Calls For Federal Funding Election Commitment To Unlock Affordable Housing
A major community housing provider and a leading construction industry body have joined Cairns Regional Council’s call for a Federal Government funding commitment to support the delivery of affordable housing within the Southern Growth Corridor.
Ahead of the Federal Election, Council has campaigned for a $150 million federal funding commitment, to be matched by the State Government, to help deliver essential trunk infrastructure needed to accelerate housing supply to the south of Cairns, between Edmonton and Gordonvale.
On Saturday, the LNP announced that if elected, it would commit $33.8 million towards trunk infrastructure for the Southern Corridor.
“We welcome the LNP’s funding support of $33.8 million to kickstart this project,” Cairns Mayor Amy Eden said.
“But now, bipartisan support is critical. Cairns needs a commitment from the ALP.
“Backing Cairns is always the right call.”
Access Community Housing CEO Aidan Lang has backed Council’s efforts to unlock new land for much-needed housing in the community.
“Increasing the availability of land available for development will create opportunities for new homes, ensuring that more individuals and families can find secure and affordable accommodation in Cairns,” he said.
“As an organisation committed to providing social and affordable housing, we understand the importance of a long-term strategy to address the housing crisis.
“Securing the necessary infrastructure funding is critical if our community is to benefit from the significant opportunity that the Mount Peter Southern Growth Corridor represents.”
“Housing is fundamental to the wellbeing of our community, and Access Community Housing supports initiatives that provide a sustainable increase in housing availability.
“Council’s push to unlock new land will help ensure that our community has the capacity to meet future housing needs, including a mix of social, affordable, and market housing.”
Far North Queensland regional manager for Master Builders Queensland, Sharon Vella, said unlocking land supply through targeted infrastructure investment is vital to addressing the housing shortfall in our region.
“The Mount Peter Southern Growth Corridor represents a significant opportunity to deliver much-needed homes at scale, but this potential cannot be realised without urgent funding support from all levels of government,” she said.
“We stand with Council in calling on the Federal Government to commit to the critical infrastructure Cairns needs to enable sustainable growth and ensure the region’s future liveability.”
Mayor Amy Eden said the high cost of living and the housing crisis are the two biggest issues in this Federal campaign.
“Council’s project to unlock the Southern Growth Corridor addresses both,” she said.
“Federal support will deliver thousands of new homes while also providing cost of living relief for our residents.
“Council can’t fund the $450 million worth of housing infrastructure that our city needs alone.
“$150 million in federal funding means we can deliver the housing that our region desperately needs while also bridging the gap between the cost of this infrastructure and what we can recover from developer contributions.
“We’ve provided extensive briefings and letters to both major parties to seek support for this project, from local candidates to the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader.
“We won’t let up until we receive bipartisan support.”
Division 2 Councillor Matthew Tickner said the best results came from when all levels of government worked together.
“Council have shown through our Water Security Project – Stage 1 that we can deliver on-the-ground results when our State and Federal counterparts come to the table with their support,” he said
“We have now done the work to plan for our future housing supply and it is time the major parties get serious about delivering for Cairns and commit the $150m required to provide more access to affordable houses.”
https://www.cairns.qld.gov.au/council/news-notices/media-releases/media-releases/housing-development