic and is being considered for upgrading to four lanes from the Chinderah roundabout to at least Casuarina and perhaps Bogangar (TSC, 2003). Consideration is also being given to a West Kingscliff east-west aligned link road; the Kings Forest Parkway to link the Kings Forest development area to Duranbah Road; and maintaining the Casuarina Way as a north south link for Tweed Coast villages.

Inland, the main link is the Tweed Valley Way (old pacific highway), which provides a high speed connection between Murwillumbah and the employment lands on its outskirts (Kielvale and Wardrop Valley) with the Pacific Motorway. It also provides an adequate road link to Burringbar and Mooball and smaller villages to the south. Council has also modelled a number of options for alleviating the traffic pressure on the Murwillumbah bridge including bridge duplication (VLC, 2007).

The ultimate road network based on existing zoned land has been estimated by Council (VLC, 2007) and forms the basis of its current S. 94 contributions plan. Any significant changes to this ultimate road network as a result of the potential development areas identified in this Strategy will need to be modelled to gauge the traffic impacts.


Figure Index Figure 1 Strategy Area Figure 2 Flood Liable Land Figure 3 Topography Figure 4 Vegetation Management Figure 5 Koala Habitat Figure 6 Acid Sulfate Soils Figure 7 Groundwater Vulnerability Figure 8 Agricultural Land Figure 9 Bushfire Hazard Figure 10 Land Susceptible to Climate Change Figure 11 Contaminated Lands Figure 12 Airport Noise Figure 13 National Parks, Nature Reserves and State Forests Figure 14 Potential Urban Areas Figure 15 Potential Urban Areas Figure 16 Potential Urban Areas Figure 17 Potential Urban Areas Figure 18 Potential Urban Areas Figure 19 Far North Coast Regional Strategy Future Urban Release Areas Figure 20 Far North Coast Regional Strategy Future Urban Release Areas


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Document Status



0 M Svikis

B Wilkinson

S.Lawer S.Lawer Nov 2007

1 M Svikis

B Wilkinson

S.Lawer S.Lawer Feb 2008

2 M Svikis

B Wilkinson

S. Lawer S. Lawer Feb 2009


Tweed Shire Council

Public Consultation and Submissions

2009


Introduction Tweed Shire Council regards public consultation as vital to the process of preparing planning documents. It is mandatory to undertake community consultation when preparing a Local Growth Management Strategy. Often public submissions are made and addressed, but then become separated from the original document. As time passes it is difficult to remember what matters were raised and why they did or did not result in change. In finalising the Tweed Employment Lands and Urban Land Release Strategies it was agreed that all written submissions to the exhibited strategies will be summarised and included as part of the document.

Public consultation associated with the Tweed Strategies Advertisements were placed in the Tweed Link newspaper in mid 2007 advising that Strategies were

being prepared and asking for expressions of interest from any landowners that consider their land may suitable for urban or employment use;

Interviews were held with those who expressed interest in their land being included in the Strategies;

A group workshop was held with key state government representatives about their expectations for the Strategies;

Draft Urban Land Release and Employment Lands Strategies were prepared and potentially affected landowners were contacted by letter. Group consultation workshops were held with landowners in late 2007.

The draft Urban Land Release and Employment Lands Strategies were revised based on this feedback. They were considered by Council in early 2008;

The revised draft Strategies were exhibited for public comment from 7 May – 27 June 2008 at the following locations:

– Tweed Shire Council Head Office, Murwillumbah;

– Tweed Shire Council Website.

Advertisements were placed in the Tweed Link newspaper and affected landowners were advised by letter.

Exhibition Period Submissions During the exhibition period, 76 submissions were received from individuals, groups and government departments. All submissions have been summarised, considered and actions recommended for each issue raised.

The submissions were received from a range of respondents including: private landowners, government agencies and corporations and covered the following general topics:

land that should be included in the strategies;

land that should be excluded from the strategies;

concern regarding the process of preparing and exhibiting the strategies; and

concern regarding specific issues such as the timing of potential release areas, data that was used or the particular terminology that was included.

Government Departments that made submissions included the Department of Lands and the Department of Environment and Climate Change.

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Table 11-1 Land nominated for inclusion in the Strategies

Land nominated for inclusion in the Strategies

Issue Description Planning Comment Action

General The DoL is the largest landholder in the Tweed Shire and will contribute significantly to the social, economic and environmental future of the Tweed Shire.

The DoL is investigating a number of other sites on Crown land for industrial, commercial, tourism and recreational development.

Comment is noted. Tweed Shire Council (TSC) considered all land in the multi criteria analysis to establish which lands meet Council’s criteria. TSC understands the role of DoL within the Shire.

No change recommended.

Airport Precinct (Area 1)

Employment Lands Strategy (ELS)

DoL supports Area 1 for industrial land release. It suggests this land should be given short-medium term release.

Environmental constraints on this land need to be considered carefully.

This precinct has enormous potential for development in the short to medium term.

Area 1 & 2 has potential for a wide variety of employment development uses including business park precinct, airport and export related industries.

Area 1 has been identified as a medium term release area in the Strategy.

A medium term timeframe has been recommended in the strategy based on demand assumptions and how supply of employment lands will diminish in the future.

The strategy should be reviewed every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand of services and infrastructure.

Other submissions have questioned the suitability of Area 1 due to environmental issues and airport imposed restrictions on building height etc. Notwithstanding the DoL support for Area 1 it is recommended that it be removed from the Strategy.

Remove Area 1 from the ELS

1.

Boyd Street Overpass

ELS

DoL suggests that some land may be suitable for release in the Boyd St overpass area to capitalise on the new Tugun Bypass, future rail and the Gold Coast Airport Western Enterprise Precinct.

This lot has not been identified in the ELS due to the assessment criteria used.


2. Lot 13 DP 842857, Keilvale

Urban Land Release Strategy (ULRS)

This lot is not included in the draft Strategy and should be considered as possible urban expansion area.

Lot currently has 3 zonings, including a residential zone.

This lot has not been identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used. However, the site is adjacent to Area 1 and it may be considered in the master planning process for that locality.

No change recommended

3. Lot 2 DP 589967, Gray Street, West Tweed

Area 2

ELS

Supports the rezoning of this land to light industrial. This lot is already identified in the ELS and is in the south east corner of Area 2. It is in an area that is most distant from the Gold Coast Airport and most distant from the Cobaki Broadwater. It is recommended that it remain in the Strategy.


4. Lot 2 DP 231691 (Burringbar)

ULRS

Part of this lot should be included as a site for urban release in the Urban Land Strategy. The southern part of this lot is currently zoned residential.

This lot has not been identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used. However, as the land is adjacent to Area 8 it may be considered for the master planning process for that locality.


5. Mooball

ULRS

Concerns that there is a shortfall in urban land release areas. 935 ha are identified as the shortfall across both vacant subdivided land and land yet to be granted subdivision approval. This shortfall is based on the assumption that zoned land at Cobaki Lakes and Kings Forest will not produce residential land in the short to medium term. Concerned that Council has decided to rely on existing zoned areas rather than investigate Greenfield sites. Disagree with Council’s adoption of urban consolidation and existing zoned land (11.3) as its preferred growth option.

The methodology for estimating the potential supply of urban land from existing zoned areas is outlined in the ULRS.

If the figures overestimate the supply this can be addressed at a later review of the Strategy. There is no reason to assume that Cobaki Lakes and Kings Forest will not produce residential land in the short to medium term.

Council was presented a range of options in the draft ULRS and opted to focus on zoned areas and increased densities (11.3). The recommended option was to rely on existing zoned areas, promote urban consolidation and identify and release Greenfield sites in the short, medium and long term. Given the need to have a strategy that looks beyond existing zoned land this option (11.5) is still preferred.

It is recommended Council re-visit its decision on major directions for urban land development and adopt 11.5 of the ULRS as its preferred position.




6. Duranbah (Area 4)

ULRS

There is a request for the property: 63 Duranbah Rd, Duranbah, to be listed as a ‘short term’ timeframe for development rather than a ’long term’ timeframe in the ULRS.

Area 4 has been identified as a long-term release area based on demand assumptions and how the supply of urban lands is predicted to diminish in the future. It also takes into consideration the large areas of land that are already zoned for residential purposes.

The strategy should be reviewed every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand of services and infrastructure. Timing of land release can be re-assessed at this time.


7. Lot 1 DP 1062132 (Duranbah Road Duranbah)

ULRS

This lot should be included as an urban release area in the ULRS

Request that Council investigate further potential urban release areas to meet the shortfall in land supply for the ULRS

The area to the south and west of Kings Forest should be investigated as potential urban release areas.

