The Toolern PSP and DCP were originally prepared by the Growth Areas Authority (now operating as the Victorian Planning Authority) with the assistance of Melton Shire Council (now Melton City Council) in 2010.

The Toolern PSP was one of the first PSPs developed in Victoria and was incorporated into the Melton Planning Scheme in 2010. Both the Toolern PSP and DCP include a provision that the VPA and Melton City Council should regularly monitor the implementation of the documents. Although the PSP and DCP have been amended multiple times since 2010, a complete review of the documents has remained outstanding.

With a population projected to reach 68,000 over the next 20 years, Council undertook a review of the documents to determine how the development of the Toolern PSP area has been progressing and whether changes are required to the rates being levied within the DCP. Using research, background information and technical reports, Council has identified the documents have many gaps including significant shortfalls in funding and land being reserved for key transport, and community and recreation projects.

The Toolern PSP and DCP documents has undergone an extensive review process involving project consultants, landowners, developers, and State Government departments.

As part of the review, Melton City Council engaged several project consultants to review the PSP and DCP. This included Cardno (transport infrastructure), ASR Research (dwelling and population forecasts, and community and recreation infrastructure), Extent Heritage (heritage overlay), Melbourne Water (stormwater polygons) and Charter Keck Cramer (land valuations).

Melton City Council also invited landowners, developers, and State Government departments to contact Council about proposed changes in the Toolern PSP and DCP documents.

Using research, background information and the technical reports provided by the project consultants, regulatory bodies and other stakeholder groups, Council has proposed amendments to the Toolern PSP and DCP documents.

The Victorian Planning Authority (VPA) and the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) have been involved in the development of the review from the beginning.

The VPA, Department of Transport (DoT) and VicRoads have been invited to comment on the draft functional layout plans, road cross-sections, and transport project cost sheets prior to them being finalised, and the Victorian School Building Authority and the Melbourne Archdiocese of Catholic Schools were invited to comment on the location and size of schools prior to these elements being finalised.

In March 2022, a set of draft planning scheme amendment documents were prepared and sent to 32 State Government departments and agencies for comment. Council received 12 submissions and was able to resolve all the matters raised in submissions.

A Precinct Structure Plan (PSP) is a long-term masterplan for urban development. It sets out how the land is to be developed, the services planned to support that development, and how those services will be delivered.

The Toolern PSP is guiding the development of Cobblebank, Strathtulloh, parts of Thornhill Park, and Weir Views.

The proposed changes will not affect existing planning permits. Approximately 21 per cent of the Toolern PSP area has been developed, and Council have already collected the respective DIL’s required from developers of this land.

The preparation of functional layout plans and concept plans has revealed the amount of land required for transport projects needs to be refined. For some landowners this may result in an increase or decrease in land required for transport projects.

Melbourne Water has revised the Development Services Schemes for the Toolern PSP area, which has resulted in changes to the size and location of drainage assets across the PSP area. For some landowners this may result in an increase or decrease in land required for drainage assets.

Council will make the existing community and recreation assets identified in the Toolern PSP area work harder to eliminate the need for the additional assets in the area. This will ensure that all landowners will continue to have a developable area similar to that identified in the original DCP.

Council will continue to fund infrastructure projects across the municipality including in the Toolern PSP.

The DCP levies collected are a contribution and they will not fully fund all the infrastructure projects.

Using technical and forecasting reports, Council has carefully considered current and future needs and existing development patterns based on population growth and residential density estimates. These reports allow Council to identify what infrastructure will be necessary for the Toolern PSP not just now but into the future.

A Development Contributions Plan (DCP) is a planning and legal document that ensures developers contribute financially towards infrastructure that is required for a new development area. The DCP identifies the area of land it applies to, the infrastructure projects the financial contributions would fund, and how these contributions would be calculated and shared across property owners and developers.

