Shire of Augusta-Margaret River set to expand State Government’s granny flats exemption to ease pressure

The Shire of Augusta-Margaret River is poised to one-up the State Government amid news planning rules were relaxed this week for people building granny flats.

On Tuesday, Planning Minister John Carey announced that building a granny flat would no longer require council planning approval for any sized lot, part of measures he said were aimed at easing WA’s housing crisis.

As long as the granny flat was not bigger than 70sqm and met setback requirements — such as the minimum space from the fence — homeowners won’t need to go through the lengthy planning approval process that can take months to determine if the proposal and site were suitable.

However, what Shire planners call “ancillary dwellings” were already permitted under the existing scheme, and in Local Planning Scheme 2 now out for public comment, that add-on housing could be as big as 120sqm.

Shire sustainable development and infrastructure director Nick Logan told the Times exemptions for granny flats had been in place since 2017.

“We are very conscious of the need for more accommodation here, and we’ve proposed a ‘backyard infill’ project as part of the LPS which is currently open for consultation,” he said.

“In that scheme, we’re pushing to allow for larger ancillary dwellings — 120sqm as opposed to 70sqm elsewhere in the State — to be exempt.”

Shire president Julia Meldrum also welcomed the planning relaxation as evidence of the State Government moving to address the housing crisis gripping the region.

“Anything that helps with easing the intense pressure on local accommodation is very welcome and we completely support any moves from the State Government to help us with addressing the issue,” she said.

Although granny flats were already exempt, Cr Meldrum said it was pleasing to see the State Government acknowledging the issue and supporting local governments to address housing pressures.

“We recognise that we are suffering from a housing crisis, and with a growing population we will consider as many ways as possible to support our community,” she said.

Airbnb owner, former developer and former council candidate Reg Gillard said many would embrace the chance to build extra housing, including older people freed up to sell homes now too big for them alone.

“This may go some way to easing housing pressures,” he said.

“A shortage of housing for long-term renters and medium term transitory and construction workers could be well satisfied by this initiative.

“Undoubtedly, some may see it as a way of supplementing their incomes by appealing to short-term, Airbnb-type tenants.”

Shadow housing minister Steve Martin immediately lit into the new change as another Labor failure that could see more trees cut down.

The Liberal MLC said most compliant granny flats were already built without a lengthy approval process and the news would not address the housing supply crisis.