Holiday homes, pets, livestock targeted

BASS Coast Shire is currently reviewing its Local Law and the community is encouraged to provide their feedback on the proposed changes.

The Local Law must be reviewed every 10 years, and covers a range of matters including unsightly land, roadside and footpath trading and planting on nature strips, to building sites.

The feedback period will run until Sunday, February 13.

“The purpose of this review is to identify what is working well in our current Local Law, any gaps in the legislation and new and emerging issues to be incorporated into the Local Law,” Mayor Cr Michael Whelan said.

“We have created a summary of key changes which identifies areas of the Local Law that we are looking to change, delete or add to.”

One of the proposed changes to the Local Law is to include Short Stay Accommodation. Previously, council registered Short Stay Accommodation under The Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008, through the ‘Holiday Home Registration’ process.

Council ceased this process from July 1, 2021, and is refunding properties who had paid registration from this date up to December 31, 2021.

Council will be moving to a new process, where Short Stay Accommodation (previously referred to as Holiday Homes) will be registered under the Local Law 2022 from July 1, 2022.

All previously registered properties will be sent an invitation to become registered through this new process in 2022.

During the transition period, property owners will not be penalised for having an unregistered property.

Other changes include a review into the number and type of animals that can be kept on a property.

Council is proposing to review the number of animals kept on larger blocks of land and introduce new provisions for individual animal plans to regulate dogs that have attacked in the past, and determine whether they are able to be kept.

While to help minimise accidents caused by livestock escaping, new provisions could be made to allow authorised officers to issue on the spot fines for livestock ‘being at large’.

Following the feedback period, information gathered will be used to draft the new Local Law, with feedback also to be sought on the draft. The community can view the current Local Law, a summary of key changes and provide feedback at basscoast.vic.gov.au/locallaw.