Land zoning: How does Australia compare to Japan and North America?
I recently read a thought-provoking article comparing land zoning in Japan with North America. Two significantly different approaches to zoning; Japan with a very limited palette of zones stipulated by the National government, contrasted with the North American approach where zoning is the domain of local government and hundreds of different zones prevail.
Zoning in Japan: In comparison to North America, Japan only has 12 land-use zones
Zoning in Australia is the ultimate responsibility of states. Victoria has a consistent set of zones that are applied across the State (around 30). In the 1990s, this approach replaced the previous system where new zones could be created in each local government area seemingly on a whim. New South Wales has also moved to standardise its zoning since 2006. In that sense, Australia’s two largest states are more similar to Japan than North America.
Australia’s zones are probably more exclusionary than those of Japan, but less so than North America. I stand to be corrected on that front by those more knowledgeable of Australian planning! With new residential zones in metropolitan Melbourne currently creating controversy amid a State Election campaign, the article makes for a timely read.
With thanks to Andrew Beaton for sharing this article.
Johnny - Urban Observer
Johnny is an urban planner, population forecaster and spatial consultant with an extraordinary knowledge of places across Australia. He has been forecasting, analysing, and mapping Australia’s urban changes since the late 1980s and has worked as a land analyst for State Government in Victoria and a strategic planner for Blacktown City Council in NSW. As a Lead Consultant for .id, Johnny has completed projects informing Board-level decisions with the AFL, NRL Stockland, Red Cross and numerous education providers. Johnny undertakes comprehensive forecasting for Local Governments in Vic, WA, SA, NSW and NZ.
