Home Property Australia Brisbane moves to cut car space minimum

Brisbane moves to cut car space minimum

  • May 22, 2024
  • by Property Australia
Property Council Queensland Executive Director Jess Caire and Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner

The Brisbane City Council will introduce a new Inner-City Affordability Initiative to improve housing affordability and supply in fast-growing areas.

The new initiative will make new homes in well-connected areas of inner-city suburbs more affordable by removing mandatory minimum car parking requirements. The Council said this move could slash $100,000 off the cost of building an apartment, per parking space. 

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said with single adult homes now making up one in three Brisbane households, we urgently need more homes, but not as many expensive car parking spaces.

“By removing mandatory minimum car parking requirements under our Inner-City Affordability Initiative we can put downward pressure on the price of building and buying a new apartment in those areas of Brisbane with great access to high-frequency public transport.

“It will mean more people will be able to afford to live in areas close to transport and key employment centres, like the CBD.

“Our approach preserves Brisbane’s low-density suburbs and helps prevent urban sprawl, which contributes to congestion and causes significant transport and environmental costs.

“We want to help create more well-connected communities where multiple cars per household are not necessary to get around.”

Under the current minimum car park standards required outside the CBD, high-density developments need one space per one bedroom dwelling, two spaces per two bedroom and three bedroom dwellings, 2.5 spaces for four bedrooms and above dwellings and 0.25 visitor parks per dwelling.

The Property Council’s Queensland Executive Director Jess Caire said the announcement, which followed alarming research highlight the dire state of Brisbane’s apartment pipeline, will see Council remove mandatory car parking requirements in designated inner-city zones including parts of Fortitude Valley, Kangaroo Point, Milton and Newstead.

“Delivering an apartment building has never been harder or more expensive, the Property Council welcomes today’s announcement that will help boost much needed supply in our rapidly growing global city,” Ms Caire said.

“This initiative for well-located sites that are easily accessible by public transport and close to amenities will attract the investment needed to deliver new homes.

“It is great to see Brisbane City Council listening to industry on ways to overcome some of the barriers to the delivery of new homes in our city.

“As seen in our ‘On the edge’ report into Brisbane’s apartment supply pipeline, skyrocketing construction costs are pushing Brisbane’s apartment supply to the edge – this much needed cost relief will go a long way to boosting supply in Brisbane,” she said.