This lot has not been identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used. However, as the property is adjacent to Area 4 it may be considered for the master planning process for that locality.


8. Lot C, DP 930683 and Lot D, DP 930 684 (Kielvale area) in Area 1

ULRS

These lots should be included in ULRS.

Suggest that Area 1 should be released as a 5-10 year time frame, rather than 20 years. This area is central to major transport routes to the north and south and possibilities to the east.

The identified lots have been included in Area 1 in the ULRS.

Area 1 has been identified as a long-term release area based on demand assumptions and how the supply of urban lands is predicted to diminish in the future. It also takes into consideration the large areas of land that are already zoned for residential purposes.


Timing of land release can be reviewed at this time.


9. Lot 1, DP 1073137 (Kielvale – Wardrop Valley area)

ULRS

This lot should be included in the ULRS.

This parcel of land was included in the previous proposed urban land release and there is no reason why it should be taken out.

The lot is suitable for urban development due to a number of reasons such as being flood free, clear of vegetation, appropriate access and proximity to the town centre.

This lot was not identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used.

However, the property is adjacent to Area 1 and may be considered in the master planning process for that locality.

Area 1 is a general locality that builds on the existing residential zone at Kielvale. Although the 1992 Strategy was a consideration it was not the “starting point” for any of the areas identified in the draft ULRS. The land suitability assessment process is intended to be a “fresh look” at potential urban areas and is explained in the draft document.


10 Lot 9 DP 583345 Kielvale

(near Area 1)

ULRS

The greater part of Lot 9 DP 583345 should be included in the proposed future Kielvale release area.

A more infrastructure efficient urban perimeter should be investigated.

The strategy should review the following aspects in relation to this parcel of land:

Excessive urban perimeter vs. area,

Incorrect agricultural protection identity,

Non-viable residual lands,

Potentially inefficient urban infrastructure servicing, and

Possible under provision of agricultural and bushfire buffering which may impact on target yields.

The northern most part of this lot (approximately 20% of its area) is currently zoned 2(d) Village under Tweed LEP 2000. Subject to service infrastructure thaiu land can already be developed if the owner chooses to do so. The balance of the lot has not been identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used.

The points raised in this submission in relation to urban perimeter and residual agricultural lands will have to be considered more closely if the subject land is developed in conjunction with the neighbouring village zoned lands.


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11. Request that Lot 1 DP1026551, Lot 1 DP124646 and Lot 2 DP828280 be included in the Burringbar and Mooball villages urban areas

ULRS

A large proportion of Lot 1 in DP 1026551 has been excluded from consideration because it is regionally significant farmland. This should not be a restriction to urban expansion.

This lot has not been included in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used.

Regionally significant farmland is not an absolute constraint, but the conditions that must be complied with to justify its inclusion in a strategy are extremely difficult to achieve.

A number of areas were considered initially but landowner reaction at a consultation meeting was strongly in opposition to significant expansion of the urban area of Burringbar.


12. Lot 6 DP 524303 Murwillumbah

ULRS

This lot should be included in the ULRS as a potential urban release area with a short term rezoning timeframe (0-10 years).

This lot has not been included in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used.


13. Tweed Valley Industrial Park - Area 5 and Area 6

ELS

Area 5 – Wardrop Valley West. Request that additional land be included in Area 5. Request that the ‘long term’ status change to a ‘short term’ status.

Area 6 – this area is supported for inclusion in the strategy.

Area 5 was defined by the assessment criteria used in the ELS, but the areas nominated are adjacent to it and may be considered in a future master planning process.

Area 5 has been identified as a long-term release area in the Strategy, based on demand assumptions and how the supply of employment lands is predicted to diminish in the future.

The strategy should be reviewed every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand for services and infrastructure.

Area 6 is recommended to be developed before Area 5 because of its proximity to the existing industrial areas as well as access to services and access off Wardrop Valley Road.


14. Bilambil Heights

ULRS

Request that the ULRS identifies the 6(b) zoned land at Pacific Highlands to be rezoned to 2(c) with a short-term status.

Amend the strategy to include the additional 18.35 ha of land within Pacific Highlands as potential urban release area.

Amend the strategy to be consistent with the urban footprint shown in the Draft Bilambil Heights Local Area Structure Plan with a short-term timeframe.

Land zoned for open space purposes was regarded as already being within the urban footprint and was not typically considered for inclusion in the ULRS. Changing open space land to a residential zone needs to be based on an analysis of the supply and demand for open space in the locality as well as the suitability of the land for residential use.

The Draft Bilambil Heights Local Area Structure Plan is not a Council endorsed document and is not currently publicly available. A State significant site application has been made by the landowners and the site is also subject to a Part 3A application for an urban concept plan. Both are processes beyond the scope of this Strategy.


15. Lot 21 DP 518902 and Lot 644 DP 755740 (Area 3)

ELS

Area 3 (the Border Park Raceway) is supported as being in the strategy however it is recommended to be in the short-term timeframe not the medium term. This is to allow for lead times for rezoning, obtaining development approvals and construction.

A medium term timeframe was recommended in the draft strategy based on demand assumptions and how the supply of employment lands is expected to diminish in the future.

However, this submission points out that the future viability of the current use of this site will be decided within the next ten years and if its not able to be rezoned for employment purposes then it may be lost as a supply opportunity. Accordingly it has been brought forward into the short term time frame.


It is recommended that Council consider this site as a short term option for rezoning for employment lands in the ELS.




16. Lot 4 DP 747359, (Upper Burringbar Road, Burringbar)

ULRS

This lot should be included in the ULRS. More specifically, the southern parts of the site, which are not mapped as regionally significant farmland.

This lot has not been identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used.

A number of areas were considered initially but landowner reaction at a consultation meeting was strongly in opposition to significant expansion of the urban area of Burringbar.


17. Lot 10 DP 1084319 (Area 2)

ELS

This lot should be allocated as short term rather than medium term. This is requested to assist with the commencement of the rezoning process.

Reasons for change in time allocation are:

Demand for industrial land;

Lead times for rezoning, development approvals and construction; and

Improved access for industrial development due to completion of Tugun Bypass.

A medium term timeframe has been recommended in the strategy based on demand assumptions and how supply of employment lands will diminish in the future.


This timeframe has taken into consideration the lead times for the rezoning process.


18. Lot 8 DP 867005 (Pottsville)

ULRS

This lot has an area of 4.14 ha and should be included as a potential release area in the ULRS. This site is predominately grassland. The consultant thinks that it may be partly in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy.

This rural residential lot has not been identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used.

The lot is north of the area identified in the Far North Coast Urban Strategy for urban development. It is definitely not in the Far North Coast Urban Strategy.

Rural residential areas have historically yielded very poor urban residential outcomes due to disjointed land ownership and the inappropriate location of infrastructure and dwellings. Council considered the option of increasing densities in rural residential areas as part of the ULRS, but decided not to do so at this stage.


19. Lot 7 DP 874934 (West Murwillumbah)

ULRS

This lot has an area of 27.4 ha and should be included as a potential release area (as Part of Area 3) in the ULRS.

This site is adjacent to Areas 2 and 3 and is relatively unconstrained.

This lot has not been identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used. However, as it is adjacent to Area 3 it may be considered for the master planning process for that locality.


20. Lot 1 DP 706163 (866 Pottsville Road, Pottsville)

ULRS

The identified lot should be included as a potential urban release area in the ULRS. The lot is relatively unconstrained and this inclusion would make it consistent with the Far North Coast Regional Strategy..

Rural residential areas have historically yielded very poor urban residential outcomes due to disjointed land ownership and the inappropriate location of infrastructure and dwellings. This lot was not identified in the ULRS because of its current use. However, it is noted that the land is in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy and in the draft Pottsville Locality Plan. In the interests of consistency it should be included in the ULRS so that it can be considered along with other lands in the vicinity in any future master planning.

It is recommended this land be added to Area 7 of the ULRS.

20a. Lot 2 DP 706163 (854 Pottsville Road, Pottsville)

ULRS

The identified lot should be included as a potential urban release area in the ULRS. The lot is relatively unconstrained and this inclusion would make it consistent with the Far North Coast Regional Strategy..

Rural residential areas have historically yielded very poor urban residential outcomes due to disjointed land ownership and the inappropriate location of infrastructure and dwellings. This lot was not identified in the ULRS because of its current use. However, it is noted that the land is in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy and in the draft Pottsville Locality Plan. In the interests of consistency it should be included in the ULRS so that it can be considered along with other lands in the vicinity in any future master planning.


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20b. Lot 2 DP 248704, Lot 2 DP 592115, Lot 5 DP 840977 and lot 1 DP 248704 (834 Pottsville Road, Pottsville)

ULRS

The identified lots should be included as a potential urban release area in the ULRS. The lot is relatively unconstrained and this inclusion would make it consistent with the Far North Coast Regional Strategy..

