TR-0672 Neighbourhood Character Study

Summary and scope

Toowoomba is a city rich in built heritage and character that has evolved since European settlement in 1849 (recognising that the area was inhabited by the Giabal peoples prior to and after that time). Since the mid 1995s the Council has sought to identify places of heritage and character significance and to protect those places through its planning scheme. Up until 2012 the planning scheme referred to place of heritage and place of character significance as ‘Place of Potential Cultural Heritage Significance’. In 2012 Council adopted a new planning scheme that separately defined and regulated heritage and character places. In December 2019 Toowoomba Regional Council completed a major review of the Toowoomba Regional Planning Scheme under section 25 of the Planning Act 2016. The outcome of the review was a decision to prepare a new planning scheme. Council has adopted the following three stage process for preparing the new planning scheme: Stage 1 Strategy July 2020 – June 2022 (complete) Stage 2 Drafting July 2022 – December 2023 (commenced) Stage 3 Stakeholder review (statutory) January – May 2025 Council is reviewing its approach to the definition and regulation of neighbourhood character as part of developing the new planning scheme. The purpose of this consultancy is to assist Toowoomba Regional Council to prepare planning scheme provisions for the new Toowoomba Region Planning Scheme in relation to the regulation of development within areas of neighbourhood character and includes the following parts: (A) Develop an understanding of existing neighbourhood character areas and associated community values (B) Identify areas within a unified character (character precincts) within the overall overlay area and describe the elements that contribute to defining their character (C) Determine the development outcomes to be achieved within each character precinct (D) Prepare guidance for drafting the appropriate planning scheme provisions to achieve the development outcomes identified in (C)