Ballina Council have removed any doubt that the development of housing on land it owns in Wollongbar is for the benefit of ‘key workers’.
In April 2022 Council resolved to sell 18 of the 30 lots it owned in the Wollongbar Urban Expansion Area, and further explore the feasibility of developing and retaining for leasing all or part of the 12 remaining lots ‘for the purposes of providing affordable housing for essential workers in accordance with State Environmental Planning Policy (Affordable Rental Housing) 2021’. This led to the commissioning of a feasibility study and an expression of interest process with prospective tenders who could design and construct the housing, with the Council maintaining ownership.
When councillors were asked to approve the signing of a contract with the selected tenderer, The Kollective, and proceed with the first stage of the construction of the rental housing a last minute notice of motion (NoM) saw the removal of ‘key workers’ as a description of the project.
‘Council’s decision to remove all reference to “key workers” from the housing development amounts to a betrayal of essential workers and small businesses who are suffering because of the housing crisis,’ said Greens Councillor, Kiri Dicker.
Financial forecasts presented to Councillors in the February Commercial Services Committee estimated that Stage 1 of the project could earn Council $11,118,000 in rental income over a 20-year period.
According to Ms Dicker references to the State Environmental Planning Policy (Affordable Rental Housing) had disappeared from the recommendation and during the debate Mayor Cadwallader asserted that this project would not be social or affordable housing and would in fact be rented to the public at market rate.
‘For the past two years Council has worked towards the provision of affordable housing for essential workers in Wollongbar, to watch Councillors change the goalposts at the last minute was completely heartbreaking,’ said Ms Dicker.
‘For the past two years, Council has worked towards the provision of affordable housing for essential workers in Wollongbar, to watch Councillors change the goalposts at the last minute was completely heartbreaking.’
Council’s shouldn’t be providing housing to any section of the community. Parks, rubbish and roads, that is a Council’s remit
Where does it say that?
The expectations of the majority of voters?
In that case , Jimie , let’s hope the majority of voters won’t mind if they find the region short of essential workers like ambos, nurses , firies b/c they can’t find anywhere affordable to live and leave the district. Hope they won’t be complaining if they have to wait for ages for an ambulance to come from a long way away or their house burns down b/c the Fire Brigade takes too long to get there . You know the old proverb “You reap what you sow.”
What do you expect from these neoliberal “ independents” on council?
I’m not familiar with Ballina Councillors affilliations, which ones are
“neo-libs” as it sounds like unfettered capaitalism, they used social housing to get this far then turned it into a “market forces” outcome?… like anyone they should be judged on actions and outcomes, and punished or rewarded by the voters accordingly.
It really the way it was done . In the old days we would call that ‘an act of bad faith’ . Very damaging to working as a group. Smacks of the old groups within groups, divisive politics. The community loses out.