In January, the government released the masterplan for the Waterloo estate intending to lodge the plan to the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) by March. The masterplan still has not been lodged!
Meetings of the Waterloo Redevelopment Group (WRG) Resident Subgroup, set up to allow a direct channel of communication between tenant representatives and government, has been repeatedly postponed due to the slow progression of the redevelopment, leaving residents disappointed with the level of government communication.
LAHC has funded support of the WRG but it is unclear if or how this will continue in 2020.
There has now been another unexpected announcement that could further delay the government’s lodgement of the masterplan. On November 2 The Saturday Telegraph reported that the state government was handing back planning control of a number of Land and Housing Corporation (LAHC) sites earmarked for development to local governments, including the Waterloo Estate, Elizabeth Street Redfern and South Eveleigh to the City of Sydney. A statement released on the same day by Planning Minister Rob Stokes said that “the new approach would clear the decks of planning proposals stuck in the system, refocus the state’s efforts and empower councils to plan strategically”. Mr Stokes said the move would ultimately “hit the reset button to supercharge the delivery of Sydney’s priority precincts”.
The state government retains ownership and development responsibilities for the sites, as the announcement relates only to planning controls, so LAHC is still the proponent of the redevelopment, but the City of Sydney is the consent authority.
What is known so far is that DPIE (of which LAHC is part) and the City of Sydney will agree on a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to set the planning framework for the Waterloo redevelopment.
The City and LAHC have had several meetings to explore their different approaches. If the LAHC proposal changes, Groundswell and residents have asked that it comes back to the community before it is submitted. The City will be required to assess the LAHC proposals in line with planning law and the MOU, even though it might prefer a different approach with increased social and affordable housing, so it will be interesting to see what emerges.
The Waterloo Community Outreach
The Waterloo Community Outreach offers a range of services provided by core partners: The Department of Communities and Justice (formerly FACS); Counterpoint Community Services; Inner Sydney Voice; Land and Housing Corporation; Mission Australia; Redfern Legal Centre; and Sydney Local Health District. The outreach operates from the Waterloo Neighbourhood Centre, 10am – 1pm every Thursday.
Since its launch on November 7, the outreach has been a wonderful success. This is not only reflected in feedback from residents and the broader community, but also in the high level of service delivery. Using the combined knowledge and resources of outreach partners, services are able to better collaborate to seek the best possible outcomes for clients and instantly respond to resident needs.
As well as being a space where residents can seek support and assistance for everything from maintenance concerns to tenancy disputes, the outreach operates as an easy-going social space where residents can grab a coffee, a bite to eat and hang out with fellow residents and chat with their local community workers. The final outreach for 2019 is December 12, and will resume in February 2020.
Agency updates
George Barrett from Inner Sydney Voice has been providing briefings for service providers, organisation staff and interested groups about the Waterloo redevelopment. George is also updating a contact list for those interested in being kept in the loop about the Waterloo and Redfern redevelopments. If you would like a briefing for your group or agency, or to be added to the email list, please contact cb@innersydneyvoice.org.au.
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Adam Antonelli, Counterpoint Community Services: wrcd@counterpointcs.org.au or phone 02 9698 9569 (ext. 3).
