Housing reform scale back is a slap in the face for Melburnians who need homes
The Victorian government has capitulated to wealthy landowners to turn a reform from walkable to unworkable.
People without a voice may be left behind
Listening to the community is important for the stability of housing reforms, however, listening only to the incumbent homeowners who have the time to turn up to councils means you're ignoring the most important voice: the voice of the people who want to live somewhere but can't.
Local councils only represent the homeowners that can afford to live there. They don't represent those priced out or renters from local politics due to not having a stable place to live. These voices matter as much as those they can afford to purchase homes in the inner city.
4-storey rules doesn't matter if homes don't stack up
The scaling back of the majority of the Housing Choice and Transport Zone decimates the potential impact of the Activity Centre Program.
For housing to be delivered through lot amalgamation, there needs to be an incentive—one extra storey simply isn't enough. The original six-storeys, still used in small areas of the program, provides a much stronger framework for delivering the homes Victorians need.
The remainder of housing reforms must stay the course
The overall package of reforms remains broadly ambitious, but ensuring they have meaningful impact will require political courage.
The Victorian government has one shot to get these reforms done. They need to rise up and deliver what's needed to confront the enormous scale of the housing crisis—not the scale of what's politically easy.
Quotes attributable to Jonathan O'Brien, Lead Organiser
"If the government is going to stand behind these housing reforms, then they should make sure that what they're delivering is enough to actually tackle the problem."
"This is how the planning system works: bit by bit it chips away at what's viable, and makes it harder to deliver the housing that people desperately need."
"We have to do better, dream bigger, and not kowtow to vested interests if we want to see meaningful change to the ongoing housing crisis."
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