On 1 September, NSW planning laws changed. Under the new statewide Community Participation Plan, certain lower-impact developments that meet height and floor-space limits no longer require public exhibition.
It doesn’t apply to every development, but gone are the days of always being actively informed of developments taking shape around your home. Thankfully Lachlan Hannan and Edward Bateman have moved in fast to create the MyStreet App, giving residents an easy way to stay informed of what developments are proposed nearby.
What is the MyStreet App?
It’s a property app we’ve built to help people find out what developments are being proposed around their homes. You search your address, see nearby development applications on a map and set up alerts to keep on track of all updates.
What inspired you to create the MyStreet App?
We believe you shouldn’t need to understand the planning system just to know what’s happening in your own street. Most people aren’t spending their evenings checking council websites. We wanted to make staying informed something that fits into everyday life, rather than another job you have to remember to do.
How does the MyStreet App work?
You search your NSW address and explore nearby development applications on the map. Open an application to see the available details and its status, then set up monitoring around your property. MyStreet uses public NSW planning records and sends email updates when relevant activity changes, so you don’t have to keep checking everything yourself. The key for us in creating this is realising there’s a stark difference between information being publicly available and people actually seeing it. MyStreet App is not about being against development, it’s about being informed and allowing residents easy access to the information most relevant to them.
What have been the biggest challenges?
Balancing it with school. (Lachlan and Edward are in Year 11!) There’s always another thing to fix or improve, and getting the data and alerts working properly has taken a lot of testing. We’ve also learnt that building something and getting people to use it are two very different jobs. You can spend hours improving a feature, but you still have to get out there and explain why it matters.
And your biggest triumphs?
Turning an idea between two mates into something people can actually use. So, seeing it all come together has been really rewarding. And having a local publication take an interest has been exciting too. We’re still early on, but it makes all the work feel worthwhile.
How can Tawny readers benefit from your creation?
MyStreet gives residents peace of mind by helping them stay informed about developments that could affect their homes, property values, views or neighbourhoods. Instead of finding out about a development when construction starts, residents can discover proposals early, understand what’s planned and have their say while public consultation is open. It’s about giving homeowners access to information that could directly affect their biggest investment, without needing to spend hours searching council websites. The best part? It’s completely free to get started.
Head to mystreetapp.com to see developments around your home.
And follow @mystreet_app on Instagram for all updates