A fairer system for property developers - who are slugged costs as high as $140,000 per hectare - is needed to ensure more affordable housing for Warrnambool, the city council has been told.
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The issue was brought to light during public question time at the July council meeting when Dennington's Brandon Cocking questioned why the key worker and affordable housing project on Harrington Road was not subject to the same developer contribution costs as neighbouring land.
The council hopes to fast-track its plan to create 50 one, two and three-bedroom properties to help address the housing crisis impacting key industries in Warrnambool who are struggling to attract staff because of a lack of accommodation in the city.
If authorities were serious about creating affordable housing, Mr Cocking said, more should be done to help property owners develop their land and create an even playing field with one-off "cheap" projects.
He questioned why property developers - many of them mum and dad investors - were being penalised.
Mr Cocking said the developer contribution costs were "exorbitant".
"If council is serious, then the $140,000 per hectare that other developments west and north of Harrington Road have to find should be applied if there's going to be even competition," he said.
He said if you multiplied the numbers out, properties to the west and north of Harrington Road were contributing as much as $600,000 per four hectares while the council-private company partnership would have zero contributions.
A development contribution helps pay for infrastructure required for neighbourhoods such as main roads, paths, stormwater drainage and community infrastructure.
The council's chief executive officer Andrew Mason said Mr Cocking's point was that in terms of fairness, the development contributions should be applied equally.
But Mr Mason said surrounding parcels of land were covered by separate structure plans that included development contribution plans.
"These documents are part of the Warrnambool planning scheme and were developed in conjunction with the landowners when the land was rezoned from farm land to residential," he said.
"Without these contributions, the significant infrastructure costs would be unfairly distributed.
"Certain landowners or the first developer would be burdened with the bulk of the cost which would then likely have a knock-on impact on further development."
In relation to the land for the Harrington Road project, Mr Mason said it was a relatively small area and it would be required to fund all of its own internal infrastructure.
"Effectively it will be self-funding it's own infrastructure," he said.
Mr Mason said it was expected when the saleyards precinct area was further considered for rezoning, a development contribution plan would apply to ensure infrastructure was adequately provided and funded.
Mr Cocking said hardworking developers were paying through the nose for development costs - something that effectively drives up property prices because developers had no choice but to pass them on to home-buyers to cover costs.
"Where's the fairness where our state and federal and local councils support other companies to come and do things cheap as cheap?" he said.
"It should be a far more fair system.
"Instead of supporting one or two projects only, give some concession to everybody so things are affordable."
Mayor Ben Blain last week said the city faced challenges when it came to infrastructure with high inflationary pressures leaving councils and developers short when it came to predicting costs.
"I think there is a role for the state," he said.
Katrina Lovell
Katrina Lovell is a senior journalist at The Standard who covers council news and human interest stories.
Katrina Lovell is a senior journalist at The Standard who covers council news and human interest stories.
