Shelter NSW comments on the Draft Port Stephens Local Housing Strategy

Port Stephens Council has recently undertaken work to update its Local Housing Strategy and we were able to comment on the revised Strategy late last month.

Shelter NSW took an interest in this LGA due mostly to previous work we have done with the Regional Australia Institute that identified Port Stephens as one of 11 regional LGAs considered to be in high housing need.

And while discussions about density, typology, and ‘missing middle’ housing products are dominating the discourse in Sydney, the need for real housing diversity and affordability in cities and regional towns is not lost on us, and we were struck by these quotes from the draft Local Housing Strategy:

“Currently only 56% of people working in Port Stephens live within the LGA… There are more freestanding houses with 5 bedrooms than the entire apartment stock across Port Stephens”

A key highlight of the draft Strategy was the commitment to creating a future Affordable Housing Action Plan.

You can read all our recommendations in our submission here. Contact Policy Officer, Kayla Clanchy (kayla@shelternsw.org.au), with any questions/comments.