In April 2016, State Parliament passed the Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016 ("the PDI Act"), to replace the Development Act 1993.

The new Act provides the basis for a major overall of the planning and development system in South Australia. It will affect how development policy is formed and amended and how development applications are lodged and assessed.

The PDI Act is being progressively implemented by the State Government over a 3-5 year period.

To date, the practical implementation of the PDI Act has seen the establishment of:

• the State Planning Commission (April 2017); 
• the SA Planning Portal (a comprehensive, single point of entry website);
• Council’s assessment panel (October 2017); and
• the Community Engagement Charter (January 2018).

A key component of the new system is the state-wide Planning and Design Code. This Code is aimed at consolidating the planning provisions and policies of South Australia’s 72 Development Plans into one ‘rule book’ for all development and will replace the Port Adelaide Enfield Council Development Plan.

Council has maintained a strong and active interest in the planning reform agenda since the previous State Government appointed an Expert Panel on Planning Reform in February 2013. It has formally considered and made submissions on various aspects of the reform agenda and will continue to do so as the reform agenda is rolled out:

For more information on the implementation of the new planning system visit the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure's SA Planning Portal (see link below).