What we do

We focus on the early stages of development for small to mid‑scale residential and mixed‑use projects in Sydney and surrounding areas. Our work sits at the intersection of planning rules, design constraints and basic feasibility, with a clear aim: to give developers and builders a realistic picture of what is possible before they commit serious time and money.
Our core services are early‑stage development feasibility and planning strategy, DA/CDC approvals and planning reports, and pre‑design planning briefs and envelopes. Each service is deliberately narrow and designed to be deliverable to a consistent standard, rather than claiming to do everything.

Our background

The practice is home for consultants with:

• Experience in architecture, working on the design and documentation of buildings and understanding how built form, structure and detailing work in practice
• Years working in for smaller developers and owner‑developers, providing early advice on what could be built, likely yield and basic viability with a feasibility focus

We bring skills in:

• Planning and design decision‑making – understanding how planning decisions are made and how design choices influence assessment outcomes
• Urban design – reading and shaping built form, character, scale and the relationship between buildings and their surroundings
• Property development and planning process – knowing how projects move from concept to approval and delivery, and where planning risk sits in that sequence
• Urban economics and infrastructure – an appreciation of how viability, infrastructure and timing influence whether a project is worth pursuing
• Planning and environmental law in Australia – familiarity with the NSW planning framework, including LEPs, DCPs, SEPPs and assessment requirements
• Environmental and social impact assessment – structured ways to identify, describe and mitigate key impacts
• Sustainable urban development – aligning proposals with policy directions on sustainability and resilience
• Local and structure planning, and urban redevelopment – understanding how individual projects fit into broader strategic plans and renewal areas
• Development negotiation and community engagement – tools for working with councils, neighbours and stakeholders in a structured way
• Urban analytics and GIS – using spatial data and mapping to analyse sites, context and opportunities more rigorously than by “feel” alone

These skills are supported by ongoing professional development in urban planning and related fields, and by continuous project experience in the Sydney and NSW context.

How this helps our clients

We are not trying to be a generalist “everything” planning firm. Instead, we aim to do a small set of things well:

• Planning advice linked to feasibility – recommendations based not only on policy wording, but on whether a proposal is likely to be buildable and financially rational at the scales clients actually work at.
• Design‑literate planning input – the ability to read and critique plans, sections and massing means planning issues can be identified and adjusted earlier, reducing redesign and wasted consultant time.
• Plain‑language guidance – reports and advice directed at developers, builders and serious owner‑developers as well as councils, with clear go/no‑go calls and concrete “what next” steps.

We stay within the areas where we can add genuine value, and say so directly when a project sits outside that scope.

Scope and boundaries

To keep expectations realistic, we define clear boundaries:

• Typical projects
  Infill housing, duplexes and townhouses, small apartment buildings, and small–mid mixed‑use developments
• Geographic focus
  Sydney and nearby areas operating under the NSW planning system
• Work we do not currently offer as a core service
  Major EIS projects, large infrastructure approvals, complex social impact assessments and strategic planning for councils

If a project falls outside these boundaries, we will say so and, where possible, suggest more suitable types of firms.