St. Thomas 

The St. Thomas Municipal Corporation (STMC) is the local planning authority for the parish of St. Thomas and responsible of overseeing all development within this area..

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Process Overview

Discover the application process and what steps will be taken secure Planning Approval in St. Thomas.

Secure Planning St. Thomas description

The Local Planning Authorities are those entities at the local government level, which are responsible for ensuring that development within the parish occurs in an efficient, orderly and sustainable manner. They include the fourteen (14) Municipal Corporations (MCs) which include the thirteen (13) Parish MCs and the Portmore MC.  In keeping with the Town & Country Planning Act, all applications for Planning Approvals must be submitted to and approved by these Municipal Corporations (MCs) before any work or construction can commence.  While applications may be referred to Town & Country Planning Authority (TCPA) for a decision or to the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) for recommendations: the approving entities are: i) the TCPA and ii) the MCs.

Planning Applications are concerned with ensuring that the public health, safety and the environment are not threatened in any way.   The types of Planning Applications usually submitted are:
•    Detailed planning (Included with Application for Building Approval)
•    Outline planning
•    Change of Use 
•    Retention of Structure
•    Continuance of use
•    Determination

It should be noted that, the planning approval process is a consultative one. The assessment of planning and development applications starts at the Municipal Corporations, and from there applications are sent on to the National Environment Planning Agency (NEPA) for review and comments, along with several other reviewing agencies, including the National Works Agency, the Water Resources Authority and the Ministry of Health.

See the business process guidelines below for more information about how to “Secure Planning Approval”