Changes to RZ1 and RZ2 zoning in draft territory plan not enough to meet housing demand, Greater Canberra says

Under the ACT government's draft territory plan, released on Tuesday, a series of residential amendments have been proposed.

The number of dwellings permitted on an RZ2 block would increase from the current limit of four, to one additional dwelling for every 250 square metres over 700 square metres.

Changes would also allow multi-unit developments in RZ2 areas to be in the form of apartments.

Permitting a single-level dwelling type would allow for residents to age in place, the planning documents state.

Also under the proposed changes, the new territory plan would permit blocks in RZ2 to RZ5 zones to be subdivided without a requirement to construct the new dwellings first.

This would allow vacant blocks to be sold in areas close to services and facilities.

Other changes include a requirement for at least one electric vehicle-ready car parking space to be provided for each unit in a new multi-unit housing development.

A two-storey height limit across any dwellings on RZ1 blocks has also been included. Currently, dual occupancies on RZ1 blocks are restricted to one storey.

Howard Maclean, convener of community organisation Greater Canberra, said the draft territory plan fails to address the need for more housing to meet Canberra's rapidly growing population.

Mr Maclean welcomed changes to legalise apartments and increase density in RZ2 areas.

However he said more needed to be done to improve RZ1 policies, such as allowing dual occupancies with separate titles.

"We can preserve our bush capital culture and keep what people like about Canberra while making quite modest changes and still create a lot more housing just by allowing, let's say 1000 square metre blocks to have dual occupancies on them and you still end up with a house that is around about the same size as is common in greenfield precincts in Molonglo or Gungahlin," he said.

Under the current rules, dual occupancy housing is permitted on RZ1 blocks of at least 800 square metres, or 700 square metres for former Mr Fluffy blocks.

However, the current territory plan does not allow them to be unit titled; therefore they can not be sold individually.

RZ2 blocks of 700 square metres or larger are permitted for dual occupancies which can be unit titled and sold.

Mr Maclean would also like to see the government rezone RZ2 blocks to RZ3.

"[RZ2] was meant to produce a kind of missing middle housing of slightly higher density but ... it hasn't really delivered on that," he said.

He said more RZ3 areas, which allow a maximum building height of 9.5 metres, would help "revitalise" local shops across the ACT.

"We are having real problems with a lot of local centres which simply don't have enough customers to sustain the services that local residents expect," Mr Maclean said.

"And it becomes a lot easier to keep a supermarket or a cafe going if there are more people in the suburbs."

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Alongside the draft "outcomes-focused" territory plan, the government released nine draft district planning strategies on Tuesday.

Minister for Planning Mick Gentleman said the district strategies were a new layer to the planning system that would reflect unique characteristics of each area.

"We know, for example, the employment and education needs in Tuggeranong differ from those in Belconnen, just like the environmental and cultural assets in the Inner North are different from those in the Molonglo Valley," he said.

The drafts are open for public consultation until February 14, 2023.

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