Home Owners Flock to Council Website
12 May, 2009
Brisbane City Council’s new and improved Planning and Building website is the most clicked link on Council’s homepage – with visits already up 153 percent.
The site was officially launched last month as part of the Lord Mayor’s commitment to making Brisbane City Council Australia’s most efficient development assessment authority.
Council’s new Planning and Building website is a one-stop-shop for everything required for the approval of small-scale developments such as carports, garages, decks and sheds.
There is also essential information on buying, selling or conveyancing property such as area zoning, building searches and properties susceptible to flooding.
There were a total of 49,402 visits to the new website in April, of which 29,000 were unique users.
This is compared to the 32,170 total visits recorded for the old website’s last month in operation (February 2009) – an increase of 153 percent.
The new website also sits in the Top 5 of Council’s 100 most visited sites. The other four where Council’s home, search results, libraries and contact pages.
Development Chair Amanda Cooper said it was clear Council’s new Planning and Building website site was making the development assessment process much simpler.
“Since we launched the new website the number of people using the correct processes for submitting a development application has increased 74 percent,” Cr Cooper said.
“This saves everyone involved a lot of time and money and is just one example of the many ways we have made the site much more user-friendly and easy to understand.”
Cr Cooper said the site was perfect starting point for all small-scale subdivision, residential, commercial and industrial projects.
“Whether you’re a ‘do it yourself’ renovator or an architect or engineer, this website should be your first port-of-call before starting any developments,” she said.
Council’s overhaul of the Planning and Building website was the largest single upgrade of any Brisbane City Council website, with around 290 pages being altered.
Another way Council is helping speed up the process is through its RiskSMART program, which fast tracks most minor development applications within five working days and saves on expensive delays. The new Planning and Building website can be accessed at www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/planningandbuilding.
[Ends] May 12, 2009
