Former NSW premier Bob Carr said the Great Australian Dream has been surpassed by a new reality, emphasising the need increased apartment living at the Property Council’s recent NSW Outlook event.
Speaking to industry leaders last week, he emphasaised the need to construct more apartments as a means of alleviating housing prices.
“It’s been overtaken by reality,” he said on the topic of the ‘Great Australian Dream’ “We’re past that point.
“The way we can bring down prices is to get more apartments on the market.”
Mr Carr said in places only 15-20 minutes away from the Sydney CBD, like Kingsford, there are single-storey developments along a major road artery and said many Mayors of local governments would find their own residents would find nothing objectionable about more tower development around major transport arteries.
Former NSW premier Dominic Perrottet advocated for higher-density development around transportation hubs, endorsing the construction of additional apartments to bolster housing supply.
“I’m very concerned that my children will never buy their own place in Sydney,” he said.
“It is important to have targets and whether you meet those targets or you don’t, at least you are aiming. I think governments shouldn’t be criticised for falling short of that number.
“It takes time to ramp up… but ultimately, I think if you look at this whole problem, you’ve got to have a range of solutions and there’s a lot of capacity to be building up.
“There is no doubt we need more apartments. It makes complete sense for higher development to occur around transport hubs and that’s why the infrastructure development is incredibly important.
“Build the infrastructure, and then the homes come.”
Mr Perrottet said there needs to be greater engagement between the states and the federal government on infrastructure spending, including a larger investment from the federal government.
To expedite housing construction, he also said the Planning Department should assume responsibility for overseeing and coordinating all relevant agencies to ensure the timely delivery of essential infrastructure like roads, sewage and water systems.
“In order to get this housing up, you’ve got to have a whole coordinated response across government,” he said.
“If the main priority is housing, then planning should be leading that, and they should be driving every one of those other agencies to prioritise that objective.
“That is where you shouldn’t be pulling back on infrastructure investment, you should be revising infrastructure investment, to drive towards that objective.