‘The Tweed Shire Growth Management Housing Strategy (GMHS) Options Paper proposes a lot of significant changes across our Shire with many of the options put forward being controversial,’ Tweed Mayor, Chris Cherry told The Echo.
The NSW state government is pushing councils across NSW to significantly increase land release and facilitate infill housing to tackle the current housing crisis. However, as the NSW Regional Cities Mayor conference recently pointed out land banking by developers is a major issue and this is particularly apparent in the Tweed Shire.
There are currently approximately 19,500 lots already approved for development in the Tweed Shire but they are yet to be built despite the fact that there is a housing crisis.
‘We definitely do need affordable and social housing in the Tweed but it needs to occur in appropriate places,’ Councillor Dr Noala Firth told The Echo.
‘The GMHS paper refers to population projections that are double the NSW state population projections and it doesn’t include Kings Forest and other developments already coming online. As noted in this week’s Council reports (Item 18.1 Provision of Wastewater Services to West Pottsville and Dunloe Park), approximately 19,500 lots are already approved and appropriately zoned after community consultation. This land, which already has services available or already planned, will cater for something like 55,000 people over the next 20 to 30 years.’
Levers needed to ensure housing supply
A key problem for councils is that even if they approve significant development they have no leavers to force the developer into actually building the housing they have approved.
At the Regional Cities Mayor conference Tweed Mayor Cherry put forward a motion that called on NSW Minister for Housing and Homelessness Rose Jackson and CEO of the newly-formed Homes NSW, Rebecca Pinkstone to outline any levers that may be introduced to incentivise approved private residential development being brought to market.
A place you want to call home
‘We are in a housing crisis so it is very important that we ensure sufficient land is released to allow for that crisis to ease and our Shire to grow. At the same time, we want to protect where we live and make sure the Tweed grows in a way we are proud of, in a way that ensures it is still a great place to live and in a way that keeps our community safe in our climate change fuelled future,’ said Cr Cherry.
President of Kingscliff Residents and Ratepayers Association (KRPA) Peter Newton agreed saying it is vital to ensure that the shire and its towns retain their character, amenity and livability into the future.
‘Since the paper has been on public exhibition, we (KRPA) have had a number of interactions with council on the options proposed. From the association’s perspective, despite the ongoing dialogue, there remain strong concerns in a number of areas,’ told The Echo.
‘It is difficult to understand why our community has to revisit the key fundamentals that frame our character, amenity and livability, enshrined in our Shire’s key planning frameworks, and as shaped by significant community consultation and input. This includes the Tweed Regional City Action plan, The North Coast Regional Plan and Kingscliff Locality Plan.
‘These key documents are referenced as background to framing the options, but they seem to be ignored or at least misunderstood in many of the options proposed. A key example is the incorrect inclusion of Kingscliff residential development in the Tweed Regional City Action Plan (TRCAP), meaning a number of options for Kingscliff have been wrongly determined on this rationale. Many of the options in relation to changes to height and density are based on this incorrect inclusion and under the false and incorrect assumption that Kingscliff will be providing “hospital accommodation”.
‘We also remain concerned with the inclusion of State Significant Farmland as an urban development option, given that this clearly runs counter to all statutory protections and is also directly in conflict with a key planning intent (as is enshrined in the North Coast Regional Plan) in relation to areas that need protection from urban settlement, particularly keeping urban growth away from important farmland. This inclusion also does not take into account the clear position of Health Infrastructure in relation to the provision of hospital worker accommodation and that no further land will be required,’ Mr Newton explained.
From 9m to 28m height limit?
Residents of Tweed Heads at Quayside Court, Navigators Way & Clipper Court have raised concerns over the proposed height limit being raised to 28m from the current 9m that allows three storeys.
‘In our cul de sacs this would mean three times the cars, rubbish, sewerage, conflict, noise, loss of light, wind tunnel creation. Also the car spaces would have to be on ground level because of the underground water problem. And sewage lines definitely would have to be changed,’ said one local.
‘Endangered curlew live in this neighborhood, butcher birds which sing beautifully, railles, ducks, swans – the trees would have to be cut down to accommodate these impractical land grabs. The planner appears to be rather ignorant about what people want and why current residents bought here in the first place.’
President of the Tweed Ratepayers Association Lindy Smith said that, ‘It is unfortunate the Tweed GMHS – draft Options Paper is mired in much controversy. The huge discrepancy of the government and Tweed Shire Council (9/8/22) growth figures being more than doubled in the GMHS is a mystery. There is little acknowledgment that we already have approved zoned land to accommodate the projected growth. Provisions already exist within existing urban areas for multiple occupancy development in urban centers to facilitate growth, with huge swathes of these areas yet to be redeveloped.’
