The NSW Government has announced the establishment of a new state-led approval pathway for major residential housing projects, as well as a process for rezonings – neither having to be approved by councils, cutting approval times and speeding up the delivery of new homes.
This reform will come into effect in early 2025 following a “short and sharp” consultation with stakeholders.
This will be available for new housing developments above an estimated development cost of $60 million (on average 100 or more homes) in Greater Sydney and a cost of approximately $30 million (on average 40 or more homes) in regional NSW.
This pathway will be overseen by the new Housing Delivery Authority (HDA) and will be established within the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI).
The HDA will include the Secretary of the Premier’s Department Simon Draper, the Secretary of the Department of Planning Kiersten Fishburn and the Chief Executive Officer of Infrastructure NSW, Tom Gellibrand.
As part of this reform the Minns Labor Government is also introducing a new pathway that will allow selected projects which would deliver significant housing uplift, but require more significant rezonings, to go through a DPHI led fast track rezoning pathway that does not require a council process.
Premier of New South Wales, Chris Minns said NSW needs to remove barriers to housing supply.
“These are huge reforms that we are not proposing lightly, however the scale of the problem requires this significant change.
“For over a decade in NSW, governments have made it harder to build the homes we need, not easier – but this cannot continue if we want to be a city that young people can afford to live in.
“NSW needs significant new housing supply near existing infrastructure but at the same time too many well-located areas in Sydney have put too many barriers up for too long.”
NSW Executive Director Katie Stevenson said the move responded to the Property Council’s calls for a dedicated program to tackle the backlog of residential DAs stuck in the system.
“This is a positive and significant step toward meeting NSW’s critical housing supply targets,” Ms Stevenson said.
“The Property Council’s Pre-Budget submission earlier this year highlighted the need for a better coordinated approach to resolve blockages and prevent projects from stalling due to multi-agency requirements and overlapping processes.
“We’ve advocated consistently for the urgent need to address the growing backlog of residential developments stuck in NSW’s planning system and this new, permanent Housing Taskforce will help towards a more efficient and responsive planning system,” she said.
Ms Stevenson said that while the Housing Taskforce was an essential step forward, continued action was needed to drive lasting improvement in housing delivery.
“Accelerating approvals is critical, but it’s only one piece of the puzzle,” Ms Stevenson said.
“While this is a big win for the industry and a vital move to address housing availability and affordability for the people of NSW, we need to see continued momentum.
“The Minns Government needs to step up the pace on other systemic barriers in the planning system, including modernising council processes, expanding digital planning tools, broadening the scope of state-significant pathways for large-scale housing projects, and enhancing agency collaboration at all stages of development.
“The Property Council will continue to work closely with the government to support the effective implementation of the Taskforce, as well as further reforms to enhance planning efficiency across the board,” she said.