Rural residential areas have historically yielded very poor urban residential outcomes due to disjointed land ownership and the inappropriate location of infrastructure and dwellings. These lots were not identified in the ULRS because of their current use. However, it is noted that the land is in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy and in the draft Pottsville Locality Plan. In the interests of consistency it should be included in the ULRS so that it can be considered along with other lands in the vicinity in any future master planning.


21. Lots 2 and 3 DP 1077990 (South Tweed Heads)

ELS

The identified lots should be included as potential employment land in the ELS. These lots have not been identified in the ELS due to the assessment criteria used. Lot 2 is already identified for employment land (zoned 4(a) industrial). Lot 3 has environmental constraints and is zoned 6(b) Recreation. Land zoned for open space purposes was regarded as already being within the urban footprint and was not typically considered for inclusion in the ELS. Changing it to an employment zone needs to be based on an analysis of the supply and demand for open space in the locality as well as the suitability of the land for employment purposes.


22. Lot 22 DP 1058759 and Lot 4 DP 876253 (Clothiers Creek Road, Bogangar)

ULRS

The identified lots should be included as a potential urban release area in the ULRS.

This land was identified in the 1992 Residential Development Strategy and in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy .

These lots have not been identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used.

The respondent advises that in January 2007 Council rejected the subject land for residential development, primarily because of flooding issues. If these issues can be resolved then parts of the land may be considered for inclusion in a future review of the ULRS.

Lot 22 is a large lot that spans both sides of Clothiers Creek Road.

Lot 4 is entirely located on the north side of Clothiers Creek Road and is already partly zoned for residential purposes.


23. Lot 33 DP 1073293 (Kirkwood Road, Tweed Heads South)

ELS

The identified lot should be included as a potential employment land area with a short-term designation for rezoning.

This lot is 18.02 ha and is identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy as “within” existing urban footprint.

Lot 33 has environmental constraints and is zoned 6(b) Recreation. Land zoned for open space purposes was regarded as already being within the urban footprint and was not typically considered for inclusion in the ELS. Changing it to an employment zone needs to be based on an analysis of the supply and demand for open space in the locality as well as the suitability of the land for employment purposes.

The identified lot has not been identified in the ELS due to the assessment criteria used.


24. Kielvale (Area 1)

ULRS and ELS

East Kielvale urban release area in the ULRS should not be purely residential, but instead allow for a mixed-use master-planned community. This area should also be prioritised for development in the short to medium term.

Recommend that Council consider the benefits of master-planned communities, the importance of boundary definitions, the timeframes for urban release and critical employment linkages.

Agree that master planned communities that allow for mixed uses are important. This is stated in Chapter 13 of the ULRS. It is expected that Area 1 would not be a purely residential development in the long term.

Area 1 was defined by the assessment criteria used in the ULRS, but areas nominated that are adjacent may be considered in a future master planning process.

Timing of any release is an issue that can be revisited when the ULRS is next reviewed.





25. Lots 1&2 in DP 815370 (Pottsville Mooball Road, Pottsville)

ULRS

The identified lots should be included in the ULRS.

The respondent understands that this land is not included due to environmental constraints. The land sits adjacent to the Seabreeze residential estate and on the western perimeter of the Pottsville village centre. The site has access to public infrastructure and any development would dedicate buffers to required areas.

These lots have not been identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used.

The land parcel has an extended frontage to the south side of the Pottsville/Mooball Road and is extensively affected by a SEPP 14 wetland.


26. Lot 3 DP 719692 and Lot 13 DP 726470 (McCollums Road, Cudgen – Area 4)

ULRS

Part of the identified lots have been included as part of Area 4 in the ULRS.

The respondent has requested that all of the land is to be included as potential urban release area.

The whole site is 27.2 ha and has frontages to both McCollums Rd and Cudgen Rd.

This lot was partly identified in the ULRS due to the assessment criteria used. The balance of the property would be considered in the master plan for that locality.


27. West Kingscliff

ULRS

The respondent advises that there is approximately 62 ha of vacant land currently zoned 2(c) in the West Kingscliff Urban release area described in Table 7.2..

Agreed

Amend Table 7.2 of the ULRS to reflect 62 ha (gross) at West Kingscliff (not 47 ha)

28. Chinderah – Proposed business park

ELS

The proposal is to develop a business park at Chinderah on a 96.5 ha site with Pacific Highway frontage (site shown in submission).

The concept is supported by the Far North Coast Regional Strategy . ‘Opportunity for integrated master planned estates and business technology parks’ was acknowledged but no specifics identified in the ELS.

These lots have not been identified in the ELS due to the assessment criteria used. The concept of identifying a large site as suitable for a Business Park is supported, but it needs to be a site that meets the land suitability criteria used by Council and supported by the State government. The Far North Coast Regional Strategy supports the concept but does not specifically nominate the site.


29. 119-121 Tweed Coast Road Lot 14 DP 871062

ULRS

ELS

Subject property should be included within the ULRS given its proximity to existing urban footprint with suitable infrastructure nearby.

This lot has not been identified in the ULRS or ELS due to the assessment criteria used.


30. Land in vicinity of Hindmarsh Road, Keilvale

Lot 22 DP 860153

Lot 3/582718

Lot 189/DP755698

Lot C/DP930683

Lot D/DP930684

ULRS

Subject properties should be included within strategy for release. Past history of rezoning by the Council (TLEP 1987 Rural 1(c) to Rural 1(a) and Land included within the Draft Tweed Shire Council Residential Development Strategy of the 1980’s.

The properties are currently included within Area 1 of the Urban Land Release Strategy. It is recommended that these lands remain within the strategy.


31. 771 Cudgen Road, Cudgen

Lot 102 DP 870772

ULRS

Critical of the ‘constraints mapping / sieving’ with only constraints or negatives mapped. Strategy does not consider liveability of sites. Sites identified for inclusion have bad microclimate which inevitability results in unsustainable development. Subject land no longer suitable for agricultural production given size of land holding, surrounding zones and land uses and on site topography. Council has acquired land further diminishing productivity. Land suitable for sustainable residential forms.

This lot has not been identified in the ULRS or ELS due to the assessment criteria used. TSC considered all land in the multi criteria analysis to establish which lands meet Council’s criteria. It is agreed that constraints mapping focuses on the limitations to a site and not its more positive attributes in terms of liveability. However, it is ultimately the constraints to a site that limit its development capability (and yield) and affect the cost of infrastructure.


11



32. 84 Reserve Creek Road, Keilvale

Lot 2 DP 605594

Subject land is in the vicinity of Area 1 ULRS therefore is appropriate for inclusion and could simultaneously benefit from infrastructure which would service Areas 5 and 6 of the ELS. There is existing residential zoned land in the vicinity.

This lot has not been identified in the ULRS or ELS due to the assessment criteria used.


33. Landowners of properties within Cudgen

Objection to the ULRS and its omission of subject properties. Objection to adoption of NSW State Government Regional Farmland Protection Project as criteria for constraint mapping. Lands should be included given viability, supply/demand, unsuitability for current farming practices, availability of infrastructure and services.

These lots have not been identified in the ULRS or ELS due to the assessment criteria used.

These sites are classed as State Significant Farmland a significant constraint to the development of land which restricts inclusion of land as potential urban or employment land release.



34. Pyramid Holiday Park

ELS

Request to have land included in Area 2 of ELRS. Recent changes in surrounding area, such as increased capacity of the Gold Coast Airport and problems with nearby Sewage Treatment Plant make the future of the park questionable. Whilst it is not the intention to change the use of the land, having the option to rezone would be of benefit and enable responsive change to other changes in landuse in the surrounding areas beyond control of the park. As accommodation costs increase, will residents be prepared to pay increased tariffs if the land is further impacted by aircraft noise and odour from STP?

Land zoned and developed for residential purposes was regarded as already being within the urban footprint and was not typically considered for inclusion in the ELS. Changing it to an employment zone needs to consider a more detailed analysis of the supply and demand for low cost housing and tourism accommodation in the locality as well as the suitability of the land for employment purposes and its potential compatibility with surrounding land uses.


35. Tweed Valley Way, Mooball

Lot 7 DP 59320 and Lot 2 DP534493

Fully support strategy (ULR) as owners of land included within Area 9 of the ULR. Noted No change recommended.


Table 11-2 Land nominated for exclusion from the Strategies

Land nominated for exclusion from the Strategies


36. ULRS

DECC either objects or does not support any of the areas identified in the ULRS other than those parts that coincide with land identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy for urban expansion.

There is no need for this strategy.

