Rural Lands Strategic Plan/Settlement Policy

A Settlement Policy for Rural 1A Zoned Lands was adopted by Council on 7 June 2007, following consideration of submissions received during a public exhibition period between November 2006 and January 2007.

It is expected that the Department of Planning will agree to the necessary amendments to local planning guidelines that will allow the moratorium, which has been in place since 2004, to be lifted by the end of 2007. This will ensure consistent treatment for lands zoned General Rural in the former Pristine Waters/Ulmarra areas of Red Rock and Corindi, which became part of the Coffs Harbour local government area after the rural settlement investigation process was begun.

In preparing the draft Settlement Policy, consultants carried out a full assessment of the issues involved in formulating a sustainable approach to rural settlement patterns. They completed a Land Capability Assessment which looked at the physical constraints on the areas zoned Rural 1A agriculture and rural zoned lands formerly in Pristine Waters.

Implementation of the final Rural Lands Settlement Policy will:

• Lift the moratorium on subdivision in the Rural 1A zone in concert with the zoning of rural lands in the amalgamated areas (draft LEP Amendment No. 32);
• Maintain a 40ha minimum allotment size for the purpose of a dwelling application;
• Maintain the special provision for six ha subdivision of banana lands and extend this to cover lands that are being identified as suitable for the broader category of coastal frost fee horticulture; and
• Enable Council to consider clustered rural settlement options for all lots within a 2km radius of Coramba, Nana Glen and Corindi Beach as part of the forthcoming review of the Rural Residential Strategy (1999).

Download the final, adopted version of the Rural Lands Settlement Policy here:

  Coffs Harbour Rural 1A Zoned Lands Settlement Policy (3.83MB)

Background Information

A moratorium on subdivision of lands zoned Rural 1A Agriculture had been in place since 1 September 2004.

The move in 2004 followed a study by the Rural Lands Strategic Planning Committee, which included Council staff, government agencies and landholders, to consider the recommendations of the Commissioners of Inquiry report into parts of the Rural Lands Strategic Plan.

Council adopted the Rural Lands Strategic Plan, minus the subdivision component, in August 2003, and requested the Commissioners of Inquiry carry out a public assessment into the subdivision part of the plan. This was heard on 9 March 2004.

Essentially, the public assessment considered:

• The 40ha minimum subdivision standard for the Rural 1A Zone
• The 6ha minimum banana subdivision standard applying to the coastal lands
• The general issue of dispersed settlement

 Rural Lands - Council's 2004 Submission to Commissioners (1.95MB)
 Council's 2004 Response to Public Assessment (4.18MB)

In April 2004, Commissioner Kevin Cleland submitted a report to Council outlining his findings and conclusion.

 Commissioner's 2004 Report to Council (2.17MB)

In terms of dispersed settlement, the inquiry recommended that a moratorium on subdivision of lands zoned Rural 1A Agriculture should apply in Coffs Harbour until Council has more detailed information about the impacts of dispersed settlement.

The Commissioner also recommended that changes to Council's environmental subdivision trial be developed during the moratorium period. 

The report went on to recommend that more consideration be given to the environmental subdivision proposal; that Council consider renaming it to 'incentive subdivision' and that the trial period be for 10 years with 100 lots and the minimum lot size be 2ha.

Commissioner Cleland supported the recommendation that 60ha be the minimum for a farm lot and recommended that 40ha be the minimum for a conservation lot.