Huon Valley rezoning bids must now align with new regional strategy

The Southern Tasmania Regional Land Use Strategy 2026 (STRLUS) has come into effect for the Huon Valley, following its declaration by the Tasmanian Government on 11 September 2026, Huon Valley Council says. The new strategy replaces the STRLUS 2010-2035, which was first declared in October 2011.

Why it matters

Huon Valley Council says the STRLUS guides strategic land use and development decisions across the Southern Tasmania region, and that for the Huon Valley specifically it now provides an important strategic framework for planning and land use decisions. Council’s Local Provisions Schedule, the local component of the planning scheme that sets zoning and development standards for individual properties, must be consistent with, and informed by, the STRLUS. Any proposal to change the zone or code applying to a property through a planning scheme amendment must now consider how that change aligns with the relevant regional strategies set out in the STRLUS. For anyone preparing a rezoning or planning scheme amendment application in the Huon Valley, the regional strategy is now a reference point that sits above council’s own scheme, covering the wider Southern Tasmania region rather than the municipality alone.

The numbers

The STRLUS 2026 supersedes a strategy that had been in force for the Southern Tasmania region since its original declaration in October 2011, under the STRLUS 2010-2035. Council says the Local Provisions Schedule must be consistent with the new regional document going forward, and that planning scheme amendment proposals must be checked against it rather than the superseded 2010-2035 version.

What’s next

Huon Valley Council is directing landowners and applicants to the Planning in Tasmania website, which hosts the declared STRLUS, its supporting documents and the Tasmanian Regional Planning Mapping system. Council says that document set, not the superseded 2010-2035 strategy, is now the reference for how proposed zone or code changes align with the region’s strategic planning direction. Anyone assessing a rezoning or planning scheme amendment in the Huon Valley is being pointed to that mapping system as the current record.

The update lands as land supply remains a live issue across the state: HIA’s Locked Out report this month found Tasmania built 2,456 homes against a 5,022-home target, pointing to a shortage of serviced, zoned lots. A regional strategy that now governs how zone and code changes are assessed across southern Tasmania, including the Huon Valley, is a factor in how quickly that pipeline of zoned land can move.