BLOWOUTS in development application approval times in Queanbeyan are being blamed on a shortage of council staff and a demand for new housing.

Recently appointed CEO of Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council (QPRC), Rebecca Ryan, says the number of development applications (DAs) received by council has increased by 20 per cent over the past two years, as the region continues to grow.

At the same time, Ms Ryan said council’s DA assessment team has been operating with only half of its full quota of staff.

“So far this financial year, QPRC has received more than 670 DAs ranging from simple residential additions such as sheds, pools and pergolas; new and secondary residential dwellings; to large-scale commercial, industrial and multi-residential developments,” says Ms Ryan.

‘We have had significant turnover of staff in the fields of town planning, building surveying and development engineering. Vacancies in these fields have proved difficult to fill all across NSW with many councils currently reporting skills shortages in these areas and delays with DAs.”

Mr Ryan says council is working to clear the DA backlog, and put in place longer term processing improvements.

“As an immediate short-term solution, we are reassigning some existing council staff to support the assessment team and help process as many of the outstanding applications as we can over the next few weeks,” says Ms Ryan.

“We have also engaged some short-term contractors who are helping with the assessing process.

“We are making a concerted effort to clear as many DAs as we can, and we ask the community’s patience over the coming months while we continue to address the problem.”