The State Government is advertising for staff for its recently announced Greater Sydney (Planning) Commission. The Commission will oversee the implementation of ‘A Plan for Growing Sydney‘. It will advise the Government on planning priorities and infrastructure.
A key platform of the Plan for Growing Sydney is providing greater housing choice. This means change for our residential suburbs where we will see increased numbers of medium and high density residential towers. In the past year new strata units have outpaced traditional residential house by 9:1 (nine units for every house built).
There will be six planning districts across Sydney. The Commissioners of the planning districts are also members of the Sydney Planning Panel which will have plan making and development assessment functions. This is another example of the State Government devolving decision making away from local communities. You can anticipate that the new planning model will also reduce the amount of public consultation over new planning proposals.
Chatswood West Ward History 
More information is emerging about this new Planning Commission. It looks like the city will be divided into six super planning districts. The NORTH District would comprise 11 Councils (including Willoughby).
The governance structure of the Commission may be made up of a Chair, Commissioners for Environment, Economy, Social, the heads of the Depts. Planning and Treasury plus six district Commissioners. So enuring that Willoughby’s needs are understood and catered for will be difficult.
It is posited that the focus of the Commission is to “side-step” Council bureaucracies.