New Communities

Our Urban Design team has experience preparing concept masterplans for greenfield, brownfield and infill new community developments.

We specialise in smaller-scale subdivisions, high-level strategies, and frameworks for townships and activity centres. We regularly work with professional project teams and understand the importance of effective and timely communication.

We understand the practical challenges of meeting civil engineering and road network requirements. Our team listens to our clients, identifies challenges and opportunities for each setting and applies our extensive multidisciplinary experience in designing sustainable master-planned communities.

Through our innovative design solutions, we respond not only to our client’s requirements but also to the changing needs of an emerging communities and markets. Our layouts balance the need to maximise yield with the necessity of delivering high-quality planning and design outcomes.

We undertake a range of public realm analysis and design exercises.

Our team adopt a people and place approach that ensures streets and public spaces are accessible, safe and attractive for all.

We are highly aware of the interactions between movement and place and frequently collaborate with our Transport team on streetscape studies that consider a full range of users and transport modes.

Transport design requires big picture thinking and an eye for detail like no other. Our team of transport designers and traffic specialists bring a vast amount of knowledge, experience and highly regarded design abilities to your project’s transport needs.

We offer a full suite of transport design services, creating innovative and refined designs for everything from car parks to road network plans, swept paths, traffic signal plans and road safety audits.

We take the time to understand your requirements and apply progressive thinking to ensure we design a holistic and economical transport solution.

We prepare urban design statements to accompany a range of planning applications.

An urban design statement can assist to represent a site, its context and design influences, set out the design rationale for the project and discuss its merits with visual support.

This also allows for design issues to be anticipated at outset of the planning approval process.

Built form modelling can test the capacity of the site and potential impacts, and demonstrate the effect of a proposal as part of an urban design statement or expert evidence report.

We use a range of 3D techniques to explore the form of buildings on a site and to place them within a built form context.

We use our extensive experience to navigate increasingly complex regulatory environments, ensuring that you have a permit in your hand as early as possible.

Our town planning team are experts at approval strategies for all types of projects. With a deep understanding of the planning process, we know where to push boundaries and where there are risks. We can provide clear advice on the prospects of permit success.

We regularly obtain planning permits for every type of project. We've helped gain planning approval for everything from childcare centres to educational facility masterplans, gaming and licensed venues to residential and commercial projects.

We're here to help bring projects to life, even if that means guiding you through the often-lengthy planning scheme amendment process.

Ratio has extensive experience with changing property zones and adjusting development controls for projects constrained by the existing planning scheme.

With our network of connections across local and state government, we're here to ensure that everyone works together for the good of your project.

We identify planning issues early and advise on the best way forward.

Ratio's due diligence assessments combine our planners' comprehensive understanding of planning controls with the project's commercial viability.

As an essential first step in any project, a Ratio due diligence assessment provides a clear vision of the opportunities and risks of any potential site.

Expert witnesses and panel representation can be critical in achieving permit success. That's why engaging Ratio can make a huge difference to your project.

Honed by hours under cross examination, our expert witness planners and urban designers regularly provide trusted and convincing advice across a range of specialties.

We are talented advocates, able to put your case forward strongly and persuasively for Civil and Administrative Tribunal appeals, mediations, planning panels and consumer affairs.

Our extensive expert witness and advocate experience means that we can provide reliable and informed advice, guiding your project's success.

We are valued for the intelligence of our people, the ingenuity of our approach, and the years of knowledge embedded in our organisation.

Our comprehensive transport impact assessments provide a detailed document that addresses all relevant statutory and policy requirements.

We start with your requirements and work with you to develop a clear strategy for your planning application. We support you throughout the permit process and assist with any post-submission issues.

Every site is unique, and so is every Ratio transport impact assessment. From collecting relevant parking and traffic data to providing meaningful analysis and sound technical advice, we work across every sector to deliver an assessment tailored to your project.

We understand the importance of independent and trusted expert witness testimony. That’s why we’re so proud of our large team of respected, reliable and evidence-based transport experts who regularly appear at Civil and Administrative Tribunals, Planning Panels and in Supreme Court matters.

We offer representation across sectors, from small scale transport, planning and environmental matters to large strategic and major infrastructure projects.

Ratio’s transport team bring a vast amount of specialist knowledge and hands-on experience to your car parking project.

We’re industry leaders in designing parking precinct plans, parking layouts and mechanical car stackers, lift and hoist parking systems.

We’re proud of our innovative car park designs, and trusted partners in shaping car parks for all types of developments.

We are proud to be part of projects that shape cities, neighbourhoods and places for people. Ratio recognises that streets perform multiple functions as both transport links and destinations in their own right.

Our interdisciplinary services across urban design, planning and transport have a unique ability to consider all aspects of movement and place assessments. Ratio’s movement and place team collaborate with government and community stakeholders to enhance the safety, accessibility and enjoyment of activity centres.

We create sustainable and comprehensive solutions to complex urban challenges.

Long-term strategic document identifying an organisation’s Circular Economy vision, future-facing targets and means to achieve across the business (1-2 weeks).

A detailed plan of the project site guides landscape management and informs project scale for stakeholders.