At its February 23 meeting, councillors passed a motion to add a number of new development controls to its Preliminary Draft Byron Shire Residential Strategy.
It had full councillor support, except from Cr Cate Coorey, and they have asked staff to include the following in the preliminary draft residential strategy:
i) Model controls that require affordable housing to be included in developments i.e. a bonus provision requirement to deliver a percentage of affordable housing in a development;
ii) Development controls and reduced contributions or other incentives that may boost construction of secondary dwellings as affordable housing but ensuring regulatory controls are consistent with the provision of affordable housing.;
iii) Promoting new caravan parks and manufactured home estates on unconstrained land in existing settlements and new land release areas in urban growth areas;
iv) Provide for greater mixed-use zones to enable a range of land uses including residential, commercial and industrial to be co-located in a way that support sustainable forms of transport such as public transport, walking, cycling and increased neighbourhood amenity. Such zones to incorporate a mix of housing types and affordability suitable to a diversity of needs.
A report into establishing a citizen jury will also be investigated.
Do these points finally establish just what an “affordable house” is when these points include cavavan parks and manufactured homes? An affordable house would be a “secondary building” i.e., a caravan or a mobile home. In other words something that is “affordable”.
The word “secondary” means a step down from the main or the first and that means a “secondary building” would not be a usual house or home but something less in quality to normal housing thate developers build.
At last we are getting honest. The poor are always with us. And the poor are us.