Urban renewal of
Waterloo must include strong investment in green spaces and childcare
City of Sydney Labor Councillor is calling on the NSW State Government
to commit to investing in vital community infrastructure and services as part
of the urban renewal of Waterloo following the announcement of the location of
the Sydney Metro station.
“Today, the NSW Liberal
Government has outlined their vision for Sydney’s future written by developers,
for developers. This is not a plan for Sydney’s future for the whole
community,” said Linda Scott.
“The urban renewal of Waterloo, currently home to 4,000 public housing
tenants, must be done with great sensitivity, in-depth community consultation,
and with a commitment to invest in infrastructure,” said Linda Scott.
The NSW State
Government has announced plans to demolish 2,000 public housing apartments to
make way for a Sydney Metro station in Waterloo, as well as 10,000 new
dwellings in the precinct.
“Plans for
10,000 new dwellings in Waterloo must be accompanied by a detailed strategy for
the provision of public infrastructure and community services such as open
green space and new childcare centres,” said Linda Scott.
“Successful urban
renewal projects must invest in community infrastructure and a commitment to
deliver affordable housing. Current public housing tenants in Waterloo affected
by these plans must be given iron-clad assurances of returning to the upgraded
social housing dwellings,” said Linda Scott.
The City of
Sydney’s Draft Sports Facilities Demand Study projects that by 2031, an
additional 20-25 multi-use courts and 28.5 additional sporting fields will be
needed to meet demand for active green space in the LGA.
“There is a critical need to create new green
spaces, especially sporting fields, in the inner-city. With 10,000 new
dwellings planned for the area, delivering new open spaces for children and
local residents to play must be a priority,” said Linda Scott.
“Without
investment in new green spaces, the future will be bleak for Waterloo,” said
Linda Scott.
The City of
Sydney’s Childcare Needs Analysis 2013 project a gap between supply and demand
for childcare places across the entire LGA of 3,369 by next year, which is set
to grow to 5,976 by 2031.
“The
inner-city is experiencing a childcare shortage that has already reached crisis
point due to years of lack of investment in new childcare centres. Plans for
10,000 new dwellings in Waterloo, without any strategy for new childcare
centres, will only exacerbate the childcare crisis, putting at risk the future
of local parents who will be unable to return to work,” said Linda Scott.
“It’s clear that greater investment is needed in
childcare to ensure that local parents can return to work, but the Baird
Government has offered no detail on how they plan to do this,” said Linda
Scott.
Source: Media Release dated 16 December 2015.