Land zoning: How does Australia compare to Japan and North America?

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.