DECC considers the Council’s existing zoned land together with the Far North Coast Regional Strategy lands is adequate for urban needs for the next 25 years. To identify further land in a strategy will increase pressure on these areas.

All of the areas in the Strategy have been identified based on the best available information. The principle of having a “rolling stock” of 25 years supply of land is justified in the Strategy and a residential land balance sheet is presented at Table 10.1. At the time of public exhibition Council’s position is that it prefers the direction in 11.3 of the Strategy (rely on existing zoned areas and increase urban densities). Council does not accept that the Far North Coast Regional Strategy is the only planning strategy for the Tweed Shire. All Council’s have the right to prepare local growth management strategies and if these are more accurate, then the Far North Coast Regional Strategy should be amended accordingly.

DECC provides no advice on climate change and planning for urban development in the long term (25 years plus).


37. Airport Precinct (Area 1 and Area 2)

ELS

Area 1 is heavily affected by noise from the Gold Coast airport, is within the 1 km public safety area, and there are threatened species adjacent to site.

Therefore this area should not be developed.

Area 2 has noise and safety concerns similar to Area 1, but of a lesser degree. Council should assess any future requirement for retention or rebuilding of the STP before considering this area for employment lands.

It is understood that Area 1 is an area of high airport noise impact, which makes it unsuitable for residential development and there will also be limitations on the types of industry that can locate in this area.

The site is ideally positioned for export businesses that rely on air transport and the site is easily accessible from the Tugun Bypass.

In regards to conservation values it is acknowledged that Area 1 is ecologically sensitive and should not be in the Strategy.

Area 2 is not affected by ecological issues and parts of this site may still be suitable for employment lands uses.


37a. Border Race Track (Area 3)

ELS

This area is zoned for public recreation. This area should not be identified for urban development unless an equivalent area for recreation can be located.

The landowners have expressed support for possible employment lands in the long term. The type of recreation use is quite limited and if this use is no longer viable then the highest and best use for the land should be identified. The land will come under pressure for residential development and identifying it for employment lands is an important step in broadening the employment base of the Tweed Shire.

A medium term timeframe was recommended in the draft strategy based on demand assumptions and how the supply of employment lands is expected to diminish in the future.

However, the future viability of the current use of this site will be decided within the next ten years and if its not able to be rezoned for employment purposes then it may be lost as a supply opportunity. Accordingly it has been brought forward into the short term time frame.


It is recommended that Council consider this site as a short term option for rezoning for employment lands in the ELS.

37b Chinderah East (Area 4)

ELS

OK as long as constraints (such as presence of EEC’s and wetland threatened species) are assessed and avoided.

Comment noted. Specific environmental constraints would be assessed at the time of lodging a rezoning application for land within this Area.


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37c West Pottsville (Area 7)

ELS

A large proportion of the 144 ha nominated in the strategy for future development should be excluded due to land within the Coastal zone and records of high ecological value.

The land within Area 7 is predominantly grazing land and is considered suitable for employment lands purposes due to the assessment criteria.

Additionally, the southern portion of this Area is consistent with the Far North Coast Regional Strategy.

The site is also suitable due to access to the Pacific Motorway via the Cudgera Creek Road interchange.

Specific environmental constraints would be assessed at the time of lodging a rezoning application for land within this Area.

The area nominated in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy is quite small and inadequate for the long term needs of the Tweed economy. A larger area will assist in broadening the economic base of the Tweed Shire and allow export industry to consider locating on this site as well as service industry.


38. Tweed Heads (Area 1)

ELS

Area 1 should not be developed. The site should be preserved due to presence of native bird species. Provides detailed bird and plant lists. Includes a letter from NPWS in 2002 citing the “significant environmental constraints” to the pony club site (part of Area 1).

TSC understands that there are specific environmental constraints on Area 1. The site is also impacted by being in close proximity to the Gold Coast Airport.

On balance there would be minimal useable land left once these constraints are considered more closely. It is recommended that Area 1 be removed from the Strategy.

Remove Area 1 from ELS

38a Old Kingscliff STP Site (Area 4)

ELS

Site should be preserved (as a wetland reserve) due to ecological value, sport and recreation field opportunities and potential ASS issues.

It is acknowledged that parts of Area 4 near the old Kingscliff STP have native vegetation. It is also common for STP ponds to be used by water birds. However, this site is quite large and it may be possible to preserve the environmentally sensitive areas and still use the majority of the site for employment purposes. Buffers to environmental areas can also be addressed at the rezoning stage.


39. ULRS

and

ELS

Agree with intent and coverage of the ULRS.

Have comments on the ELS.

Support for the ULRS is noted. No change recommended

39a West Tweed Heads (Area 1)

ELS

Exclude this area from any future development.

The TDRRPA considers that Area 1 has high biodiversity significance and should not be considered for development.

This view has been expressed in a number of submissions and it is agreed that this site has high conservation values and is affected heavily by its proximity to the Gold Coast Airport.


39b

Border Park

ELS

Should remain as Crown Reserve. Should not be Industrial/ Commercial development because it is not identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy .

The Strategy is looking at land use in the longer term. The landowners have expressed support for possible employment lands in the long term. The type of recreation use is quite limited and if this use is no longer viable then the highest and best use for the land should be identified. The land will come under pressure for residential development and identifying it for employment lands is an important step in broadening the employment base of the Tweed Shire. Being excluded from the Far North Coast Regional Strategy does not exclude land from being identified in this Strategy.


39c State and private school areas

ELS

These areas should remain education facilities, not commercial/ industrial. This comment relates to a statement made in Section 9.3 of the ELS that up to 2 ha of land within the immediate vicinity of either Tweed Heads or Tweeds Heads Sth should be considered for addition to the stock of commercial land. The respondent has wrongly assumed this is referring to school sites. The ELS does not refer to school sites and does not identify any particular site for this suggested commercial expansion.





39d Incorrect discounting of zoned industrial land in the Strategy

ELS

Respondent suggests that 15 ha should be added to the discounted land supply for Murwillumbah and 16 ha for Tweed Heads.

Discounting of land supplies is normal practice in preparing a strategy. It recognises that some land that may be zoned is either unlikely to ever yield lots or the yield is likely to be delayed. The factors affecting yield can always be subjective. The respondent has misunderstood the process somewhat. Only 4 ha was discounted from the Tringa Street site not 16 as suggested in the submission. The 8 ha referred to as being in multiple ownership was not discounted, it was the residue that was left after discounting was complete. It is entirely valid to discount the 7 ha occupied by the quarry as stated in the ELS.

It is considered that any changes to supply as a result of changes to discounting that could be justified are small and inconsequential over the life of the Strategy.


39e Inconsistent with the Far North Coast Regional Strategy and fails to address transport issues adequately

ELS

The ELS is inconsistent with the estimated demand and supply options from the Far North Coast Regional Strategy .

The ELS does not address the transport issues like upgrading the Murwillumbah airport, etc

Although the Far North Coast Regional Strategy was a consideration it was not the “starting point” for any of the areas identified in the draft ELS. The land suitability assessment process is intended to be a “fresh look” at potential employment areas and is explained in the draft document. If anything, the Far North Coast Regional Strategy should be amended to include the more up to date information in the ELS rather then the ELS follow the Far North Coast Regional Strategy .

The ELS does address transport issues to some extent. It does not address the possible upgrade of the Murwillumbah airport as this was not part of the brief. If Council wants to establish whether the current airport site is suitable for an upgrade or if there is another site that might be located this can be undertaken as a separate planning study.


40. Area 1 (Crown Reserve 59360)

ELS

This area of land is of high conservation value. It is part of the Cobaki wetlands and the East Coast migratory flyway and is indispensable to migratory birds. It is recommended that it not be included in the Strategy as an area for industrial development.

This area is presently occupied by the Tweed Pony Club.

Environmental constraints would have been assessed at the time of lodging a rezoning request for land within this Area.

However, there is evidence to suggest the environmental values of Area 1 are significant. It is recommended that it be removed from the ELS.


41. Area 1

ELS

Area 1 should be excluded from the ELS as it conflicts with many local, state and federal policies and strategies. Some of the reasons for exclusion are:

Crown Land, existing plan of managements for the area, primary koala habitat, EEC’s, threatened species, flood prone, compensatory vegetation area for airport extension.

Area 1 is zoned and used for open space and this is an important land use in Tweed Shire. It is also affectively ASS and contains significant vegetation (in parts).

Environmental constraints would have been assessed at the time of lodging a rezoning request for land within this Area.

However, there is evidence to suggest the environmental values of Area 1 are significant. It is recommended that it be removed from the ELS.


