The current NSW Government purports to be doing all it can to solve the housing shortage across the Sydney metropolitan area.
But you don’t have to look far to realise that the politicians currently in charge are no different from any of their predecessors.
When it comes to housing it is not difficult to come to the conclusion that it’s more spin than anything else.
Take as an example Landcom’s proposed new town centre at Glenfield.
If the State Government were serious and agreed to fund the Cambridge Avenue upgrade, including building a flood free bridge over the nearby Georges River, it would unlock the full capacity of the Landcom precinct at Glenfield, enabling the delivery of 5,500 dwellings and supporting a broader 8,000 homes – as well as 2,900 jobs.
On May 22 this year, Campbelltown Mayor Darcy Lound wrote to the roads and transport minister, Jenny Aitchison, imploring her to act quickly on this vital project mostly involving state government owned land.
The minister’s response arrived on August 29, more than three months later, which in itself is a fair indication of how serious this government really is about fixing the housing mess.
However, the content of her response wasn’t much better.
Translated, the minister basically said to the mayor that the wheels are in motion, but they’re moving very, very slowly.
Mayor Lound has now confirmed that as mentioned in the two letters he did have a face to face meeting with the minister on October 1.
The South West Voice asked Mayor Lound whether the minister was able to offer anything more than she did in her letter of August 29.
“Yes, we did have a meeting, and it was a very positive one, acknowledging the importance of the Cambridge Avenue upgrade,’’ he said.
“But on funding, no, the minister did not go any further than she did in her letter,’’ he said.
For anyone new to Campbelltown, the low level Cambridge Avenue bridge over the Georges River, a stone’s throw from Glenfield, easily flood when it rains.
It is a critical exit and entry point to Campbelltown, which is not available when the river rises.
There has been a long running campaign to upgrade it to a flood free bridge, but it has been thwarted by bureaucratic and political buck passing for decades.
Campbelltown Council has been hoping that the Landcom housing precinct plan would be the vehicle to finally get funding for a new bridge.
“Glenfield is rapidly emerging as a critical strategic hub centre for Metropolitan Sydney’s future, located equidistant between both international airports, and poised to drive economic growth and urban transformation,’’ the mayor said in his letter to the minister.
“It will also realise significant road and transport efficiencies and environmental benefits by diverting Moorebank lntermodal industrial traffic away from the M5, and reducing heavy vehicle kilometres travelled between Moorebank and Port Kembla.
“Landcom’s vision for Glenfield is one of ‘density done right’ – a carefully planned balance of housing, open space, retail, business amenities and government services, all within easy walking distance of Glenfield Station.
“Yet, this vision hangs in the balance. Without the delivery of Cambridge Avenue, traffic modelling indicates that congestion on existing roads will cripple the potential housing yield, capping development at hundreds of dwellings, not thousands, and will result in further unnecessary pressure on the capacity of the M5.
“The cost of inaction is immense -the Campbelltown LGA risks not meeting its ambitious housing targets, stalling growth and missing a once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape Sydney’s future at location that connects so much of Sydney to itself,’’ the mayor said.