Shoalhaven Council has been named as one of the NSW regional Local Government Areas (LGA) which is now eligible for funding under the State Government's Faster Assessments Incentive Program.
The program rewards top performing councils and those making the most progress towards improving Development Application (DA) assessment timeframes, according to expectations set by the NSW Minister for Planning.
Director of City Development, Emma Struys said Council will now be eligible to apply for a share of the $67 million in grant funding under the Restart NSW Fund, to deliver a nominated local infrastructure project, and help Shoalhaven increase housing.
"This is a fantastic opportunity for our region, and I'm incredibly proud of the hard work of our Council staff who have ensured applications meet standards, are being processed efficiently, and exceeding the timeframes set by the NSW Government," Ms Struys said.
"I'd also like to acknowledge the development industry and our valued individual applicants for working with Council to ensure their DAs are submitted with all of the required documentation, which helps to ensure Council's performance targets can be met," she said.
"I am delighted our efforts have been recognised by the NSW Government under this fantastic program and we can now unlock vital funding to deliver important infrastructure for our community," she said.
Eligibility for the funding was announced earlier this month after councils were scored and ranked by the Department of Planning based on average assessment timeframes in 2024–25, and improvement against averages over the previous three years.
Under the Ministerial Statement of Expectations Order, Shoalhaven Council is required to assess development applications (DAs) within 105 calendar days following lodgement.
During the 2024-25 financial year, Council successfully achieved the NSW Government's previous target of 110 calendar days for DA assessment times.
The Department of Planning's league table also shows that in 2024-25 Shoalhaven Council received 929 DAs, putting Council in the top 10 for the number of applications lodged.
Council will now prepare and nominate an eligible local infrastructure project that will contribute towards unlocking housing delivery for our region, to be considered by the NSW Government for funding under round one of the Faster Assessments Incentive Program.
