Decision details

Moved by Councillor Ellsmore, seconded by Councillor Worling –

It is resolved that Council note:

(A)       Sydney has now become a more expensive city to live, in terms of housing costs, than comparable international cities Paris and London;

(B)       in July 2023, Deputy Mayor Sylvie Ellsmore met with the Deputy Mayor for Housing for Paris Council, Councillor Ian Brossat, the Deputy Mayor for Housing and Development for London Council, Councillor Tom Copley, and a range of other Paris and London Council representatives, to discuss public, social and affordable housing strategies;

(C)       Paris Council:

(i)         implements a range of strategies to protect and increase affordable, social and public housing which include: significant direct investment in new public housing ($500M Euros per annum); purchasing private housing and converting it to social housing; construction of new public housing on public land including converting car parks; strong requirements that developers build affordable housing on site; and rent caps;

(ii)        requires private development to deliver a minimum of 25 per cent affordable or social housing on private sites; and

(iii)       has recently achieved its target of 25 per cent social (including public and community) housing, up from 13 per cent in 2003; 

(D)       London Council implements a range of strategies in partnership with local borough councils to increase council-owned public housing, social housing and affordable housing. Strategies include: infilling existing public housing estates; buying back council housing previously privatised; buying private housing from distressed developers and turning it into social housing; and strong affordable housing contributions from development;

(E)       the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan:

(i)         requires developments determined by the Mayor on private land to include a minimum of 25 per cent affordable, public or social housing, and developments on public land to include a minimum of 50 per cent public, social or affordable housing. Some local borough councils have set higher targets than this;

(ii)        increased the London-wide target for construction of new City Hall-funded council homes (to be underway) from 10,000 to 20,000 by 2024, after the 10,000 target was met earlier than projected, in 2022; and

(iii)       requires proposals to renovate or develop public housing estates to be subject to a binding ballot of tenants, with tenants retaining a right of return if development is undertaken, and demolition only as a last resort. The policy has led to an increase in co-designed, staged projects for the rejuvenation of council estates, many of which have old and poor quality housing. Since introduction of the policy in 2018 there have been 20 ballots, 19 of which have been passed;

(F)        the City of Sydney has a range of strategies to increase affordable housing including an Local Government Area wide affordable housing levy. The affordable housing levy is generally one per cent of floor space for non-residential development, and three per cent of floor space for residential development. In a selected number of areas (including some sites in the Botany Road corridor) where rezoning results in a residential floor space uplift, a higher affordable housing contribution applies;

(G)      the City of Sydney has targets of 7.5 per cent social (including public housing) and 7.5 per cent affordable housing, by 2030; and

(H)       at its 26 June 2023 meeting, Council requested that the Chief Executive Officer review the City’s Affordable Housing contribution rates, including what changes could deliver more Affordable Housing in our area such as rate increases, changes to City policies, planning controls and rezoning proposals; and report back to Council via the CEO Update. 

Carried unanimously.

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