Gladstone Regional Council
Planning Scheme
Our Place Our Plan About the proposed Planning Scheme A planning scheme is a legal document that guides how land is developed. The new Planning Scheme will replace the schemes from the former Gladstone City, Calliope Shire and Miriam Vale Shire councils. It will provide one document of consistent land use planning rules and regulations across Council’s jurisdiction and has been prepared in accordance with the Sustainable Planning Act 2009.
LOCALITY OF New Auckland & Kirkwood Regional growth The Gladstone Region has experienced significant population growth in recent years and population forecasts predict that this is likely to continue. On average, the resident population of the region has increased by about three per cent per year since 2010, making it one of the fastest growing local government areas in Queensland. It is expected that the population is likely to almost double from the current figure of approximately 60,000 to almost 112,000 people by 2031.*
New Auckland & Kirkwood overview The locality of New Auckland and Kirkwood has a population of approximately 5000** people and is situated towards the southern boundary of Gladstone city. It is characterised by primarily low scale residential development and some commercial/retail activities on Kirkwood Road and Shaw Street, along with vacant land that will serve future expansion needs for the city. An area of land in the northern part of this locality has been zoned for low-medium density residential development within proximity to the neighbourhood centre. The proposed Planning Scheme identifies the existing residential and commercial activities in the equivalent Low density and Low-medium density residential zones and Neighbourhood centre and Centre zones. The extent of this zoning is similar to that of the previous schemes. Areas identified for expansion have been included in the Emerging community zone. Land at Parksville has been included in the Rural residential zone due to the simplification of zonings for this type of living option. Included in the New Auckland area is land that is affected by flooding and proximity to the Gladstone Airport that has been included in the Limited development (constrained land) zone. Much of this land was previously located within the Rural zone. Some areas within the New Auckland and Kirkwood locality are affected by a number of overlay codes under the proposed Planning Scheme, such as the Airport overlay code, Steep land overlay code (land over 15 per cent in slope), and Flood hazard overlay code. Proposed developments within these areas would need to address the relevant provisions. *Queensland Government Statistician’s Office, 2012. **Commonwealth of Australia (ABS), 2011.
Has my zone changed? It is likely that the name of your zone has changed. New planning schemes in Queensland must follow State Government requirements for drafting which includes a standard set of zones. All properties throughout the region have been categorised into zones which reflect intended or previous uses for the site. In many cases, the provisions for development may not have changed substantially.