‘Controversial development applications refused due to significant issues have now been popped into the GMHS including the industrial development (so-called food hub) proposed at Cudgera Creek, included as Change 44. This is proposed to now be a much greater area for industrial development claimed to be Pottsville and is included in the current North Coast Regional Plan (NCRP) and Tweed Urban and Employment Land Release Strategy (TUELRS) which is false. The site is in fact the rural hamlet Cudgera Creek and is not included in the current NCRP and TUELRS. The so-called caravan park site at Pottsville, also refused due to significant constraints/issues has been included, along with several other areas proposed regardless of significant environmental constraints.’
From wetlands to industrial?
Ms Smith also flagged that the Crown Reserve at Tweed Heads West (Change 7) is included to be part of the airport precinct for industrial development.
‘This Reserve is the last remaining flood plain for the Tweed Heads urban area and carries massive volumes of flood waters. Filling the site for such development will significantly exacerbate flood impacts to the residential area, Kennedy Drive (major arterial road), airport operations (closed for its longest period 2022) and the National Highway M1 tunnel came close to flooding,’ explained M s Smith.
‘There is no reference that the site is within the first one km from the end of the runway subject to designated public safety area restricting concentration of people. It also makes no reference to its environmental significance of wetlands, numerous threatened species/habitat including critically endangered species and several endangered ecological communities. The Reserve is in fact subject to previous approval conditions for the airport site under the Federal EPBC Act and Airports Act with a statutory Plan of Management under all 3 levels of government to manage the vegetation, protect the migratory wader habitat and compensatory planting program.’
Affordable housing needed
Mayor Cherry urged people to take a look at the areas where they live and tell the council if they support the proposed change or not.
‘It is incredibly important that people take the time to look at the specific changes being proposed in the interactive maps. I know the document is very big and a bit unwieldy but you can easily just look at the changes highlighted for your area and tell us if you support them or want us to scrap them,’ she said.
Cr Firth also highlighted the need to protect the environmental assets of the region.
‘We have in the Tweed a special responsibility to look after our internationally recognised environment with its already many threatened species. Already zoned and designated areas, especially treed areas and wildlife corridors need to be respected. Loss of habitat is one of the top reasons for biodiversity loss and in the Tweed we have worked hard to keep our rural character and protect our special environment,’ shse told The Echo.
‘An additional concern is land banking. Until the state government stops allowing land banking, even if some of these areas were opened up, there’s no guarantee that they would be developed. There also needs to be a way to guarantee that a substantial proportion of the houses would in fact be affordable or be social housing rather than higher priced ones or holiday rentals.
‘This strategy will be hugely influential in shaping the future of our shire. I cannot emphasise enough how important it is that residents look at the options in detail and give feedback on the 83 specific place-based changes suggested. Please send in your submissions now because the exhibition period closes this Friday, March 22.
‘The options document (see especially the Appendix) includes secondary dwellings and greenfield, whole areas of native trees or large pockets of trees, rural and State Significant farmland and significant expansion of our villages e.g Talgyum, Crabbes Creek, and Pottsville. The Pottsville expansion also includes employment zoning.’
Listen to our feedback
Mr Newton has called on council staff, the state government and councillors to look carefully and incorporate the feedback from the people who live in Tweed Shire about how they want their future towns and rural areas to be treated.
‘The North Coast Regional Plan is a key planning document for the entire shire, with very direct statements on urban settlement guidelines. These guidelines are clear in “safeguarding” the sensitive coastal strip and other environmental assets of the shire as well as directing growth away from important farmland. We believe that the proposed options fail to take the settlement guidelines into account.
‘The options paper itself does not appear to reflect the community voice as was provided in the many forums held in the lead up to developing the options.,Again, many of the options presented run counter to what is enshrined in our planning frameworks and as was reinforced during the earlier community forums.
‘In this regard, we would expect and hope that the draft strategy to be developed from this consultation will clearly reflect the intent regarding the directives from our Shire’s key planning documents,’ he concluded.
What is needed is the type of approval that must be renewed after a specific time if its not been actioned, say , 4 years. The owner would have to pay a fee for re-approval and a new state land valuation could be made for rating purposes. There is a sunset clause presently on the engineering works approvals after a few years where new regulations and design works must be re-approved. Most land owners love to have their land upzoned if it didn’t cost them much to attain or to hold. Why not, when values go up in multiples and rates are kept comparatively low to hold.
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All growth destroys environments
According to climatecouncil.org.au Richmond electorate is one of the 5 most at risk for riverine flooding by 2030 and 1 in 7 properties will become uninsurable. High risk for riverine flooding and bush fires. Why would you build more homes. Your area can be checked with the clumate risk map.
125,000 immigrants in January alone. We could be looking at 1.5million this year, which would be 3 times last year.
We need elections September can’t come soon enough to elect councils that will stand up to state and federal government’s and demand an end to the madness and look after their constituents that elected them only small and well thought out housing in unused land that’s flood free should be considered for housing