Hunter Regional Plan 2036
The Hunter Regional Plan 2036 was released in October 2016 and is the NSW Government’s strategy for guiding land use planning decisions for the Hunter Region for the next 20 years. The Hunter region consists of ten local government areas: Cessnock, Dungog, Lake Macquarie, Maitland, Midcoast, Muswellbrook, Newcastle, Port Stephens, Singleton and the Upper Hunter. The vision of the Hunter Regional Plan 2036 is to create a leading regional economy in Australia, with a vibrant metropolitan city at the heart.
The Hunter Development Corporation are coordinating the implementation of the vision, goals and actions in the Regional Plan with responsibility for actions shared between Councils, other state agencies, service providers and the development industry.
The Regional Plan sets out four goals for the Hunter Region:
- Goal 1: The leading regional economy in Australia
- Goal 2: A biodiversity-rich natural environment
- Goal 3: Thriving communities
- Goal 4: Greater housing choice and jobs
A number of the Directions included in Goal 1 have influenced the development of the City of Newcastle’s Economic Development Strategy. These directions include:
- Direction 1: Grow Greater Newcastle as Australia’s next metropolitan city
- Direction 2: Enhance connections to the Asia-Pacific through global gateways
- Direction 3: Revitalise Newcastle City Centre
- Direction 4: Enhance inter-regional linkages to support economic growth
- Direction 7: Develop advanced manufacturing, defence and aerospace hubs
- Direction 8: Promote innovative small business and growth in the service sectors
- Direction 9: Grow tourism in the region
- Direction 12: Diversify and grow the energy sector
The implementation of these directions is discussed in detail in the City of Newcastle’s Economic Development Strategy. The full Hunter Region Plan 2036 can be found on the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment’s Department of Planning, Industry and Environment’s website.
