The application is in. Council assesses it, sometimes asks a question, and issues a decision. Here's what I do while we wait.
How long does a DA take in Brisbane? Each project is different, and the honest answer is that council assessment takes as long as it takes. I'll tell you what's realistic for yours when we lodge, and I'll keep you posted while it's in there.
The part that catches people is the quiet. Then an email arrives with a reference number, a set of clause numbers and no plain English, and you can't tell whether this is routine. It almost always is. A request for information is council asking a question mid-assessment, usually because something wasn't explained clearly enough.
It isn't a refusal, and it isn't a sign they dislike the design. It's council telling us which argument hasn't been made yet — and that part is mine, not yours.
A request for information isn't a rejection. It's council telling us which argument we haven't made yet.
While council has the application I answer any request for information, manage the correspondence, and read the decision notice and every condition on it when it arrives — including the ones with money attached.
Someone to interpret the quiet. This is the stage where it's easiest to lose confidence, not because anything is wrong but because nothing visible is happening — so I'll contact you through it even when the news is that there's no news.
You can manage the assessment yourself, and plenty of straightforward applications get through that way. What you'd be carrying is the interpretation — reading a request for information for what it actually asks, and understanding what each condition will mean later.
I'll tell you what's realistic for your project, and then I'll keep you in the loop while council has it — including when there's nothing to report, which is exactly when people stop hearing from their architect. If a request for information comes, I answer it, and answering it well rather than defensively is usually what turns a hard assessment into conditions you can live with. When the decision notice arrives I'll read every condition with you, because some carry cost consequences that are far easier to plan for now than to meet during construction.
Each project is different, and I'll give you a realistic expectation for yours at lodgement. The process runs to set periods under Queensland's development assessment rules, but the elapsed time depends on what happens inside them — whether a request for information is issued, and how quickly it's answered. An impact-assessable application that goes to public notification takes longer again.
A formal request for more information during assessment, and it's common enough to be part of the process rather than a setback. The assessment clock stops while it sits with us and starts again when we respond, so a slow response makes for a slow approval. I'd rather answer properly and promptly than either concede everything or argue back.
Read the decision notice with whoever prepared the application. It sets out the reasons for refusal, and it's worth acting on promptly. In Queensland you can make representations to council about a decision or its conditions and seek a negotiated decision notice. If you're considering going further, get proper advice from a planning solicitor. Very often the best route is a modified application that answers the stated reasons directly.
Your decision notice states the relevant period, and I'll flag that date for you when it arrives, because approvals do lapse if the development hasn't substantially started within it. You can apply to extend, but it has to be done before the approval lapses. If there's any chance your project will stall, tell me early.
Almost everything that determines the elapsed time is decided before lodgement. An application that's genuinely decision-ready, includes the reports your overlays require, and answers the obvious questions before they're asked, moves faster because there's less reason to issue a request for information. Where a project qualifies, RiskSMART is the real lever.
If you would rather start small, the First Sketch Session is two hours at your place. You keep the sketches, and there is no obligation afterwards.
