Major redevelopment of Waterloo
The NSW government has announced an extensive redevelopment of the inner city suburb of Waterloo. According to The Sydney Morning Herald,
a total of 10,000 new dwellings, accommodating 30,000 new residents,
will be built over a period of 20 years. The project will be centred
around a new railway station – part of the ‘Sydney Metro’ line that will
link southwest Sydney through to Bankstown with northwest Sydney
through to Rouse Hill. It will form part of the wider ‘Communities Plus‘ project.
Matavai and Turanga towers, Waterloo
The Herald story
states that new dwellings will initially be built on a State-owned, 13
hectare site, held principally by NSW Land and Housing Corporation. The
final redevelopment will cover 40 hectares. According to The Daily Telegraph, the 30-storey Turanga and Matavai towers
on Phillip Street, and surrounding, lower-density public housing
apartments, will be demolished as part of the redevelopment. This will
require the relocation of approximately 2000 public housing tenants over
the life of the project.
The
Government has said that one third of the 10,000 new dwellings will be
social and affordable housing, with the remainder for the private
market. Premier Mike Baird told the Herald that there will be no
loss in the number of social housing dwellings in the suburb from
current numbers. The Premier did not speak on whether the social housing
dwellings built to replace current stock will also contain the same
number of bedrooms.
On the subject of relocations, the Premier said, “Every single [affected] tenant will have the right to come back”. This
comment was echoed by Social Housing Minister Brad Hazzard. A letter
sent to public housing tenants in Waterloo from the Minister, dated 16
December 2015, states, “I want to assure you that tenants who live at
Waterloo can remain in Waterloo after the redevelopment. While some
tenants may need to relocate on an interim basis into other housing in
the local area, many will be able to move directly into the new social
housing as the site is redeveloped.”
The Telegraph states
that relocations from public housing blocks marked for demolition are
expected to commence in 2017, with construction to begin in 2018. According to a Transport for NSW statement , the precise location of the centrepiece railway station has not yet
been determined. The station is not due to open until 2036.
Our concerns
On
the information available, the Waterloo redevelopment appears to be of
substantially similar form to the Macquarie Park UAP, the smaller
‘Communities Plus’ developments, and the development on Cowper Street,
Glebe. All
involve the demolition of tenanted public housing blocks for larger
mixed residential apartments, and thus the relocation of many
households.
Relocations are inherently painful experiences for those affected. FACS
claims its staff are experienced in assisting tenants through
relocation processes, having learnt much from earlier renewal projects.
But testimonial from places such as Millers Point, Claymore, and
Bonnyrigg give a different perspective. Independent
research into the impact of relocation – and what specifically helped
long-term tenants adjust to new homes, neighbourhoods and communities –
should be commissioned and considered before proceeding with any
projects involving the renewal or disposal of currently tenanted stock.
We support the Minister’s claim that tenants will be able to remain in
the Waterloo area and believe it is important that this is adhered to.
In this regard, we
believe it is important that FACS formalises clear policies and
processes concerning management of relocations. This did not happen in
the aforementioned relocations.
The
stated timeframe for the project is also extremely tight; the
Government intends to commence construction in just over two years. This
is concerning as it indicates that tenants may be compelled to relocate
to unsuitable properties to facilitate construction.
Finally,
given this development will be incorporated into the Communities Plus
program, we also maintain the same concerns regarding loss of
independence for social housing tenants as for other Communities Plus
sites. Concepts such as ‘mutual obligation’, and burdensome tenancy
management, further enmesh social housing tenants in the welfare system.
Support services should of course be available to social housing
tenants – not least in a period of relocations – but not mandated as a
condition of tenure. Furthermore, the expectation that tenants eligible
for social housing should promptly resolve their need for assistance
and exit into an expensive and insecure private rental market is both
unrealistic and cruel.
Source: The Tenants’ Union of NSW’s social housing estate redevelopment and portfolio renewal blog – The Clearing House – Major redevelopment of Waterloo