Housing strategy needed to shape growing Ballarat

The aim is for 29,000 houses in 18 years with an estimated growth of 55,000 new residents.

This means around 1700 to 1800 new houses need to be built annually in the Ballarat municipality.

After the draft Housing Strategy endorsement for community feedback came down to the wire at a meeting on Wednesday, August 23, the council's strategy and development team discussed what comes next.

Mayor Des Hudson said it was vital for people to share what they need and want for Ballarat's housing to shape this strategy.

The housing strategy drew criticism from councillors and community members at the meeting, who considered it incomplete, Cr Hudson and growth and development director Natalie Robertson said the community would be the ones who would guide the document..

Cr Hudson said council was responsible for having land supply and housing options for the next 15 years.

"It's a challenge, that when I've spoken to regional city mayors from other areas, they are facing exactly the same issues that we face here in Ballarat," he said.

"We've taken into consideration our current housing capacity and we've proposed a longer term strategy until 2041.

"This strategy seeks to answer some of the basic questions of how many dwellings do we need to cater for our projected population growth but more importantly, what kind of dwellings to our diverse future communities need."

The housing strategy has a long journey ahead, but it will eventually be put to the planning minister as an amendment to the Ballarat Planning Scheme, so its impact will be binding.

Cr Hudson said the council wanted to hear from anyone with a vested in interest in Ballarat.

"We'd really love to get that level of input about how people feel about their neighbourhoods, telling us what's important to them and what their vision is," he said.

Ms Robertson echoed the need for wider community feedback.

"If you live in Ballarat, it affects you," she said.

Councillors and members of the public queried the reality of having a 50/50 split for infill and greenfield development.

Ms Robertson said it was the whole point of the discussion.

"We do know we are sitting comfortably around 65 per cent in growth areas 35 per cent in infill, our team act on policy that says we are striving for 50/50," she said.

"If our community tells us otherwise, then we have to revisit that with councillors."

During the public submissions, Integra director Nick Grylewicz asked why two years ago, developers were told there was a land shortage but the housing strategy had land available.

Ms Robertson said this was down to the council doing its job and critical land supply came out of "pre-data".

"What it meant was our preparation for land supply, not necessarily there isn't land supply," she said.

"Since then we've adopted our growth areas, we've had one implemented into our planning scheme as an urban growth site.

"Today, we are comfortable the numbers are stacking up."

The Ballarat North Growth Zone was recently gazetted, which will be the next front of greenfield.

Ballarat Northwest and Ballarat West have been approved by the council. Cr Hudson said these were currently "sitting on the Planning Minister's desk".

"To a degree we are also constrained by state direction of planning in terms of what will be released," he said.

It was also raised why the draft strategy could not wait until the IGAF, a report commissioned by the planning minster to get an understanding of Ballarat's land supply.

"It may not necessarily be a document that is provided to us," Ms Robertson said.

"It may be something that just informs the minister and the minister may decide they will not release it, but gives them an understanding of the context of our municipality, when we come to them with our housing strategy for adoption or our growth areas for adoption.

"We could be waiting forever."

Cr Hudson said delaying the draft going to consultation, it would not have been a "quick turnaround" to next months meeting.

"This potentially may have changed the direction of what we're asking of the community and may have meant this council lost any site or control on hearing back on the housing strategy," he said.

"If we keep talking about a housing crisis and land supply, and we don't put this out, all we are doing is compounding the issue. Nothing is happening. It will just sit there and stagnate."

Another concern raised was how resources will cope with an addition 29,000 houses and 50,000 or more new Ballarat residents.

Chief executive Evan King said this was exactly why Ballarat needed the housing strategy and to plan around growth areas.

"If we're clear about where the city's growing and the timing around that, then all of the various authorities can then start to budget when we need new kindergartens, where do we need new schools, where do we need hubs, where the roads need to be upgraded for greater traffic," he said.

"We can't expect other authorities to build that infrastructure if we don't have a really clear vision for where the city's going to grow."

Sign up to receive The Courier's news alerts straight to your inbox.