Reforming and revitalising public
housing in Redfern-Waterloo, without disadvantaging tenants, is considered a
huge task and one that will require considerable research and community
consultation. The RWA and the Department of Housing, which owns and administers
the large housing estates, intend to work cooperatively and diligently on this project
over coming years.
Given the
complexities involved and the need to ensure that the interests of tenants and communities
are safeguarded, reform of public housing is seen as a priority issue for the
future Stage Two of the Redfern-Waterloo Plan. However, detailed research work
and community consultation on these issues will be undertaken by the RWA during
the Stage One period in order to develop future stages of the Plan [the draft
Stage One of the Plan is expected to be released for community consultation
later this year].
In order to
reassure public housing tenants and in the context of some erroneous media
reports at the time, the Minister for Redfern-Waterloo, Frank Sartor, made the
following statement in the NSW Parliament on 9 December last year:
“There is
zero intention that existing public tenants at Redfern and Waterloo will be moved out of the area. To
the extent we may or may not improve the existing public housing…such a task
would have to be the subject of extensive consultation.”
The
Minister subsequently wrote to all public housing tenants reassuring them of
the Government’s commitments, which he also reiterated at a public meeting in
Redfern on 9 July 2005. These commitments are:
• There
will be no cuts to the amount of public housing;
• Current
residents will not be disadvantaged; and
• All
public tenancies are secure.
Photo: The
Government has guaranteed that public housing tenancies are secure.