Council Passes Residential Strategy

Local politics is ugly when you watch how the sausages get made. Byron Council finally landed the contentious legislature, the Residential Land Strategy 2041. It was supposed to be delivered in 2016 but is only eight years late. The state government threatened to take their planning controls away, giving them the incentive to deliver.

The result is fairly safe and predictable. It will not deliver much of the ‘missing middle’ that the shire desperately needs: medium-density units and townhouses that will, in time, be more accessible and affordable. Most of it will be greenfield residential lots, which are safe and easy. The council does not have consent controls over developers to deliver the necessary housing mix.

We will get more housing in South Bangalow, Mullumbimby, and Brunswick Heads sometime. Only the one on Saddle Road, Brunswick Heads, has the possibility of delivering more interesting diversity. It also has a good developer team behind it (who brought us The Habitat). A late entry to get approval is the 1982 Coolamon Scenic Drive, Mullumbimby, which also has the potential for something interesting.

Don’t hold your breath for those suffering in the housing crisis. It will be many years before these sites are shovel-ready. To those who say this will cause an oversupply, take a deep breath. Yes, we are under enormous pressure because this is a desirable place to live, but we have had decades of minimal growth because of our anti-development ethos. This has come at a cost.