Lismore is set for a construction boom after announcing slew of development application approvals
Lismore saw over $46 million worth of Development Applications (DAs) approved in March, which is expected to push the total value of approved developments for this financial year to over $100 million.
Lismore City Mayor Steve Krieg says that after three years of recovery after catastrophic flooding hit the community in February 2022, this shows that there is significant growth underway in the city as it moves forward.
“Normally in a good year we would be looking at perhaps $100 million of DAs being approved for the Local Government Area, so $46 million in one month is an incredible sign of business confidence in our city,” he says.
“We are at slightly under $100 million just now, so we are going to have a good year.
“The great thing is these are new developments, not rebuilds. They are new developments from people outside of Lismore who understand the growth potential of Lismore and the value of investing their money here.”
Krieg says 34 DAs were approved in March, and the value was “phenomenal”.
One approved office development in the CBD is worth $8.5 million, with another community facility valued at $2.7 million.
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Council also approved two large residential DAs lodged by the Arch Diocese and Stage 2 of the Eastwood Estate (off Invercauld Road), a $10 million development with 176 lots.
“After the devastating impact of the 2022 flood event, this Council has made a deliberate and focused effort to sustainably grow Lismore, both in terms of population and housing. These figures show we are the right track toward regaining our status as a regional powerhouse,” Kreig says.
“I would also like to acknowledge the dedication and professionalism of our planning team who have put new systems and procedures in place to speed up approval times and make investing in Lismore easier.
“The state government has a planning league table and if you look at how Lismore is going in the region against our peers, we are doing quite well. We are tracking at just under 80 days average for Development Application approvals, with 80 per cent of DAs approved within expected timeframes.
“Lismore is a great place to invest and do business and if you put your DAs in with all the correct information, you will receive approval fairly quickly compared to other Local Government Areas.
“These trending figures show we are definitely open for business and ripe for investment. Council is here to support Lismore to rebuild and to grow.”
The most recent development investment figures for Lismore follows an audit of inner CBD premises in December which found that despite high interest rates and the cost-of-living crisis, occupancy rates held firm.