Like 'The Spirits': Hobart Council Slams New 'Unfit for Purpose' Planning Portal

( ABC News: John Gunn ) A new planning portal meant to speed up development approvals has turned into a state government debacle. PlanBuild was intended as an easy-to-use online catch-all for building development applications, replacing the paper-based system, but the scheme's trial adopter, Hobart City Council, has labelled it "unfit for purpose". The department behind the trial says it is working to fix "user functionality issues" before rolling it out statewide.

The Tasmanian government has suffered a $6.5 million cost blowout on its signature PlanBuild program, a new planning portal that was meant to speed up development approvals but has turned into a debacle. PlanBuild was intended to be rolled out statewide. Hobart City Council was the first to adopt the system when it went live in 2024, but the council says its implementation has frustrated council staff, residents and industry alike.

PlanBuild was designed as a uniform statewide planning scheme that would cover Tasmania's 29 councils. ( ABC News: Ebony ten Broeke ) On Monday, the council unanimously backed a motion expressing its concern. The motion described PlanBuild as "unfit for purpose", and called for an indefinite waiver of the annual $83,000 in fees paid to the Department of Justice — which runs the program — until the system is fixed.

Hobart councillor Louise Elliott, who introduced the motion and has been campaigning on the issue of planning costs and delays, described PlanBuild as "lose, lose, lose". Louise Elliott says she has "genuine concerns" about the scheme. ( ABC News: Andrew Cunningham ) "Everyone's losing.

[Hobart City Council] lose because it's a system that we have and people quite rightly think that it's our system, so we bear the heat and the reputational impact of that," she said. The motion was supported by the council administration, who conceded the program's launch had been "very difficult for officers and applicants". Hobart City Council passed a motion at Monday's meeting that called PlanBuild "unfit for purpose".

( ABC News: Luke Bowden ) PlanBuild was conceived more than a decade ago, when former premier Peter Gutwein was treasurer and planning minister. Mr Gutwein had pushed for a uniform statewide planning scheme to cover Tasmania's 29 councils. The idea was to roll out a streamlined, easy-to-use online portal for all building, plumbing and development applications, replacing the paper-based system.

( ABC News: Ebony ten Broeke ) Work started in the 2016-17 financial year, with a budget of $9.7 million — including $6.4 million in Commonwealth Small Business Regulatory Reform Agenda funding — after external tenders were called for by the Consumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS) arm of the Justice Department. According to Benjamin Price, executive director of the Tasmanian branch of the Housing Industry Association, there was strong support at the outset. "We were big backers of PlanBuild when it was initially brought to industry's attention, Mr Price said.

Benjamin Price says the scheme is not working as intended. ( ABC News: Ebony ten Broeke ) Unfortunately, the trial has not gone well." "Our members right across Tasmania and particularly here in the south have been saying that PlanBuild is not up to scratch, Mr Price said. "It's not working as intended and it's not making their lives easier, [and it] isn't delivering the efficiencies that the Tasmanian government had promised.

Maree Ashworth, client liaison officer for Hobart-based builders Ronald Young + Co Builders, deals with the PlanBuild system daily, and said she finds it incredibly frustrating. Marie Ashworth says Ronald Young + Co Builders tries to avoid using the PlanBuild portal. ( ABC News: Ebony ten Broeke ) Ms Ashworth told the ABC that for builds within the City of Hobart, her company hands the documentation over to somebody else to lodge through PlanBuild.

That preference means added costs on all sides. "We hear feedback from members who are architects, designers, builders and plumbers that the PlanBuild portal is too difficult to use," he said.