Yarra Ranges Council has begun utilising myLot, an AI-powered self-service planning enquiry tool, to help residents find out if they need a planning permit for their upcoming project.
One of the hardest parts of the planning process is not knowing how to get started, what may be required, or even knowing when a planning permit is required.
Designed specifically for homeowners, myLot assists users by providing information about the residential planning controls on their property to assist in the early stages of the planning process and reduce delays in assessment.
The new tool uses artificial intelligence to explore residential development, including what the project is and what planning permit triggers there may be under Council's planning scheme.
Yarra Ranges Mayor, Cr Jim Child, said that the tool was designed to save residents time and money, while helping address the housing supply issue in the Yarra Ranges.
"This has been a huge effort from our Planning and Building and Information Services teams, doing a power of work with myLot to get the platform up and running," Cr Child said.
"We are always looking to innovate and find new ways to improve the experience for community when engaging with us and our services, and we're excited to be the first Council in the state to undertake this type of project.
"We know that in the past, the planning process has been met with some frustration by our community, so this technology will help guide them through those initial phases of the process a lot more quickly and smoothly.
"It's important to note that there will continue to be human oversight with the planning process, this is merely a tool to help quickly answer those first few questions our residents may have when planning to build or renovate."
"We're also looking forward to expanding on what the tool currently allows our residents to do, to more complex planning and building matters in the future."
The portal recently received a commendation from Planning Institute Australia for 'Technology & Digital Innovation'.
While feedback so far on the new platform has been positive, Council is encouraging those who use it to continue to provide feedback so it can be continuously improved.
The portal is in continuous development and while currently it is for single residential scale development only, Council is working with the program developers to expand it into more complex planning proposals, including subdivision and multi-units, in the future.
This project was co-funded and developed in a collaborative partnership with myLot.