42. Area 1

General

ELS

Concern about loss of public land to private ownership by development of Pony Club (Area 1). Concern about escalation of traffic problems from development of lands in vicinity of Gold Coast Airport, particularly on interchange areas. Any other land to be developed should be located in close proximity to working population, unlike development of lands in Murwillumbah.

There is evidence to suggest that environmental values of Area 1 area significant. It is recommended that Area 1 be removed from the ELS.


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43. Area 1 –Tweed Pony Club

Area 4 Chinderah East

ELS

Area 1 – Tweed Pony Club: Site is Crown Land Trust, has significant environment and recreation purpose. Has recently been extensively replanted with native indigenous trees and shrubs to reinforce wildlife corridors and backs onto a marine couch landscape through to extensive mangrove swamp and mudflats of the Cobaki Broadwater which is exceptional habitat for a number of native bird species. Records collected by Tweed Bird Observers and others indicate 219 species observed in the area and the adjoining Cobaki Broadwater (with 134 specifically recorded at the Pony Club), includes rare and endangered and birds protected by CAMBA and JAMBA (agreements with China and Japan concerning migratory birds). This site is considered a valuable one for the native bird species and migratory birds from northern hemisphere seasonally and should be conserved for future generations. The site could be a popular avi/eco tourism area. Council is requested to seriously consider the site as a wetland reserve with particular emphasis of native bird habitat.

Area 4 Chinderah East. Site is a habitat for many species of native birds and is a wetland area in northern NSW which should be preserved. Has different habitat areas including old ponding areas with tracks in situ, remnant riparian rainforest, melaleuca and casuarinas woodlands, also open tall grasslands. Important part of wildlife corridor, may be acid sulphate soils affected, forms large lakes and wetland area and should be protected, 144 native species have been identified at the site, in times of climate change native birds and animals needs habitat protection.

There is evidence to suggest that environmental values of Area 1 area significant. Its is recommended that Area 1 be removed from the ELS

Submissions have raised concern regarding the environmental quality of Area 4 of the ELS. It is acknowledged that parts of this area have native vegetation and noted that STP Ponds are commonly used by water birds. However, the site is quite large and may be possible to preserve the environmentally sensitive areas and still use the majority of the site for employment purposes. Buffers to environmental areas can also be addressed at rezoning stage.


44. Area 1 –Tweed Pony Club

ELS

Site identified under Tweed Shire Council Legislation is identified as ‘Environmental Protection and Open Space’ and is a NSW Crown Reserve. Site accommodates several vulnerable/threatened species and the area abuts Cobaki Broadwater, another important recreational and birding area of the Tweed. Request clarification of the Pony Club situation and stress importance that areas like the pony club be retained for public enjoyment and such corridors remain intact for the protection and survival of the birds.



45. Area 4 – Chinderah East

ELS

Area 4 is an excellent haven for birds, a prime birding spot in the Tweed with high species count recorded. Tweed Bird Observers were under the impression that that the site was involved in court proceedings between Council and Gales Holdings and that any opportunity to have the site reserved for birds was not possible until legal proceedings were completed. Site is of prime importance to birds in the Tweed and the Council should seriously consider the retention of the site for a wetland centre. Tweed Bird Observers feels that the loss of Kingscliff site to industrial development would be a tragedy to both birds and the Tourism industry. TSC should remain open to the suggestion of developing a small but important bird habitat as a significant asset to the community.

Other submissions have raised concern regarding the environmental quality of Area 4 of the ELS. It is acknowledged that parts of this area have native vegetation and noted that STP Ponds are commonly used by water birds. However, the site is quite large and may be possible to preserve the environmentally sensitive areas and still use the majority of the site for employment purposes. Buffers to environmental areas can also be addressed at rezoning stage.





46. General

Area 1 – Tweed Pony Club

Area 4 – Chinderah East

ELS

Saddened that the projected increase in population is up to 118,754 over a further 951ha of land. A cap is needed on the population. Shire already faced with social and economic problems, low employment, inadequate public transport, increasing crime and social problems, sewerage and road straining the budget. Question the assumption that increase in population will fix this. Should not encourage population growth, need to encourage innovation in all aspects of green employment generation and social and technical improvements for the people who live here and the environment. What are the plans for after 2031, there is no mention of this in the strategy.

Reiterated comments regarding Area 1 and Area 4 as raised in submission written on behalf of Tweed Bird Observers.

All areas of the strategy have been identified based in the best available information. The principle of having a ‘rolling stock’ of 25 years supply of land is justified in the Strategy and a residential land balance sheet presented in table 10.1. These strategies do not attempt to address socio-economic issues within the Shire, however at the same time are seen to ensure that critical issues such as housing affordability and employment can be addressed.

It is recommended that the Strategy be reviewed every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand of services and infrastructure. The land supply and demand figures would be projected beyond 2031 at this time.


47. Area 1 – Tweed Pony Club

ELS

Site is a Crown Reserve, operated as community/ not for profit facility for 30 years. Vegetation regeneration work has been undertaken over the site and is part of the Cobaki ecosystem recognized to have the highest level of biodiversity in Australia. Threat for irreversible damage is high and government bodies must protect. Area is public land and should be preserved in perpetuity, It meets 5 of the RAMSAR Criteria and it is to valuable and should not be sold to speculators. There are few release sites (for release of native wildlife into their habitat and this would represent the loss of another.




ELS

Tweed Heads Pony Club site is NSW Crown Reserve, zones open space and has operated as the pony club for 30 years. The venue is used 7 days a week by local children and hosts regional events. It is a voluntary organisation which promotes physical, mental and spiritual development of young people, a community service. Also used by birdwatchers and bushwalkers.




ELS

Site is a Crown Reserve, operated as community/ not for profit facility for 30 years. Vegetation regeneration work has been undertaken over the site and is part of the Cobaki ecosystem recognized to have the highest level of biodiversity in Australia. Threat for irreversible damage is high and government bodies must protect. Area is public land and should be preserved in perpetuity, It meets 5 of the RAMSAR Criteria and it is too valuable and should not be sold to speculators. There are few release sites (for release of native wildlife into their habitat and this would represent the loss of another.



50. Area 1 and 2

ELS

Land in the vicinity of Coolangatta Airport has suffered significant environmental degradation in recent times, some balancing through remediation is necessary.

Area 1 retains natural value and should be used as compensatory habitat to help remedy recent and ongoing environmental degradation.

Areas 1 and 2 could be developed for treatment of sewage and wastewater.

Noted.


Noted.


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Table 11-3 Criticism of the Strategy development process

Criticism of the Strategy development process

Respondent Issue Description Planning Comment Action

51. Wardrop Valley West (Area 5) and Wardrop Vallet East (Area 6)

ELS

Areas 5 and 6 were identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy, which is not reflected correctly in the strategy.

The ELS states that these areas are not specifically identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy, however the Wardrop Valley area is shown in the ELS as the focus for employment lands.

Amend ELS to acknowledge that Area 5 and 6 were partially identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy.

52. ULRS Land which has been identified previously for urban development should be developed before any other option is considered.

Overall, the respondent does not support the suggestion that there should be an increase in Urban Land through the mechanism of an increase in density.

The ULRS identifies potential urban areas and provides timing for commencement of rezoning. These timeframes have taken into consideration the large areas of land in the Shire that are already zoned for residential purposes.

Changes in density is an appropriate way to accommodate increases in population without resorting to Greenfield sites.



52a The possibility of a “population cap for the Tweed Shire LGA” has not been considered in the strategy.

A population cap is something that could be considered but was not part of the brief for this project.


52b The ULRS should be part of the review of Tweed LEP 2000. The ULRS is a Council Strategy that will influence future LEPs beyond the current review of Tweed LEP 2000.


52c Page 20 and pg 77: incorrect use of a locality name. Should be ‘Fingal Head’, not just ‘Fingal’.

Noted. Will be amended in the final ULRS

52d Population growth statistics should be as accurate as possible. Agreed.

The population growth statistics identified in the Strategy are based on a number of sources including ABS Census data and the Department of Planning data. As the Strategies should be reviewed every five to seven years, if there are any major changes to the population predictions, these would be addressed here.


52e Inaccurate statistic on page 29 of the ULRS: Fingal Head, zoned 2(a), is NOT 3 storey height limit. It is 2 storeys.

In assessing the capacity of Fingal Head it was assumed that the dwelling density would be 7-13 dwellings per hectare. It is not assumed that there will be three storey development.


52f Page 57: the term “Goori” is not known, is it meant to be “Koori”? Goori is the term used in the source document (Tweed Shire Council Social Plan 2005-2009). It is defined as the term that Bundjalung and Gumbainggirr people of northern NSW use to describe Aboriginal Australians (Mundine, W, 2004, Australian Indigenous law Reporter).


