The NSW Government’s ‘Planning Council League Table’ shows MidCoast Council had more development applications lodged and more applications processed than any other regional council in NSW during the first quarter of the 2024-25 financial year.

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Council received 219 DAs and processed 230 development determinations from 1 July to 30 September 2024.

Paul De Szell, Council’s Director of Liveable Communities, said these development determinations showed developers and homeowners remain confident in the region.

Council staff also dealt with 1,623 individual customer requests in relation to development assessment and building certification.

MidCoast Council’s average DA processing time is 88 days.

The regional council average is 99 days.

“While our processing times compare favourably with other regional Councils, we are not resting on our laurels.

“We will continue to implement our process improvement work, including the implementation of the 53 actions outlined in the Housing Barriers Report,” explained Mr De Szell.

“In particular, we are working to improve efficiency in our triaging of the more complex assessments we receive.

“We know that navigating the NSW Planning system can be stressful.

“We’re working behind the scenes to introduce efficiencies and supports to further speed up approvals and help the community better understand Council’s role in the system.”