New round of incentives for local developments

Published on 27 June 2017

New round of incentives for local developments

Rockhampton Regional Council is set to expand the regional economy by stimulating economic growth and creating local jobs with Council today adopting a new Development Incentives Policy to take effect after at the start of August.

Mayor Margaret Strelow said the policy cuts 75 per cent of infrastructure charges for new developments in Council’s Priority Infrastructure Area.

“This is about getting major projects up and running as soon as possible to kick start the local economy,” Mayor Strelow said.

“We’ve seen what happens in the wake of the mining downturn when economies are too reliant on a single sector and this policy deliberately targets a diverse range of industries to encourage new development and build resilience in our economy.

“Projects which would be considered for the incentives include Educational & Training Establishments; Medical & Health Services; Aged & Retirement Facilities and Destination Tourism Facilities,” Mayor Strelow said.

Planning and Regulation Councillor Ellen Smith said the previous policy had been a significant success, contributing to a surge in building and construction activity in the Rockhampton Region.

“The former concessions and Incentives Policy saw more than 30  incentive applications lodged with Council over a three year period,” Cr Smith said.

“Overall it led to a total of more than $1.4 million being refunded to developments which was money put back into getting those projects up and running.

“The current policy is being extended to the end of July to ensure developers are aware of the upcoming change,” Cr Smith said.

The new policy will apply to development applications lodged with Council on or after June1st 2017 and on or before 31 December 2019.

For further information on the concession, go to www.rrc.qld.gov.au/PlanningBuilding/Development-Incentives