53. Climate Change

ELS

ELS does not adequately address the issues of climate change and the consequent predicted rise in sea levels.

Areas such as the Airport precinct 1&2 are recognised as being at risk.

Potential industrial land at West Tweed and the Airport precinct does not adequately acknowledge the environmental and Aboriginal cultural values of the area.

Area 1 is Crown Land and would be challenged if rezoned.

The issues associated with climate change have been addressed and mapped as part of the assessment criteria for the ELS. It is agreed that some of the Employment Lands area are low lying and may be affected. It is not the intent of planning for climate change that all lands potentially affected should be sterilised for use in perpetuity. Employment lands may well be an appropriate use for some areas that will eventually (beyond the life of this Strategy) be affected by climate change.

The issue of aboriginal cultural heritage would be addressed at the site level when a specific rezoning proposal is put forward


No change recommended on other issues.



Respondent Issue Description Planning Comment Action when a specific rezoning proposal is put forward.

It is not inappropriate to consider Crown Land as being potentially suitable for urban or employment purposes. The NSW Department of Lands considers its land should be used for the highest and best use.

54. Critical of strategy process, content, and implementation.

ULRS and the ELS

Council has not held adequate public consultation regarding the Draft Strategies.

The strategies are complex, and hard to understand.

Height limits should be enforced, the CBD should be kept at 15 stories, Tweed Heads South should be restricted to 6 to 8 stories and new urban developments for units should 4 to 6 stories.

Town centres – Crown Land and parkland should be retained as open space.

Public consultation for the project consisted of the following:

The strategies were advertisement in the Tweed Link newspaper for any interested parties to comment;

Council held interviews with all respondents from the advertising period;

Council held meetings with key stakeholders and government departments;

All potentially affected land holders were invited to a series of meetings for discussion of draft options;

The draft strategy was exhibited from 7 May – 27 June 2008; and

All submissions will be considered as part of the finalisation of the strategies.

The comments on height limits and open space are noted.


55. Kings Land and the Pottsville Industrial/ Employment Lands.

ULRS

Heritage Pacific supports the intent of the strategy.

The respondent has concerns about the strategy in regards to relying upon existing zoned land and increase densities in existing urban areas (option 11.3). They consider that this concept would:

Create reliance on a finite and constrained source of residential land.

Create perception that the long-term residential market in the Tweed is constrained.

Inhibit long term service planning for water supply, sewerage and transport infrastructure.

Restrict the viability of nominated business or employment generating areas given the absence of supporting population.

Place Council in a position where it is reliant upon the actions of a single landowner to achieve short-term release of residential land.

The respondent identifies that all Regionally Significant Farmland has been treated in the same manner as State Significant farmland, which is nominated as an absolute constraint. This means that some capable and valuable lands may be automatically excluded.

The respondent has indicated that Council has underestimated the short-term demand for quality residential land that exists.

This submission is critical of Council’s decision to rely on existing zoned areas with increased density as a preferred direction for urban development (option 11.3).

One of the reasons they consider this to be incorrect is that they believe the existing zoned and vacant subdivided land and zoned but not subdivided land will yield considerably less lots than the ULRS assumes.

Basically, they assume that both Cobaki Lakes and Kings Forest will not yield any lots in the short term.

This is inconsistent with the advice of the developer of those sites. However, if it proves to be correct then the land supply figures can be adjusted at the next review of the ULRS.


In any case, the strategy should be reviewed every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand of services and infrastructure.


It is recommended Council re-visit its decision on major directions for urban land development and adopt 11.5 of the ULRS as its preferred position.

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56. ULRS and the ELS TEDC recommends that the strategies should not be looked at in isolation of each other, as they are interrelated and important in delivering long-term sustainability in Tweed Shire.

TEDC research suggests that there is a need to create 13,000 jobs in the Tweed between 2001 and 2015.

In TEDC’s opinion the current employment generating land predictions identified in the ELS will be short of the required amount.

The ULRS and the ELS were prepared at similar times with an understanding of their interrelationships. They were also discussed at all of the community and stakeholder meetings as a pair of documents and were exhibited publicly at the same time. Many submissioners made comments on both documents. However, the comment that they should be considered together and not in isolation is a valid point. Combining the two strategies into a single document may assist in achieving this outcome.

The current employment generating land reflects the current situation that there are significant areas of land in Tweed Shire that are already zoned for employment purposes. Where required this strategy would be reviewed to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand. Where considered appropriate these strategies would be amended.

Much of the specific criticisms of the Strategies relates to the fact that the brief for preparing them was limited in scope and budget.

The potential additional demand for employment lands is acknowledged as possible, but in order to find up to 800 ha of employment land the land suitability criteria will need to be revised. In particular the need to protect agricultural land and avoid filling in the flood plain would need to be reviewed.

It is recommended that the two strategies be combined into a single document (with two distinct but related parts) for adoption by Council.

57. Area 1 & 2

ELS

Respondent is disappointed that several requests on behalf of the airport as ‘stakeholders’ to have discussions with Council were not agreed to. Correspondence dates back to 2004.

Development in West Tweed area is of considerable interest to Gold Coast Airport. Airport related constraints have the potential to severely restrict development and this has not been taken into account in determining net developable areas in section 9.3.

One main airport-related constraint is on any actions in the airports “prescribed airspace” which could be classified as a controlled activity.

Other identified constraints are:

Height limit (heights of buildings and structures will be severely curtailed);

Lighting (localities within the airport’s prescribed airspace in close proximity to the runway are subject to mandatory limitations on levels of illumination which are able to be emitted);

Emissions, turbulence (exclude activities which may variously result in air turbulence capable of affecting normal flight of aircraft, emit smoke, dust, steam or gas;

Public safety (Area 1 and 2 are situated within what is described as the airport’s Public Safety Zone.

The respondent considers that the majority of Areas 1 and 2 are unsuitable for most types of industrial development especially large-lot industrial estates.

Gold Coast Airport made comments in an earlier submission to Council on the issues of building heights, industry emissions, site illumination and designated public safety areas. These issues are all mentioned in Section 7.3 of the ELS as constraints to any possible development of Areas 1 and 2.

However, the comment that buildings will be precluded (completely) on Area 1 due to mandatory restrictions is significant.

Further analysis is required of the potential restrictions on Area 2 to see if any of it is able to be developed. It is noted that a 21m tall drive in theatre screen still exists in Area 2 and there is considerable 2 storey residential development in the general area.

Remove Area 1 from ELS. Ensure that obstacle height limits, lighting restrictions and the public safety zone are closely considered in relation to Area 2.

58. General

Area 1 – Tweed Pony Club

Area 4 – Chinderah East

Area 1 – Currently used as a horse riding facility and accommodates significant vegetation such as community of Swamp Mahogany, Lady Tankerville’s Swamp Orchid. Wetlands are a valuable ecological asset.

Filling of flood prone land at Chinderah will result in floodwaters moving elsewhere. Must allow floods to inundate natural flood plane.

There is evidence to suggest that environmental values of Area 1 area significant. Its is recommended that Area 1 be removed from the ELS

Area 4 is classified as flood liable, and flooding is clearly identified as a constraint to land suitability in the strategy. Section 10.2 states that the strategy will be implemented through the rezoning process, at which time fl d i t t t b id d t C il Thi t i l d

Remove Area 1 of the ELS.





ELS

General

ULRS

URLS 6.6 – Strong Regional Growth Scenario. Refute the comment in 6.6 which states ‘future of Tweed Shire as part of a broader picture of growth and change in South East QLD Northern NSW.’ Green Tweed is the vision. Two storey height limit at Fingal, it is the vision of the Community Association to keep it that way

flood impact assessments must be provided to Council. This must include assessment of cumulative impact of all other flood plain development proposals in the surrounding area. Similar assessment has previously been undertaken in the West Kingscliff area. As stated in Section 7.5, this area has previously been identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy for employment land purposes, so it is prudent for it to remain in the strategy while acknowledging the constraints.

A number of growth scenarios or methods for estimating growth were included within the strategy. The table on page 39 of the ULRS demonstrates a number of options to estimate growth. The recommendation included within part 6.7 is seen as the most appropriate for estimating land to ensure adequate supply onto the market over time.

59. General ULRS Fails the test of ESD allowing and encouraging the Tweed Shire to become an extension of the Gold Coast by allowing unconstrained growth to occur.

ULRS makes no attempt to ascertain the carrying capacity of the Tweed’s natural assets to sustain unlimited population growth. This needs careful consideration on a number of environmental grounds (environmental considerations noted in submission).

The strategy is inconsistent with the Far North Coast Regional Strategy in that is recommends land release east of the Pacific Highway.

