The Hodgman Liberal Government’s rezoning of Government owned land for new housing developments is set to continue the massive increase in residential building construction in Tasmania.
Tasmania last week recorded the highest number of monthly approvals in a decade, with 369 approvals. With dwelling approvals in Tasmania for the November 2018 quarter 14 per cent above the level of a year ago, there is a huge amount of momentum in the residential building sector in Tasmania which is delivering more housing and more jobs for Tasmanians.
There’s still a lot more to do and that’s why the Government has been very active in stimulating the building of more homes through our first home builders incentive, cutting stamp duty on house and land packages, our Affordable Housing Strategy, and the release of Government owned land around the state for housing developments.
The first set of Housing Land Supply Orders under the new legislation passed Parliament late last year, and includes sites in Rokeby, Devonport, and West Moonah. The final steps for rezoning these packages of land under the new process is expected to be completed in the coming weeks.
Land identified in the first set of Orders will be used for a mix of social, affordable and private housing options. Today I visited the parcel of land at Rokeby which will enable the building of dozens of new homes, ideally situated near schools, bus routes and other services.
The speeding up the supply of affordable housing around the State by fast tracking the rezoning of surplus government owned land was a key action identified from the Housing Summit held last year, and legislation to allow for the streamlined process passed parliament mid last year.
The Government is continuing to identify more land to rezone for housing supply. Along with the private sector, we are continuing to boost affordable and social housing options.
It is essential that all authorities, including Local Councils, play their role in ensuring new housing and accommodation options can be developed, particularly in the Hobart area where the need is most acute.
