The property industry is worried the new planning system won’t deliver the quantity of new housing required. Photo: Ian Bushnell.
Housing and Suburban Development Minister Yvette Berry has called on the property industry to work with the government to meet its housing targets, but one developer has given short shrift to its policies, calling the new planning system a lemon, developer licensing a disaster and slamming approval delays.
Ms Berry told industry members at the Property Council’s ACT Residential and Planning Outlook event that the government was doing much to boost housing supply, but it simply could not do it alone.
“That’s why we need to work with you, the Property Council, and anybody else who has skin in the game in addressing this housing crisis,” she said.
“Work with us in addressing this housing crisis and meet the needs of our growing population and make the most of the opportunities that this momentum we have before us presents in building a more sustainable, more livable and more connected Canberra.
“Together, we’re going to have to build 100,000 homes by 2050. I think we can do it.”
But panel member Rob Speight, senior development manager at Evri Group, poured cold water on the capacity of the new planning system and the bureaucracy to deliver 4000 new homes a year.
“We all had great visions for collaboration,” he said, “but I think we’ve been sold a lemon.”
Mr Speight feared that the new outcomes-based planning system would not shape up for what it was meant to be.
“This legislation needs exceedingly bright and motivated minds inside the directorate to make this thing happen and it needs those people to pull the city along in its wake to get us there,” he said.
“The experience I’m having is that we’re not getting that kind of custodianship out of our planning authority.”
Mr Speight said developers knew where they stood with the old rules-based system, but now they didn’t.
“It’s very confusing,” he said.
Mr Speight said that delivering the government’s target of 4000 homes a year meant 80 approvals a week, something he could not see happening with the current planning bureaucracy, approval times and level of red tape land release.
He called legislation for licensing developers a disaster that would increase risk, impact the ability to finance projects and lead to big developers dominating the industry.
“I am not worried about the quality mandate. I am worried about the financing aspect,” he said.
Mr Speight said some developers had incredibly deep pockets, but others needed to get finance from preferred lenders.
“We’re asking for duopolies,” he said. “I think it’s going to be really hard for anyone to get into this space once the door’s closed.”
Deputy Under Treasurer and Coordinator General for Housing Stephen Miners, also on the panel, urged the industry to keep talking with the government, saying the legislation would evolve.
He also defended the government limit of 120 square metres for dual occupancy developments in RZ1 areas, saying it offered the biggest land release in Canberra’s history and keeping these new homes to such a size would ensure that they would be affordable.
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