The DCP is determined by the estimated cost of the infrastructure required. The designs and cost estimates for projects identified in DCPs are informed by functional layout plans (roads and transport infrastructure), concept plans (community centres, pavilions and sports reserves) and project cost sheets (materials that are required, cost estimates and contingency allowances).

Using the above process, the infrastructure projects were costed, and the total cost of all development infrastructure was then divided by the net developable area to give a DIL rate per developable hectare.

Landowners who wish to subdivide or develop their land would be required to pay their financial contribution prior to the finalisation of a subdivision or development. If a landowner chooses not to develop or subdivide their land, or if the land has already been developed, they would not be required to make a payment.

Developer contributions are payments made by developers towards the supply of infrastructure required to meet the future needs of the community (Development Infrastructure Levy).

There are no plans to review other PSP and DCP documents in the City of Melton in the near future. Council has already undertaken a high-level review of other PSP and DCPs being delivered in the City of Melton, and the review found that the funding shortfalls in other PSP areas are not as great as the Toolern area.

DCPs are used in areas which are experiencing significant growth, such as the growth corridors in outer Melbourne and other regional areas such as Bendigo, Ballarat, and Geelong.

A DCP can require payment of a DIL by developers to pay for the acquisition of land and construction of basic and essential transport, and community and recreation infrastructure. The DIL is a levy which is calculated for the construction and/or acquisition of land for infrastructure items such as roads, construction of sports reserves, drainage, maternal and child health centres, and kindergartens. The levy is uncapped as it is calculated from the apportioned cost of the construction and/or acquisition of land for each infrastructure item.

The levy is outlined in the schedule to Clause 45.06 – Development Contributions Plan Overlay as a per net developable hectare rate to be paid by developers to Council when land is being subdivided and developed.

The DIL rates can be found in the Schedule 3 to Clause 45.06 Development Contributions Plan Overlay.

The DIL has been influenced by changes to the net developable area, new land values, the addition and removal of infrastructure projects, and revised construction costs.

While the changes to the DIL rate are large, they are required to ensure adequate funds are being collected to construct the infrastructure required to service the area.

The proposed DIL rates for the Toolern PSP are similar to the rates being paid by developers to develop land in other PSP areas in the City of Melton.

The DIL cannot be applied retrospectively.

The construction of a house, and the extension of a house, is exempt from paying the Development Infrastructure Levy.

If you are building a new home, you may need to pay the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) to help fund the delivery of community buildings and community facilities. Sometimes developers pay the Community Infrastructure Levy on the behalf of future residents.

If the development infrastructure levy is not increased, the funding will need to come from somewhere else which could mean a compromise to Council services provided to the community and a delay to important projects planned for in Council’s capital works program.

Council will continue to fund infrastructure projects across the municipality including in the Toolern PSP.

The DCP levies collected are a contribution and they will not fully fund all the infrastructure projects.

Using technical and forecasting reports, Council has carefully considered current and future needs and existing development patterns based on population growth and residential density estimates. These reports allow Council to identify what infrastructure will be necessary for the Toolern PSP not just now but into the future.

Exhibition

The Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) will make the amendment publicly available to view on its website. The public exhibit will be available for five weeks and will close on Thursday 16 May 2024. During this period, residents, landowners, and community members can make submissions to Council about the amendment proposal.

Submissions, and planning panel

Once the exhibition period finishes, Melton City Council will consider the submissions made by affected parties and seek to address the submissions. Council officers will prepare a report to request a planning panel to consider submissions. The planning panel will convene to consider the submissions and will release a report with recommendations.

Adoption

Council will then consider all the planning panel report recommendations and will then decide whether it adopts the amendment (with changes) or abandons the amendment.

Approval

If Council has adopted the revised amendment, the amendment is then submitted to the Minister for Planning for consideration and decision. Once a decision is made, the amendment outcome is published in the Victoria Government Gazette and published on Council's website.

Collection

Once the amendment to the Toolern PSP and DCP is granted and gazetted, Melton City Council can start collecting increased levies from developers to deliver infrastructure identified in the Toolern PSP and DCP.