Wollongong City Council has been accused of putting the brakes on development, with Housing Trust chair David Campbell saying “engagement” on housing projects had been shut down in the first post-ICAC council.
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At a forum called by the not-for-profit housing organisation this week, the former MP and one-time Lord Mayor scolded the council for going too far in the other direction after the sex-for-development scandal that resulted in councillors’ sacking in 2008.
Presenting stark figures about the availability of affordable homes, Mr Campbell told current and prospective councillors that he was “unapologetic” about taking advantage of the approaching election to push the Housing Trust agenda.
“We do acknowledge that some work has been done, but … there needs to be energetic leadership around [this],” Mr Campbell said.
“I accept absolutely that there was a period of time where anything went and I know that ICAC found that – but what I’m saying is that after it, the pendulum went back the other way and needs to be pulled back.
“No one on the council engages with the industry, you can’t get a sit down to talk about what it is you actually need, so people spend a lot of money on preparing applications… and suddenly it sits there with no engagement.”
He said he was not advocating for the “open slather” that was highlighted by ICAC but said councillors needed to “find a way to improve the customer service for people who are trying to build houses”.
“Every time that someone has got a site that they’re trying to put some houses on and it sits there, the cost of the housing goes up,” he said.
At present, the Housing Trust wants to build a large block of affordable units on the former Dapto Public School site.
Their most recent proposal is for three-storeys of units – however Housing Trust CEO Michelle Adairs told the forum she would like to see “another couple of storeys” to allow for more low-cost homes.
The project, worth almost $50 million, is listed as “under assessment” by the council.
Council staff have highlighted issues with the building height, scale, variation to the development standards and the level of affordable housing, as well as the need for a rezoning proposal to make the building permissable.
Faced with Mr Campbell’s “unfair” criticisms, Wollongong Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery hit back, saying there were a wide range of planning regulations that the council was bound to consider when approving homes.
We’re a pack of bastards I know at times, but I am not going to go down the track of allowing development that is going to cause grief and subsequent suffering.
- Gordon Bradbery
“I do not want to see a tower with another group of people pointing at that tower, like they point at Bellambi, and saying that’s where those people live and this, that and the other,” he said.
“We’re a pack of bastards I know at times, but I am not going to go down the track of allowing development that is going to cause grief and subsequent suffering.”
He noted large developments that contravened the council’s planning rules risked putting “lives and property at risk”, especially due to stormwater run-off and flooding concerns.
“I hope David, you’ll take on board that this council – and hopefully I’ll be the leader of it – will endeavour to work together, but we had a lot of rubbish to pick up and a lot of work to do and we’re heading in the right direction,” Cr Bradbery said.
Labor councillor Ann Martin also took umbrage at the Housing Trust’s motivations in holding the forum, pointing out the efforts Wollongong councillors had made to improve the number of affordable homes.
She said the council had written to the NSW Government to ask that the city be included State Environmental Planning Policy on affordable housing, known as SEPP 70.
The policy allows certain councils – only in Sydney at present – to impose conditions requiring developers to include affordable housing within new housing projects.
Cr Martin said the state had not yet responded to the council’s request, and said she had a “real issue” with the Housing Trusts suggestion that Wollongong was not doing enough.
“This council unanimously supported us going down the pathway of us developing affordable housing in our city – I’m thinking to myself, other than sticking a rocket under the state government, we are actually doing a lot in our city,” she said.
“I’m very proud of this council and the work that councillors of all colours are done.”
Regarding Mr Campbell’s comments that the council was not accessible for developers, she said the onus was on the Housing Trust to make councillors aware of their issues, and not wait for an election to raise problems.