Council is pleased to have adopted its Public Open Space Contributions Policy at the 14 December Council Meeting. Thank you to all community members who provided feedback on the Draft Policy.


The feedback period has now closed

Property owners and developers in Murrindindi Shire, wishing to subdivide land, are required to make an important contribution to support and enhance the lives of community members and visitors, either by allocating monies, land or both toward creating and enhancing public open spaces.

The Subdivision Act 1988 (SA 1988), specifies when Public Open Space Contributions (POS) are applied, and how these funds are managed in accordance with the Act. To assist us in meeting our statutory obligations, Council has recently formalised its draft Public Open Space Contributions Policy to provide guidance on how monetary funds or land contributions are received and managed.

  • The draft Policy aims to provide Council with a framework for managing the collection and allocation of Public Open Space Contributions in a transparent, equitable and accountable way
  • provide guidance to Council for determining how Public Open Space contributions are received, that is, in the form of a monetary or land contribution
  • ensure the provision of Public Open Spaces which contribute to enhancing the lives of community and visitors within Murrindindi Shire


The POS Contributions Policy outlines the percentage of contribution required for land subdivision, establishes guidance for Council, outlines responsibilities for reporting and monitoring of POS contributions and highlights related policies and strategies.

The establishment of a POS Contributions Policy will improve transparency and ensure that land contributions are located in appropriate areas. POS contributions collected by a Council are typically used to make improvements to the existing open space network.

This Policy provides an opportunity for the community to learn more about the requirements of POS Contributions and to provide feedback on the draft Policy. In particular, we’re interested in your feedback onthe percentage contributions for different zones and where you would like to see monetary contributions allocated across the Shire. Your feedback will be considered by Council prior to finalising and adopting the Policy.

How to get involved

Council is now inviting feedback. You can respond in the following ways:

Draft Policy Feedback Form

Frequently Asked Questions

All feedback will be considered by Council and will help us to finalise the Public Open Space Contributions Policy, ready for adoption at the December 2022 Scheduled Meeting of Council. The policy will provide firm guidance for developers and planners within Murrindindi Shire townships. Once the policy is adopted by Council it will be included in the Murrindindi Planning Scheme, with the percentages of contribution clearly articulated. The policy provides clear guidance on how money can be spent and how land acquired through subdivision is used.

As defined within the Subdivision Act 1988, public open space means, land set aside in a plan or land in a plan zoned or reserved under the planning scheme –

  • for public recreation or public resort; or
  • as parklands; or
  • for similar purposes.

The Subdivision Act 1988 provides the legal framework for the subdivision and consolidation of land, easements and restrictions, common property, and creation of owners corporations. The Act specifies when Public Open Space (POS) Contributions are applied, and how these funds are managed. Council has a statutory obligation to ensure that POS contributions are used to improve or create public open spaces.

Any funds that Council collects, as a result of payment for a subdivision to achieve Statement of Compliance (SoC), must be deposited within the POS account allocated by Council’s Finance Unit. The township where the subdivision occurred must be recorded against the contribution collected.

Money received from the sale of existing public open space land by Council must be allocated toward improving or creating public open spaces within the same township. However, where a regional benefit can be demonstrated funds may be spent on a shire-wide project.

We now have a draft to present to the community and are looking for your feedback. There are several ways you can participate, including: