Development

Control
Managing Development and
Land use decision–making

Unit 2-3
Lecturer: Hilary F. Smith (BSc., MSc.)
Physical Planning In Jamaica
The primary goal of Planning is to ensure public health and safety
through the rationale use of land.

Planning has two main function:

 Development Planning – more abstract
 Development Control- more temporal

Adapted Definition of DEVELOPMENT

Jamaica uses the following definition by English Planning Law
“is defined as the carrying out of any building, engineering, mining or
other operations in, on, over or under land, or the making of any
material change in the use of any buildings or other land.”
Terminology

Development Control, Land use Control,

Planning Control or Development
Management
Definitions
 In its simplest form, development management
constitutes the assessing and determining of
applications for planning permission; however on a
more strategic level, it is involved in the spatial
planning and development of communities and land.

 At present, it relies on a "plan-led system", whereby

Development Plans (Structure and Local) are
formed following public consultation.

 Planning applications are then granted or refused

with reference to the Development Plan as a
material consideration.
Land use control
 Land use Control is perhaps older than Land use
planning
 Land use control is a tool to implement a plan
 The scope of development control is wide: from
regulating the siting of an international airport to
requiring a Permit to cut down and replant a tree.
 Though often describes as ‘negative’ this is only so
to the extent that it prevents some development
from happening, which may be a positive means to
implement a plan.
Development Control
Development Control:-

The element of the system of Town and

Country Planning through which Local
Government (LG) regulates land use and new
building.
Development Control
General Scope of Development Control
Development Control (DC) covers all aspects of
siting, sizing and environmental impact of any
type of land use.
Rationale for Development Control
The rationale for DC may include a full range of
‘public interest’ from health and safety to
economic viability and social desirability.
Development Control
Instruments
 Zoning
 Subdivision control
 Site plan control
 Building Codes
 Traffic by laws
 Property maintenance by laws
Zoning
 Sometimes denoted as a form of ‘police power’
 Which simply put means that the government, in
protecting the public interests, can apply certain
limitations to the use and development of private
land.
 Uses of land and buildings are classified into
"use classes" and any change from one use
class to another use class is automatically a
"material change of use" amounting to
development.

Case study: Bauxite mud lakes and mining lands –

Jamaica
The Planning System in
Jamaica
The Planning System in Jamaica is supported
by three frameworks:

 Legislative Framework
 The Institutional Framework
 The Administrative Framework
Enforcement
 If development is carried out without planning permission then
the LPA may take "enforcement action" to have the building
removed, the land reinstated, or at least undertake the minimum
measures required to prevent any harm arising. (Generally, a
retrospective application for planning permission would be invited
first, and action taken if planning permission is then refused.)
Almost all planning permissions are granted conditionally and
enforcement action can also be taken to secure compliance with
the conditions imposed. Unauthorised development can be the
subject of a "stop notice" if there is an urgent need to prevent
further harm.
 In recent years planning has become a key means of delivering a
number of the government's objectives relating to climate
change, reducing carbon emissions, access to housing and
improving the supply of housing, enhancing biodiversity and a
number of other emerging priorities.
 Although these are addressed via the process of formulating
local planning policies for the area of each LPA on a local basis,
as far as the public are concerned it is development control and
the process of determining planning applications which is the
most evident part of the planning system as a whole.

Case study: Highway 2000 and the parish of Clarendon

Land use and the environment
 Land use and land management practices have a
major impact on natural resources including water,
soil, nutrients, plants and animals. Land use
information can be used to develop solutions for
natural resource management issues such as
salinity and water quality. For instance, water bodies
in a region that has been deforested or having
erosion will have different water quality than those in
areas that are forested.

Case study : St. Catherine, Jamaica

Major legislation affecting development in Jamaica
In the Jamaican context three (3) major pieces
of legislation can be readily identified which
have a significant impact on the development of
properties and ultimately the granting of
permission to build.
These are namely:
 The Town and Country Planning Act of 1957
 The Local Improvements Act of 1914

 The Parish Council's Building Act of 1908 and

the KSAC's Building Act
(1) The Town and Country Planning Act
This legislation stipulates that in areas for which a Development
Order has been prepared, planning permission is required from
the Local Planning Authority before "development" as defined
by the Act can be undertaken. In those areas for which no
development orders have been prepared no planning
permission is required to undertake development. The
Development Order is therefore the legal document guiding
development in Jamaica. These orders are prepared by the
Town and Country Planning Authority in consultation with the
Local Planning Authority (Parish Councils & KSAC). The Town
and Country Planning Authority which is a body established
under the Act can "call in" an area for which a development
order has been prepared. In this instance the Town and Country
Planning Authority has the jurisdiction to oversee all
development applications if it so desires within that area. The
areas "called in" are Portland Coast, St Mary Coast, Ocho Rios,
Negril, and Westmoreland South East Coast.
Areas Covered by Development Orders

