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About the grants
Digital planning grants were available for local councils across Victoria to improve digital planning services. Grant applications were invited for projects across 3 key areas:
- to upgrade planning permit activity reporting tools, including integration with state government reporting services
- implementation support for Better Planning Approvals digital tools to maximise adoption of best practice permit processes
- local planning tools or solutions aimed at improving the digital planning experience for council planners and communities.
These funding areas were informed by the Digital Planning Survey, completed by all 79 Victorian councils in 2021. Results from the survey identified the following types of projects which were eligible for funding:
- standardisation of online planning application forms and application data
- digitisation of manual planning processes such as planning permit advertising, public notices and/or mail outs
- digitisation of planning related community consultation and engagement
- improving online planning guidance materials to make the planning system more accessible to applicants and the community
- improving data quality and reporting related to planning services
- procurement of new data to support planning including 3D models, lidar capture of existing buildings, mesh blocks, vegetation overlays or other relevant data sets
- procurement of 3D modelling and visualisation services to support local planning activities
- integration of planning systems and data with other systems within council or state government.
Successful projects
In May 2023, $3.78 million was awarded to 26 projects across 23 Victorian councils to improve digital planning services.
All applications received were assessed based on merit with projects awarded funding based on evaluation against program criteria:
- digital maturity uplift (20%)
- benefit to council and community (30%)
- project scope and requirements (30%)
- capacity and capability to deliver (20%).
Projects must be completed by 30 June 2024.
Projects funded 2022-2023
| Bass Coast Shire Council | Funding of $19,800 to enhance advertised planning applications website to implement Better Planning Approvals solution. |
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| Bass Coast Shire Council | Funding of $48,160 to implement interactive 3D models and 'Do I need a permit?' questionnaire on website to enable customers to access answers on permit and application questions at any time. Funded to implement Better Planning Approvals digital solutions. |
| Moonee Valley City Council | Funding of $300,000 to introduce a new customer facing interface with automated workflows, notifications and integration to council backend planning systems to streamline data and reporting. Delivered in partnership with Service Victoria. |
| Hobsons Bay City Council | Funding of $300,000 to improve digital planning services through better integration between councils and state government planning systems including PPARS and SPEAR. |
| Glen Eira City Council | Funding of $300,000 to improve planning processes and services through the 3D city model of the Glen Eira municipality. The model will incorporate highly accurate 3D building models, GIS information and building mesh data. |
Projects funded 2023-2024
| Nillumbik Shire Council | Funding of $110,320 to review and enhance statutory planning web pages to provide simple, easy to navigate pages with consistent and accurate information in compliance with accessibility guidelines. Funded to implement Better Planning Approvals digital solutions. |
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| West Wimmera Shire Council | Funding of $47,340 to implement a community access portal through Greenlight allowing online lodgement of applications and community access to view information on advertised permits and make submissions or objections. |
| Macedon Ranges Shire Council | Funding of $28,050 to implement an inhouse advertising process for statutory planning applications within Pathway application suite. Funded to implement Better Planning Approvals digital solutions. |
| Macedon Ranges Shire Council | Funding of $28,050 to digitise statutory planning applications and introduce business improvements within Pathway application suite. Funded to implement Better Planning Approvals digital solutions. |
| Wyndham City Council | Funding of $120,000 to re-design and develop Town planning website content and forms for a customer centric experience. Funded to implement Better Planning Approvals digital solutions. |
| City of Greater Geelong | Funding of $30,000 to improve online lodgement and tracking of planning permit applications and online engagement during public notification. Funded to implement Better Planning Approvals digital solutions. |
| Yarra Ranges Council | Funding of $300,000 for digital application experience powered by a digital rules engine to analyse planning application data, land parcel and geospatial overlays against planning legislation to surface information for planning decisions. |
| Northern Grampians Shire Council |
Funding of $300,000 to make planning system easier to navigate for applicants and community with website upgrades, 3D building and planning models and trial software to manage planning application drawings. Collaboration across 4 rural councils - Northern Grampians, Southern Grampians, Queenscliffe, Moyne. |
| Knox City Council | Funding of $93,000 to introduce a new digital post permit plans assessment process including online lodgement, new procedures and workflows and improved reporting. Funded to implement Better Planning Approvals digital solutions. |
| Hindmarsh Shire Council | Funding of $60,000 to implement Greenlight Planning Portal to provide a digital planning experience for internal and external stakeholders. |
| Pyrenees Shire Council | Funding of $40,980 for Greenlight integration module to improve data processing and sharing across internal systems and State government planning systems. |
| Mitchell Shire Council | Funding of $287,280 to improve planning application process through configuration of new application types and development of dashboards to monitor performance. |
| South Gippsland Shire Council | Funding of $30,000 for improvements to statutory clock function to enable accurate calculating and reporting on statutory timeframes for the processing of planning applications. |
| City of Whittlesea | Funding of $185,525 to integrate and automate PPARS reporting and add new data fields to enable future PPARS reporting requirements. |
| Hepburn Shire Council | Funding of $264,000 to streamline internal systems, automate manual processes, improve data and reporting capability to increase uptake of online services. |
| City of Stonnington | Funding of $280,000 to improve online information and planning portal for community, stakeholders and staff. |
| City of Boroondara | Funding of $194,000 to enable online forms and payments for an end to end paperless process for planning applications and online lodgement for customers. |
| City of Greater Geelong | Funding of $40,000 for a Geelong City model to advance Urban Planning with high-fidelity building models. |
| Merri-bek City Council | Funding of $83,232 to digitise hard copy planning files to enable a full digital planning experience for council planners and the community. |
| City of Port Phillip | Funding of $190,285 to acquire a 3D snapshot of the neighbourhood to assist with assessment of planning applications and enable industry and residents to view planning permits in progress via a public accessible Development Activity Model. |
| Ararat Rural City Council | Funding of $103,520 to purchase additional planning modules to support enforcement and sub-division and procure LIDAR data as a tool for mapping and modelling physical features to enable creation of 3D digital models. |
Digital Planning Reform
The Digital Planning Grants program forms part of the larger Victorian Government Digital Planning Reform.
The grants program contributes to the third step – digital uplift of councils to accelerate digital planning services in councils.
Page last updated: 24/05/23