WHITSUNDAY Regional Council is addressing the current housing pressures in the Whitsundays by adopting the Local Housing Action Plan (LHAP) at Wednesday’s ordinary council meeting, in Proserpine.
Whitsunday Regional Council Mayor Ry Collins said the new Local Housing Action Plan was developed by Council in partnership with the Local Government Association of Queensland, with funding from the Queensland Government.
“The LHAP outlines 28 practical and tangible actions that will assist Council to address housing barriers and shortfalls,” he said.
“The plan is not intended to be a static document but will remain live and be monitored and reviewed as we develop our actions.
“We want to work with the State and Federal Governments, the housing sector, and local residents to increase the number of homes available and make sure that we are getting our fair share of the investments being made in this space,” Mayor Collins said.
“This is not something that is going to be solved overnight, but there are real commitments from the State and Federal Governments to invest in housing and I want to make sure that the Whitsunday region is part of that conversation.
“Key to the delivery of housing supply is ensuring we can get ahead of the important service infrastructure that is required to support our demand.”
Director Regional Strategy and Planning Neil McGaffin said the next step was developing the Housing Strategy which will consider the pressures of affordability and the challenges Council faces in accommodating future growth in the Whitsunday region beyond 2046.
“Council will need to develop our Planning Scheme strategies to encourage more supply of housing across the region.
“This requires a comprehensive approach of planning and consultation with the community to ensure we encourage the right density in proximity to highly accessible areas, near jobs, transport, community services and facilities.
“Investigation actions are included in the plan where council could consider incentives to encourage and promote the development of the diversity in housing types we need,” Mr McGaffin said.