Development Orders have been prepared for all the coastal

areas of Jamaica except St James, Trelawny, Manchester,
Clarendon and Westmoreland where the entire parishes are
under the Town and Country Planning Act by virtue of having
parish Development Orders. A special order exists for the
Negril area. This order encompasses sections of the parishes
of Westmoreland and Hanover. See map. Presently the Order
for the parish of St Ann is being printed. Work on a new parish
Order for Manchester is far advanced and likewise for the Negril
area. Work has begun on the order for the parishes of Kingston
and St Andrew. This order will replace the Kingston
Development Order of 1966 which covered the parish of
Kingston and a section of the parish of St Andrew. At present
therefore sections of the parish of St Andrew are outside the
ambit of the Town and Country Planning Act.
(2) The Local Improvements Act

The subdivision of land throughout Jamaica is

regulated under this Act. The Act stipulates that
all subdivision of land for building or sale
throughout Jamaica requires the permission of
the local planning authority of the parish in
which the land is located. The Act requires that
the comments of the Chief Technical Director be
obtained prior to the applicant being notified of the Parish
Council's decision. By virtue of an amendment in 1959 the
expert advice of the Government Town Planner is also
required by the local authority prior to notification of
applicants.
(3) The Parish Councils Building Act

Construction of buildings in towns and any areas which may be

delimited by the parish councils (Local Authority) is controlled
under this legislation. The Parish Councils/KSAC are allowed
to impose suitable conditions with regards to size, elevation,
and structural integrity of buildings. To date regulations cover
the principal towns of all the parishes. In those areas which
have been delimited under the Building Act permission is to be
obtained from the (Council/KSAC) before construction
commences. The extent of the building area for which
permission is required from persons desirous of constructing buildings
in the Kingston area is larger than that delimited under the Town and
Country Planning Act. It should be noted that sections of the parish of
St Andrew are outside the jurisdiction of the Kingston and St Andrew
Building Act.

In summary in areas where both acts occur an applicant

needs both a planning permission and a building
permit.
Procedure for Obtaining Permission to Develop and Build in Jamaica

(a) Planning Permission

 Required in areas covered by Development Orders
 Applicant submits duly completed application form with 2 sets of the
plan, provides proof of ownership and pays the required fees to the
Local Planning Authority.
 If area is called in by the Town and Country Planning Authority (TCPA),
the Local Planning Authority submits application to the Town Planning
Department for the consideration of the Town and Country Planning
Authority. All gas station applications are "called in" hence the Town
and Country Planning Authority receives all such applications.
 TCPA in case of (ii) above assesses application and informs the
applicant and the Local Planning Authority of its decision.
 If the area is not "called in" then the Local Planning Authority deals with
the application and informs the applicant of its If the area is not "called
in" then the Local Planning Authority deals with the application and
informs the applicant of its decision. However the Local Planning
Authority seeks the advice of the TPD. On certain applications for the
T.C.P.A., the Department consults other agencies for advice. For
example plans that are submitted in say Jacks Hill area or any other
steep area are sent to Geological Survey Department for advice.
Dependent upon location, a site investigation report is normally
required. The regulations under the NRCA Act specify the types of
developments which must be submitted for their comments or permit.
(b) Building Permission
 This is required in town areas and any other area
covered by the parish council building act.
 Applicant submits duly completed application to the local
planning authority (Parish Council and Kingston and St
Andrew Corporation in the case of these two parishes).
The applicant is also required to pay a fee which
amounts to a half of one percent of the cost of the
building. Proof of ownership of the property is also
required. Five sets of the building plans are also required.
 The local authority assesses the application and informs
the applicant of its decision.
 In the case of applications in areas covered by a
development order planning permission is also required.
Thus building applications for Kingston and St Andrew
submitted to the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation
which fall in the area covered by the Kingston
Development Order also require planning permission.
 Applicant is informed of local planning authority decision.
(c) Subdivision Permission
 Permission for subdivision of land throughout Jamaica is obtained under the
Local Improvements Act.
 Applicant submits application to the Local Planning Authority with the relevant
fees, duly completed application form in triplicate, proof of ownership and the
required copies of the subdivision plan. If the application is for:
a) 10 lots and under and less than 5 acres 12 copies of the subdivision plan are
required.
b) 11 lots and over and over 5 acres 15 copies of the plan are required.
c) Over 11 lots and/or 20 hectares (50 acres) 16 copies of the plan are required.
 Local planning Authority forwards application to Town Planning Department for
the advice of the Government Town Planner.
 Town Planning Department solicits the comments of the Chief Technical Director
for all applications and from other relevant government departments as may be
required depending on the location of the property. Thus agencies such as the
Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NRCA), Office of Disaster
Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), Ministry of Agriculture,
Geological Survey Division and the Environmental Control Division of the Ministry
of Health, for example are requested to submit comments with regard to the
suitability of the site for the proposed use. In this manner the department seeks to
be guided by the expertise of the site to different natural hazards and its suitability
for the development.
 The Local Planning Authority is then informed of the Department's
recommendations after it has received the comments solicited from the agencies.
 The Local Authority advises applicant of the conditions to be attached and after
acceptance, the plan is sent to the appropriate Minister for ratification. The plan is
only then approved.
Exercise
 Review the two distributed articles
 Examine the main arguments
 Compare and contrast the issues highlighted
in the article and discuss the case of
development control in Jamaica.
 Discuss the pros and the cons of the
development control system in Jamaica.
 Compile your response and submit hard copy
at end of Tutorial Tuesday, Feb 22. (by 4pm).
Development Phases

 Feasibility
 Planning
 Design
 Construction
 Lot Creation
 Completion