Area 5 is another example of increasing urban area, following Council’s pattern for strip development with no greenbelt/ native vegetation. The ULRS should be used as an opportunity to plan for protection of villages in the shire and ensure the linkages through remnant vegetation to allow for wildlife corridors.

Question the need for new Greenfield land release when there is capacity for extensive residential development in the shire at the present time.

Lands identified for urban and employment release were identified based on the best available information to ascertain the least constrained land. Sites coming forward in the future will undergo a full assessment through the rezoning process to ascertain sustainability.

There is no agreed or adopted method of determining the carrying capacity of geographically defined spaces in relation to human populations given variable technology, differing patterns of consumption and trade. It must be noted on this point that the purpose of the strategies is to ensure there is a quantifiable supply of land. The release of such land however is facilitated through the rezoning process and detailed site investigation, in response to demand at the time and in conjunction with the NSW State Government who determine population forecasts/targets for the Shire.

As above. Actual release of land is done through the rezoning process in consultation with the NSW State Government. Upon review of the Far North Coast Regional Strategy, TSC will inform the DoP of available land supplies throughout the shire, including east of the Highway to enable them to make robust policy decisions at that time.

Individual land area will require master planning prior to the rezoning of land. As part of this process, an assessment of buffers and other elements of design would be undertaken.

The principal of having a ‘rolling stock’ is justified within the strategy and on the residential land balance sheet in table 10.1. The preferred direction recognizes that the Tweed wants to take a supply based approach and not be restricted by current levels of demand for residential land. This ensures that there will be no perception of the long term residential market being constrained, allowing a variety of landowners to look at supplying the market over time, and encourage existing zoned areas to be developed before competition was brought on line.


21



60. General

ULRS

Continual exponential population growth is not viable and will be at the expense of the environment. There is significant land within the shire to accommodate reasonable population growth in the future.

Land forming of recent subdivisions not suited to local topography and any future subdivision should be more sympathetic to localised conditions.

Population densities must be increased for both existing and future subdivisions. At present, dwelling sizes are excessive and diverse and smaller housing types to increase densities should be sought, including infill housing. A more sustainable low impact approach to residential development should be sought, in terms of water supply, power and recycling.

There is a large gap between the mission and vision statements about ecological sustainability promoted in government documents and delivery of development on sites shown in recent residential subdivisions.

The principal of having a ‘rolling stock’ is justified within the strategy and on the residential land balance sheet in table 10.1. The preferred direction recognizes that the Tweed wants to take a supply based approach and not be restricted by current levels of demand for residential land. This ensures that there will be no perception of the long term residential market being constrained, allowing a variety of landowners to look at supplying the market over time, and encourage existing zoned areas to be developed before competition was brought on line.

Individual land area will require master planning prior to the rezoning of land. As part of this process, an assessment of landforming and other elements of design would be undertaken in accordance with adopted Council policy.

Individual land area will require master planning prior to the rezoning of land. As part of this process, an assessment of population densities and other elements of design would be undertaken to ensure the development of land is in accordance with best practice at that time. Targets within the strategies exceed densities currently evident in the Tweed Shire.

Individual land area will require master planning prior to the rezoning of land to ensure development of future land is done in an efficient and sustainable manner.


61. General Concerned that in the preparation of a number of draft strategies (Flood Plain Management, Wet Land Management, Crown Land Management and Urban Development) minimal consideration has been given to preservation of habitat of native species. The plans are flawed and need reassessment to include native habitat preservation.

The draft ULRS and ELS Strategy was prepared consistently with the best available information at the time. This included substantial ecological information such as koala habitat, wetlands, littoral rainforest and detailed vegetation information from the Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy. Further to this, the strategy will be implemented via the rezoning process at which time further ecological / vegetation assessment would be undertaken.


62. General Mapping of flood hazard areas shows no flooding in coastal areas south of Kingscliff which is incorrect. Information in draft Coastal Creeks Flood Study should be included before strategy is finalised.

Question the release of employment lands for the Dunloe Park Sand Extraction Plant when there is also the new Cudgen Lakes Sand Extraction Plant in the shire which will provide 650,000 tonnes of sand per year and which will likely remove the need for the Dunloe Park plant within a very short time of its creation, rendering it an unsustainable use of land.

Mapping comes from the Tweed Valley Flood Study only, so does not depict all flood liable land. Mapping of Coastal Creeks and Floodplains is still not available, but is imminent. No studies have been undertaken for the Tweed Valley upstream of the current mapped area. Council’s flooding engineers have made further recommendations to amend the strategy in relation to flooding to better explain this situation.

If the Dunloe Park sand extraction proceeds it is potentially compatible with employment lands if appropriate road links can be established. This wil be an important issue to resolve as part of the rezoning process for any employment lands in this location.

Amend flood liable land mapping in line with Council’s flooding engineer requirements to better explain the flooding situation.


Table 11-4 Specific Issues

Specific Issues


63. Over estimate of demand for industrial land.

ELS

The designation of Chinderah STP land for industrial purposes is not considered to be the highest and best use for that site.

There is an over-estimation of the amount of land needed for industry.

The old Chinderah STP site has been identified for employment lands. In outlining the brief for this project Council specifically stated that it has a retail strategy and this should be considered in preparing the ELS. It was not within the bounds of the brief to revisit the retail strategy.

Our methodology for estimating the demand for employment lands is outlined in the ELS. Some submissions have suggested it is an underestimate and others an overestimate. The main principle is that Council needs to identify potential sites in a strategy as a step towards rezoning and development. Ultimately the market will determine which lands proceed and for what employment purposes they are developed.

The strategy should be reviewed every five to seven years to check whether areas were developed as expected and to assess any changes in demand of services and infrastructure and the take up of existing zoned land.


Dunloe Park (Area 7) referred to on pg 46 of the strategy should be “Dunloe Park Urban Release Area”.

Noted and agreed. It is recommended these minor text changes be made in the ULRS.

On pg 48, s7.6.6 the strategy incorrectly states: “this area is located to the west and south of the Black Rocks Estate and lies to the west of Mooball Creek” – this should say “adjacent to and west of the Black Rocks Estate”.

Noted and agreed. It is recommended these minor text changes be made in the ULRS

Area 7 as shown on Figure 17 is not the same as the proposed future release areas shown on Map Sheet 1 of the Far North Coast Regional Strategy . Area 7 should include the ‘green corridor’ (which is currently excluded) and further land in the north western corner, both of which are said to be unconstrained.

Although the Far North Coast Regional Strategy was a consideration it was not the “starting point” for any of the areas identified in the draft ELS. The land suitability assessment process is intended to be a “fresh look” at potential employment areas and is explained in the draft document. If anything, the Far North Coast Regional Strategy should be amended to include the more up to date information in the ULRS rather then the ULRS follow the Far North Coast Regional Strategy . However, in this case it is noted that recent significant earthworks have been undertaken along the steep land on the western edge of this area. This has reduced the steepness of it considerably. To assist with the master planning of this area it should be included in Area 7.


Table 7-1 on pg 41 indicates that the Black Rocks Estate has 90 dwellings and 250 persons. There are actually 84 dwellings and 235 persons.

These dwellings and person counts are described in the Strategy as “approximate”. The figures used are sufficiently accurate for the purposes of a Shire wide Strategy.

It is noted however, that the totals in Table 7-1 of the ULRS need to be corrected.

Correct the totals in Table 7-1 of the ULRS.

64. Dunloe Park

(Area 7)

ULRS

Pg 48, s7.6.6 – recommend that the siting and design of the new Sewage Treatment Plant should form part of the future ‘Master Plan’ for the area to be consistent with the Draft Development Control Plan for the Pottsville locality.

Agreed. Amend section 7.6.6 of the ULRS.to include these comments on a possible new STP.

23

Specific Issues


Council should commence the rezoning process for Area 7 following adoption of the Strategy.


It is recommended Council re-visit its decision on major directions for urban land development and adopt 11.5 of the ULRS as its preferred position

65. General Fully support Tweed Economic Development Corporation’s response to ULR and ELR

See Comments in response to TEDC submission. No change recommended

66. General

ULRS

Seeking to ensure that asset and amenity embodied in unique lowrise built environmental character should be properly valued in any strategy for urban release. Discussion about height limit and density should be further examined. Existing height limits in the shire (3 storeys with exception of Tweed Heads) at present embody a substantial undeveloped capacity to increase density which is yet to be exploited.

The process of urban consolidation and opportunity for increase to densities in existing urban centres is not discounted. Through a series of locality plans, existing urban centres are assessed for opportunities, in consultation with the public. The ULRS does intend to fetter opportunity to provide additional accommodation within existing urban areas and appropriately zoned but undeveloped supply of such areas would be considered prior to the release of any Greenfield land in the future.


