Housing across the Barossa, Light and Gawler Council areas and the Northern suburbs is set boom with the Malinauskas Labor Government’s Housing Roadmap promising to expedite the construction of new homes and enhance vital infrastructure.
The Government’s record $1.5 billion investment in water and sewer infrastructure is set to remove barriers to construction and unlock thousands of new allotments, particularly across growth areas in and around Gawler and the Barossa.
State Member for Light, Tony Piccolo MP, is expecting the reforms to help streamline housing developments and significantly benefit those seeking homes in the area, including Roseworthy, Springwood, Two Wells, Angle Vale, Virginia and Concordia.
“Families looking to build their lives here will have access to new homes up to 18 months sooner than before under this new roadmap,” Mr Piccolo said.
“Infrastructure is the backbone of development, and Labor Government are helping remove previous hurdles to ensure developers have the resources and finances to stimulate housing supply.”
The Housing Roadmap includes initiatives such as a standardised template for code amendments and a dashboard to track rezoning applications, reducing the average processing time to between six and nine months.
The average time for completing a code amendment is currently 11 months, while under the previous government it was 29 to 37 months.
Local councils are also incentivised to expedite land division assessments, with the State Government poised to intervene through a new Land Division Assessment Panel if necessary.
“This, coupled with the encouragement for Metropolitan Councils to consolidate assessment panels and planning departments, promises more consistent decisions and faster assessments,” Mr Piccolo said.
Water augmentation charges for greenfield developers has also been fixed at $10,000 per dwelling, unlocking the potential for numerous new developments that were previously hindered by financial constraints.
Mr Piccolo also highlighted the importance of the Government’s approach to keeping water bills manageable, with increases capped at 3.5 percent above the Consumer Price Index (CPI), ensuring that the cost of living remains affordable for all.
WATER AND SWER RATES CONCESSION TO EASE PAIN
In addition, a $64.8 million water and sewer concession initiative will provide $412 off the annual water and sewer bill of the average concession card holder – accounting for over 190,000 South Australians, including pensioners.
Mr Piccolo said solving the housing crisis has required some tough decisions to be made, but the State Government is very mindful that some families are doing it very tough at the moment, so this targeted concession will help ease the [pain a bit.
For more information on the Housing Roadmap and its impact on the Northern suburbs, please visit www.treasury.sa.gov.au/Growing-South-Australia/a-better-housing-future