Council moves to shore up region’s housing future

Published on 01 September 2021

Kempsey Shire Council has reaffirmed its support for an affordable housing supply across the Macleay Valley with a submission to the NSW Government’s Regional Housing Taskforce.

Council’s submission highlights key concerns about housing supply, as well as making a number of recommendations to ensure the future needs of our region are met.

Director Operations and Planning, Robert Fish, said Council welcomed the opportunity to contribute to the Regional Housing Taskforce enquiry to address the shire’s immediate and long-term housing needs.

“While Kempsey is one of the best performing local government areas on the Mid North Coast in terms of housing affordability, housing supply remains an important issue. We know our business community report that they can’t attract staff because of a lack of suitable homes to rent or buy,” Mr Fish said.

“We are pleased to provide the taskforce with insight into the issues facing our region and what can be done to address them.”

The taskforce submission complements the work Council is undertaking to develop a new Local Growth Management Strategy, which will set out Council’s approach to managing population and housing growth.

“The Local Growth Management Strategy will be a key element of Council’s strategic planning framework and allow us to examine the unique demands of our region," Mr Fish said.

The taskforce will now review the feedback received and report to the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces. The NSW Government will then determine how to proceed.

Council looks forward to the outcomes from the taskforce and will respond as needed in the development of long-term strategies and planning controls.