67. General Summary of response to all Major Directions for Urban Land Development. 11.1 – rely on existing codes, note caution in development of West Kingscliff areas. 11.2 Rely on existing zoned and increase density from rural residential – not appropriate given value of agricultural land. 11.3 Rely on existing zoned areas and increase density in key urban areas. Agree to maintaining zoned lands, however increase in heights (and density) may not be appropriate in coastal villages due to climate change etc. 11.4 Rely on existing zoned areas and delay release of Greenfield sites. Agree with the wait and see approach. Perhaps a population cap would be the appropriate option.

Comments regarding height and density noted and increases to height and density in existing settlements would be subject of individual locality planning and public consultation. The principal of having a ‘rolling stock’ is justified within the strategy and on the residential land balance sheet in table 10.1. The preferred direction recognizes that the Tweed wants to take a supply based approach and not be restricted by current levels of demand for residential land. This ensures that there will be no perception of the long term residential market being constrained, allowing a variety of landowners to look at supplying the market over time, and encourage existing zoned areas to be developed before competition was brought on line.


68. General

ELS

Ensure that draft ELR does not include any lands currently zoned environmental protection, recreation and public open space. Area 1 (West Tweed) includes Crown Reserve which has significant environmental value and is of public benefit for recreation.

Both ELS and ULRS strategies and land recommendations were subject of extensive mapping and sieving to ascertain most appropriate, least constrained land for development. Included in this was lands included within the Tweed Vegetation Management Strategy which provided a comprehensive review and update of environmental zones within the Shire. The environmental quality of Area 1 of the ELS has been noted and has been recommended for removal from the strategy.


69. General (ULR) Preserve land for environmental protection, recreation and public open space. Recommend buffer zones around remnant vegetation sites to allow fauna to travel across the landscape. Fragmenting into patches threatens viability of flora and also fauna. Koala Beach is a model urban settlement – with levy for habitat management. Vital to preserve areas of environmental significance and public open space.

Comments relating to environmental protection area noted. Before land is developed, the strategy recommends significant master planning be undertaken at the rezoning and subsequent development approvals for the site.


70. General Concerned with proposal to increase heights. Locals want heights to be retained at 3 storeys or less. Community groups are being ignored, there is no proper consultation. Whilst the area could benefit from improvements this should not include open slather high rise developments.

The draft ELS does not make any recommendations to alter the heights of development in existing settlements. Any such change would be the subject of an individual locality plan and public consultation for individual settlements.


71. General

Area 4 East Chinderah

ELS ULRS

Objection regarding both strategies based on the Council proposing industrial as opposed to retail at Area 4, the Council not approving plans presented by Gales Kingscliff and Gales Holdings, the Council not approving Sand Excavation at Cudgen, the Council not approving plans for

di t i t t t Chi d h Th l ill b fit l h id

The purpose of the daft ELS was to identify opportunities for employment land development (which excludes retail development) and did not address other development forms. Any further work relating to retail provision within the Shire falls outside the scope of this strategy.



Specific Issues

Respondent Issue Description Planning Comment Action a district centre at Chinderah. These plans will benefit people who reside between Tweed/Coolangatta and south of Byron. The structure plan will bring employment to thousands of people. Kingscliff needs sporting fields, recreation areas, housing, roads, shopping centres and business opportunities.

72. General

Area 4 East Chinderah

ELS ULRS

Objection to ELS and ULRS (specifically Area 4 East Chinderah) as this site should be developed for retail not industrial. Growth in population in South Tweed and Kingscliff warrants new district centre. Retail sites in Tweed Heads and South Tweed are congested and at maximum capacity. A new district centre away from Kingscliff town centre will alleviate traffic congestion and movement problems. Macarthur Square and Robina Town Centres are good examples.

The purpose of the daft ELS was to identify opportunities for employment land development (which excludes retail development) and did not address other development forms. Any further work relating to retail provision within the Shire falls outside the scope of this strategy.


73. General Generally in support of use of definition of ‘employment lands’ being business park type development which excludes land used predominately for retail uses.

Any development should respect local topography, with minimal landforming to respect and preserve the rural appearance of the lands in the vicinity of Pottsville Village.

PCA supports in principle the area shown as employment land / industrial lands in ELRS and Pottsville Locality Plan however realise grave concern for the initial development process that no heavy traffic should be directed or allowed on Mooball – Pottsville Road, south from the intersection with Cudgera Creek Road to an entrance to the proposed industrial area. No industrial / employment land development approval should be considered without adequate road infrastructure in place to service new developments directly to Cudgera Creek Road and Pacific highway.

Cudgera Creek has flooding potential and must be kept as natural as possible. The creek passes through the south western section of the Employment Lands area and should therefore should be protected by suitable reserves. No development should be allowed to close the creeks natural requirements in times of flood.

Noted.

Any subsequent development of sites would be the subject of comprehensive master planning covering matters such as landforming.

As above. Prior to release of land, extensive master planning / rezoning would be undertaken to further ascertain the appropriateness of sites for development. As a result, issues such as traffic generation and road capacity would be considered extensively and resolved to the satisfaction of Councils Infrastructure Division prior to any release of land.

Noted. As above.


25

Specific Issues


74. General

ELS ULRS

Objection to the proposal to increase residential yields by opening up existing rural residential lots to higher density development or releasing agricultural lands for same purpose. (11.2)

Objection to any proposal to increase density in Kingscliff by increasing present height limits (11.3) by introduction of 4 and above storey apartments.

Objection to any proposed development of Greenfield sites for residential development where environmental problems such as nearby contamination and flooding impacts have not been thoroughly assessed.

Query appropriateness of sand extraction from Cudgen Lakes given Acid Sulphate Soils

Note that in the absence of ‘Flood Liable Lands Strategy’ query the appropriateness of development of land at West Kingscliff and Chinderah given it is entirely flood prone.

Any proposal to increase residential yields in existing areas would be the subject of individual locality planning over subject sites.

The draft ULRS does not alter existing heights and densities. Any such alteration would be the subject of a specific locality planning exercise in consultation with the public.

The strategies ascertained constraints over land to ensure the least constrained land was put forward in the strategy. However, prior to the release of land, more detailed site specific analysis of recommended sites would need to be undertaken to ensure the suitability for future development.

This concern falls outside the content of the draft ULRS.

Area 4 is classified as flood liable, and flooding is clearly identified as a constraint to land suitability in the strategy. Section 10.2 states that the strategy will be implemented through the rezoning process, at which time flood impact assessments must be provided to Council. This must include assessment of cumulative impact of all other flood plain development proposals in the surrounding area. Similar assessment has previously been undertaken in the West Kingscliff area. As stated in Section 7.5, this area has previously been identified in the Far North Coast Regional Strategy for employment land purposes, so it is prudent for it to remain in the strategy while acknowledging the constraints.


75. General

ELS / ULRS

As a result of expected increased in population, Council and NSW and QLD State Government should investigate in partnership rail connections along the Tweed Coast connecting to heavy rail link at Coolangatta through to Grafton. A trunk line Tweed Heads from Murwillumbah to Byron Bay.

Council remains open to investigating any major infrastructure project in partnership with the State Government of NSW and QLD.


76. General

ELS / ULRS

TSC has had a long running philosophy of high industrial and residential development growth, in many cases to the detriment of the environment. TSC are anticipating a population in excess of 115,000 and for every new residence it is expected that 1.6 vehicles are added to the roads. What are the infrastructure plans to accommodate this. Planned developments at Piggabeen/ Cobaki and Bilambil Heights place strain on Kennedy Drive already congested. In 2006 water restrictions were placed on residents and Clarrie Hall dam has not been increased therefore how does Council expect to accommodate additional populations water needs. An increase in building height limits would destroy the character of the shire and place strain on infrastructure. Formulate and put in place infrastructure before, not after, opening the doors to a major population increase.

The purpose of the ULRS and ELS is to guide the development, ensuring that there is enough land to accommodate population growth if there is genuine demand over the long term. The strategies also assist in infrastructure planning. Any additional release of land is subject to a rezoning whereby further investigation of infrastructure capacity would be examined. The strategies do not examine or make recommendations on building heights over land within the shire.



GHD


© GHD 2009

This report has been prepared by GHD in response to a specific brief issued by Tweed Shire Council and the Proposal for services presented by GHD. This report is intended for the sole use of the client. It has been prepared in accordance with the Terms of Engagement for the commission and on the basis of specific instructions and information provided by the client. The contents and conclusion of this report cannot be relied upon by any third party.

This report should not be altered, amended or abbreviated, issued in part or issued incomplete in any way without prior checking and approval by GHD.

Document Status



0 M Svikis B Wilkinson

S. Lawer

S. Lawer

10/02/09