City of Sydney votes to preserve Explorer Street social housing

By REBECCA HERNANDEZ

The City of Sydney has voted to protect social and public housing through Explorer Street in Eveleigh.

In a unanimous motion, councilors moved to counter ongoing construction plans from the New South Wales government which would see “46 town house formation social housing residences” redeveloped, expanded, and partially privatised.

Contradictory Approaches

“The current proposed target sent to residents is to develop the site to 420 dwellings, with 30 per cent of those being social housing,” states the City of Sydney in their decision details.

They continue, discussing how this process aligns with the “advice and vision” of the previous “Liberal NSW government”, which “sought to sell off social housing,” and directly contradicts recent commitments by the state’s Labour government to freeze public housing trade.

“The current Labor NSW Government has committed to not sell off any more social housing residences,” the review explains.

Despite these statements, current state leadership has shown its intention to continue with ongoing projects.

Both Explorer Street and the close by Waterloo Estate are marked for rezoning, which has left residents concerned and scrambling to find answers.

Taking The Lead

In response, the City of Sydney has worked to gain leads on the project, taking the helm for the sake of community and local input.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore wrote to NSW Premier Chris Minns, requesting reinstatement of planning powers to the city “for the Explorer Street site and for all other social and affordable housing sites in our Local Government Area into the future.”

“Feedback provided by the community in 2020 will inform the rezoning proposal,” they state.

“[Locals] will also have the opportunity to provide further input on the future of the precinct before rezoning can occur.”

In taking this approach, the council explicitly orients itself with resident concerns, acknowledging the “stress and anxiety that many public housing tenants feel about their future, given the uncertainty of the NSW Government’s plans and the lack of clarity over the status of redevelopment projects.”

The review concludes, affirming once again that the priorities for Explorer Street and related public housing areas lie in preservation and availability.

 “[The] Council supports the preservation of the Explorer Street Public housing site as wholly public and affordable housing,” it states.