The value and number of planning approvals in Launceston rose slightly in the last financial year driven in part by growing demand for inner-city residential projects, a builder says.
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The City of Launceston approved 673 planning applications with a total value of $215 million in 2019-20, a marginal increase on the previous two financial years.
This was good news for Tas City Building, which has been able to maintain its staffing levels at 45 throughout COVID as development shows no sign of slowing.
Company director Steven Simeoni said they were constructing four units behind shop fronts on Elizabeth Street, a further two in Tamar Street and there were plans for three on Brisbane Street, along with a waiting list of developers looking for land in the CBD.
Mr Simeoni said there had been a downturn in commercial development, but residential - particularly inner-city - was "skyrocketing".
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"There's a lot of mainlanders that are coming down, retirees, that just want to be in the city," he said.
The average time for applications to be assessed was 28 days, two weeks under the statutory requirement.
Mayor Albert van Zetten said there was a good mix of projects coming forward, which were keeping most areas of the construction sector busy.
"There's quite a lot of people renovating their homes and doing add-ons to their homes at the moment, which is exciting to see as well, they're confident about where they want to spend their money and that helps the smaller builders as well," he said.
"We still want to continue to encourage people to invest, especially inner-city. We love to see people wanting to develop in the city. The more people the can live closer to the city, the better it is for our services and also how important it is for the businesses around the city."
Cr van Zetten said the planning department was yet to see any decline in development due to the pandemic.
Northern Tasmania Development Corporation chief executive officer Mark Baker said the figures indicated that confidence in Launceston remained strong.
"Business runs on confidence, and what this does is give business owners the confidence to continue to invest in the city," he said.
"Whether that's a multimillion dollar hotel, or it's a new subdivision, mum and dad renovations at home, all of that has a multiplier effect of money being spent in the local economy."