Hundreds Of Public Housing Units To Be Demolished For Controversial Waterloo South Development

Hundreds of public housing units in Waterloo will be demolished in the coming months as the government begins a multi-billion development that has been opposed by the community at every turn.

The first stage of the $4 billion project, Waterloo South, would see the exisiting 750 public housing properties demolished to make way for 3300 new residencies, about 30 per cent of which would be social housing comprised of not-for-profit run community housing and public housing managed by the government. Another 20 per cent will be designated as affordable rental housing, with the remaining apartments private.

The development is the largest public housing renewal in the country, and a cornerstone of the Minns government’s $6.6 billion Building Homes for NSW program, which is promising to deliver upgrades to 30,000 existing social housing properties.

New development plans went to public exhibition on Wednesday and will be open to feedback until 2 June, with housing minister Rose Jackson saying there was “no time to waste in a housing crisis.”

“I feel that urgency every day and I’m looking forward to moving to the next stage of this renewal project that will deliver more than four times the number of homes currently on this site,” she said. 

“When we came to government, we immediately reviewed the plans for the Waterloo renewal and boosted the number of public and affordable homes from 35 to 50 per cent. This was a crucial step to ensure Waterloo remains a welcoming place for people from all walks of life to call home now and into the future.

“We know how important this project is to the community and we want to hear from residents to help shape what comes next.”

Although residents are welcome to move back into the area once its redeveloped, the first homes aren’t expected to be completed until 2035.

Evictions “very hard to survive” says advocate

Waterloo locals and public housing supporters have opposed the government’s plans since their conception in 2015, warning that it will ultimately add more people to the list of 65,000 waiting for public housing.

Andrew Chuter from Action for Public Housing says that the government’s promise of 850 “social” homes is a “catch-all” for public and community housing, that will see public housing access in the state lose out. 

“You don’t know what the mix within social housing is, of public versus community,” he said. “Usually when they’re not be specific about that, they go for the absolute minimum.

I would say that all those 850 homes will be community housing. They may stay in public ownership, but they will definitely be privately managed.”

The government is promising a “carefully managed transition” for existing residents, providing them six months’ written notice before they’re required to move, with the first eviction notices distributed in February 2025.

“They’ll lose all their connections,” Chuter said.

“Your network of friends, especially amongst people in public housing, is extremely important. For a lot of people, that’s very hard to survive.”