On and Off Maintenance approvals
Brisbane City Council is committed to ensuring our city has the services and infrastructure to meet the needs of future generations. As part of this commitment, Council is always working with residents and developers to provide assistance with and improve the various development processes.
‘On and off maintenance’ describes the process of complying with conditions of development approval that require developers to construct:
- infrastructure to be transferred to Council such as:
- roads
- stormwater infrastructure including stormwater treatment devices (bioretention basins)
- parks
- streetscape works, or
- environmental outcomes such as rehabilitation, which may be transferred to Council or remain in private ownership.
It is important to read all conditions of development approval before contacting Council, to determine what requirements apply.
Pre-start meeting
A request for a pre-start meeting is made by a developer before construction begins, if required by conditions of development approval.
Requests for pre-start meetings should be made via email depending on its purpose:
The site address and relevant development approval number (A00…) should be included in the subject line, as well as the number of the condition requiring a pre-start meeting.
For Engineering only: The email must include a completed copy of the Pre-Start Meeting Guidelines - Civil Engineering Works (PDF - 472kb).
If all necessary approvals are in place and all relevant conditions of development approval have been complied with, a Council officer will contact you within five business days to arrange a pre-start meeting.
At the meeting, the Council officer will identify any potential issues and confirm what other hold point inspections and approvals may be required before commencement of works and/or acceptance on-maintenance.
On-maintenance acceptance
A request for an on-maintenance inspection is made by a developer when works required by conditions of development approval have been constructed.
Requests for on-maintenance meetings should be made via email depending on its purpose:
The email subject line should include the site address, the relevant development approval number (A00…), and the number of the condition requiring an on-maintenance inspection.
Items required by the relevant condition should also be attached, including:
- as-constructed plans
- certification
- proof of public liability insurance
- a list of proposed meeting attendees.
For further information on the process to achieve on-maintenance acceptance/approval and the documentation required to support this request, please refer to Section 7.2 of Council’s Infrastructure Installation & Construction Requirements Manual.
A Council officer will contact you within five business days to arrange an inspection of the works.
At the meeting Council officers will inspect the works to check that they comply with conditions of approval. If defects are identified you will be asked to rectify them and another inspection may be required, which will incur a reinspection fee.
When Council officers determine that works have been satisfactorily completed, you will be sent an invoice for payment of a maintenance bond if required by the conditions of development approval. Once the payment has been made, Council will issue a formal on-maintenance letter that starts the maintenance period.
Maintenance period
The maintenance period is specified in the conditions of development approval. It is usually 12 months but this may vary.
During the maintenance period the developer is responsible for:
- maintaining the works
- repairing any faults
- carrying public liability insurance if required.
Off Maintenance
A request for an off-maintenance inspection is made by a developer at the end of the maintenance period. Before making the request, the works must be checked to ensure that there are no outstanding defects.
Requests for off-maintenance meetings should be made via email depending on its purpose:
The site address, relevant development approval number (A00…), and number of the condition requiring an off-maintenance inspection should be included in the subject line.
The email should include as attachments:
- a copy of the on-maintenance letter
- a copy of the receipt for the maintenance bond.
A Council officer will contact you within five business days to arrange an inspection of the works.
If defects are identified at the inspection then you will be required to rectify these, and another inspection may be required which will incur a reinspection fee.
When Council officers determine that works are satisfactorily completed you will be sent a formal off-maintenance letter. The letter will confirm that the condition of development approval has been fulfilled and that the developer has no further responsibility.
If a maintenance bond has been held, this will now be released.
As-constructed drawings
For information on the as-constructed drawing requirements, please refer to Section 9.0 of Council’s Infrastructure Installation & Construction Requirements Manual.