New planning rules in the Swan Valley will force a “small number” of trucking and commercial businesses to relocate to industrial areas.
Planning minister John Day announced today that he supports a City of Swan decision to amend its local planning scheme regarding parking of commercial vehicles and transport depots on rural and residential landholdings.
Mr Day said the aim of the amendment was to accommodate owners or operators of commercial vehicles while ensuring that vehicle numbers did not negatively impact the visual amenity, traffic safety or character of the locality.
“This amendment clarifies the definition of commercial vehicles and transport depots and introduces new scheme provisions to identify the maximum number of commercial vehicles the council can consider in a development application,” he said.
“The number of vehicles permitted increases as lot sizes increase, with bigger lots in the General Rural and Resource zones being able to accommodate up to five commercial vehicles.”
The Minister said the City of Swan would need to make several modifications to its proposal, including giving council discretion to approve a single additional vehicle above the normal allowable number.
It must also exempt the parking of vehicles less than 6.5 tonnes on lots greater than one hectare within Rural zones from the requirement to obtain planning approval.
The minister said the vast majority of commercial vehicles currently parked on rural lots in the City of Swan would be accommodated under the proposed amendment.
“There are a small number of landowners who may not be able to continue their current operations under the new provisions, but in terms of protecting the general character of Swan’s rural areas, these operations should be located in industrial areas,” Mr Day said.