Regional and rural areas of NSW have a higher percentage of older people, particularly in areas popular with older tree-changers and sea-changers. So the draft Urban Design Guidelines for Regional NSW should take this into account. The seven objectives in the draft guidelines are: Better Fit, Better Performance, Better for Community, Better for People, Better working, Better value, and Better look and feel. They are explained in detail and will typically apply to the public realm, town centres, infill developments, and greenfield developments. This 90 page guide also includes a useful profile of each region. The website has a FAQ sheet and a webinar on good urban design in the regions.
Each of the design objectives would benefit from an overlay of universal design concepts. The document explains that “Design draws together many fields of expertise … [with] often competing requirements … that meets the needs of many and diverse groups”. A universal design approach automatically draws these groups together. However, such an approach is left up to individual councils.
Note: These draft guidelines were open for public comment during 2018-2019, but they are still in draft form.