Visionary new plan outlines city of the future
04 March 2025
Ipswich City Council is ready to embrace the next 20 years of major planning and development across the region with its new planning scheme signed off by the Queensland Government.
Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding said the new State Government had finalised its review of the draft plan and given approval for it to move forward.
"The draft new planning scheme and draft Local Government Infrastructure Plan is now in the adoption stage of the plan making process, having received State Government approval to proceed to adoption, with conditions, on 14 February 2025,” Mayor Harding said.
“Council officers will now review the ministerial conditions and prepare an updated draft planning scheme for council’s consideration to adopt at a future meeting.
“This is a milestone moment as we celebrate our 165th birthday. This contemporary planning document will help shape Ipswich during decades of enormous growth.
“The new planning scheme is a critically important roadmap for our growing city. The city’s current planning scheme was made in 2004, and no longer delivered the vision for our rapidly growing city.
“This new planning scheme will help council plan for the next 20 years, as our population is set to more than double from 260,000 to 533,000 by 2046.
“Council has worked tirelessly on developing the new draft plan. State Government approval is the penultimate step in a long journey of many years of refining and leading planning policy and practice.
“We have listened to extensive community, business and industry feedback and developed a plan that is visionary, innovative and set to shape the city.
“The new planning scheme will enable us to manage growth and change throughout our local government area for the next 20 years. The planning scheme is one of the most important strategic documents a local government can have.”
Mayor Harding said the new planning scheme represents a forward-thinking approach that will manage growth and ensure Ipswich becomes a thriving, dynamic community with the right balance of residential, commercial, industrial and green spaces.
Specifically, the new planning scheme will:
- ease pressure on the long-term cost-of-living for Ipswich residents through affordable living options supported by less regulation and more streamlined development pathways
- improve housing affordability with more zoned land supply across Ipswich
- activate an increased supply of housing options (through appropriately zoned and serviced land across the city)
- comply with the SEQ regional plan (ShapingSEQ 2023) including policy provisions for gentle density while exceeding the medium and high-rise dwelling targets
- unlock more housing in the right locations (through the lowering of regulation of dual occupancy and secondary dwellings to provide more affordable housing)
- protect the lifestyle of Ipswich communities including our established suburban and character residential areas
- provide more certainty to residents, industry and the community on planning outcomes
- ensure the community has a say about renewable energy projects by making them impact assessable in relevant areas
- reduce car parking requirements in the High Density Residential and Centres zones as well as additional reductions for demonstrated advancement of active transport and green travel
- include modernised development codes providing a best practice approach to promote good subdivision design, lot design and distribution.
Infrastructure, Planning and Assets Committee Chairperson Councillor Andrew Antoniolli said the existing planning scheme was almost 20 years old and in need of significant updates to reflect a city which had a population of 140,000 in 2006 and is now home to more than 260,000 residents.
“This landmark achievement is the result of extensive collaboration and consultation with the community, business and industry stakeholders, and relevant government agencies,” Cr Antoniolli said.
“The planning scheme and supporting planning scheme policies were subject to a rigorous and broad-ranging community engagement program.
“In total, almost 100,000 people were engaged face-to-face, over the phone or online, or in letters sent to all Ipswich ratepayers, and 506 formal submissions were received. The draft planning scheme, including supporting mapping, was amended in response to submissions received.
“On behalf of council and my fellow councillors, we thank all stakeholders for their participation and valuable input that has helped shape the city’s plan for our future.”
Council will now consider the formal adoption of the new plan at an upcoming meeting. To receive further updates, register here on Shape Your Ipswich.