State Planning Policy 4.2 Activity Centres Submission

The Committee for Perth (Committee) is WA’s leading think tank. With over than 100 members covering more than 40 sectors, we thank you for the opportunity to make a submission on draft State Planning Policy 4.2 Activity Centres.

We note that preparing this submission has been challenging due to the importance of the policy, the complexity of successful planning for economic development, and the mismatch between the strategic issues that our research has identified as important for activity centre planning and the proposed policy amendments. We are therefore providing strategic feedback on the role, function and implementation of the policy rather than detailed feedback on the contents of the draft policy document.

This response has been prepared following a briefing on the policy, feedback from the Committee for Perth Reshaping working Group, and a comprehensive review of Committee for Perth research.

The key considerations include:

• Draft Policy and Implementation Guidelines
• Strengthen and expand the draft policy objectives
• Review the effectiveness of SPP 4.2 in achieving its objectives
• Develop an evidence based framework for activity centre classification
• Deliver a small number of high density hubs and responsive activity centre design
• Strengthen the role of SPP4.2 to promote growth in employment and residential intensity within the Capital City