More building surveyors for regional Victoria
The Allan Labor Government is backing new methods to speed up local housing and planning approvals across Victoria’s Wimmera and Mallee regions – unlocking much needed supply.
Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development Michaela Settle today represented Minister for Regional Development Gayle Tierney at a housing development in Murtoa backed by the Labor Government, to announce a feasibility study and shared services pilot, to bring more Municipal Building Surveyor services to local councils.
The Labor Government is backing this trial with a $200,000 grant, led by Yarriambiack Shire Council. The council will work in partnership with Buloke, Hindmarsh and Loddon shires, as well as Swan Hill Rural City Council.
Building surveyors work across the state to assess building permit applications, conduct building inspections at mandatory stages and issue occupancy permits and certificates of final inspection.
Small rural councils often face challenges in engaging the Municipal Building Surveying services needed for timely housing and planning approvals, a challenge this trial aims to address.
The project will be delivered in three phases. It will first identify the challenges and opportunities around sharing surveying services between councils, before establishing a ‘Shared Service Hub’ to support the participating councils with more cost-effective access to surveying services.
The Hub will provide a Municipal Building Surveyor service that can be engaged in a shared manner by all five local councils, instead of councils needing to engage individual services.
The third phase will evaluate the program and lead to recommendations that can potentially be replicated across other regional councils.
The feasibility study will run until early 2026, and the outcomes will then be shared widely with all rural and regional Councils, so other regions can consider setting up their own Hubs to speed up approvals.
Support for this project is part of the Labor Government’s record $45 billion investment across rural and regional Victoria since 2014 to make our cities and towns even better places to live, work, stay and play.
For more information, visit rdv.vic.gov.au.
