Excavation services Central Coast: what to check before you book

Sort out approval before anyone brings a machine

Central Coast Council says its development application assessments have averaged 88 days over the last 12 months, so a job that needs a full application should be planned around that wait.

Some work can take a quicker route. Council lists below-ground swimming pools as an example of complying development, and says either a private principal certifier or Council can grant the certificate. If you are unsure which pathway your job sits in, ask before you book, because the answer decides how long you wait.

A new development also needs a Resource and Waste Management Plan. Council's site waste chapter says it must be submitted and approved as part of the application. When you talk to a contractor, have a rough idea of what is coming out of the ground and where it needs to go.

Depth and boundary limits in the planning rules

For house blocks, Council's dwelling house chapter caps excavation depth, measured from existing ground level, at 1m where the dig is less than 1m from any boundary, and at 3m where it is more than 1m from a boundary. A deep cut hard against a fence line is where that limit bites.

The same chapter limits fill used to erect a dwelling to 1m above existing ground level. Levelling a sloping block by cutting and filling therefore has a ceiling at both ends of the job.

Terrigal village centre has its own rule. Council's chapter for the centre says excavated floor space should only go ahead where it can be shown that the dig would have no adverse flood impacts on the site or nearby.

Drainage easements, unstable ground and heritage areas

If a drainage easement crosses your block, find it on your title before planning any digging. Council's floodplain chapter says no excavation is permitted within 2 metres of any drainage easement unless the Director City Services has granted approval.

The same chapter deals with footings near a Council stormwater pipe. Piers along the easement boundary need a minimum depth equal to the level of the invert of the stormwater pipe or culvert, so a shallow slab-style footing may not be enough there.

Slope and soil also matter. Council's geotechnical chapter says that where a lot has a Hazard Category of 2 or above, the application must be supported by a geotechnical report. Where the category is 4, it asks for a comprehensive geotechnical report.

If your house is in a heritage conservation area, expect neighbours to hear about it. Council's notification policy lists development within a heritage conservation area with a 14 day notification period.

Road reserve work and telling the neighbours

Digging does not stop at your front boundary. Council describes the vehicle access crossing as the part of the driveway that crosses the nature strip from the road pavement to the property boundary, and says approval is needed to build a new one or alter an existing one.

Council also requires a Road Opening Permit for road opening works, and its examples include water tapping, stormwater connections and sewer connections. Potholing to locate underground utilities and geotechnical test bores are on the same list, so even investigation work can need a permit.

For complying development, the NSW Planning Portal says you must notify neighbours within 20 metres of the boundary of the development lot before any work starts. A short message to the people next door is a sensible habit for any dig, whatever the approval pathway.

When you send an enquiry, mention the suburb, how close the dig is to boundaries and any easement on the title. Also say whether you know the slope hazard category, and whether the work touches the road verge. That gives whoever picks it up the facts to respond properly.