Greater Gong and Haven

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And the infra, services and amenity that comes with it

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Support more housing, more dense housing near employment hubs, shops, transport hubs, 3rd places like beaches and parks.

13/08/2026

*30 years* of *economically feasible* zoned capacity for housing.

Council planners are going to absolutely malfunction over this.

A massive state policy to disrupt greedy land banking councils. Yes those are the correct adjectives, we learn from Resident Action Group NIMBYs like NIRAG, CRAG and KRAG who label developers as “greedy land bankers” for having 1 lot in the pipeline, usually waiting lengthy conflicting studies.

Councils bank thousands of developable sites and trickle feed them to the market by restrictive zoning, we have seen a lot on the urban fringe moon to $500k from $200k only a decade ago. And yet you are told to worry about a ~$50k inflation on construction, or the states $6000 infrastructure contribution.

It’s worse for land banking existing resi land that should permit units. When council strategic planners do, it’s wishful thinking moreso than planning - they blame others for not reacting to LEP fairytales instantly. If it isn’t feasible it is a disingenuous attempt to supply more housing, like we are seeing for units in dapto. Instead places like Bulli, towradgi, some (accessible) water and park fronts can be rezoned for units - that’s where downsizers are willing to pay enough, freeing up homes for families. Council directly, outrightly refuse anything over 2 storeys in these locations, like the towradgi seniors living proposal.

This new state policy should kickstart change. What other choice will they have?

18/06/2026

A 40 year gap in tall buildings - fits the narrative. Our restrictive planning system was introduced for the NIMBY “participatory” politics demanded in the 70s, seeing tall buildings stagnate from the early 80s. All reversed now, Careful what you wish for.

17/06/2026

You are Premier Minns, you’ve got a 377k housing target. Would you blow the infrastructure budget on a town that builds just 10 homes per year? That’s what the greedy folk who oppose housing in Kiama/shoalhaven are asking for. 70 gathered to push for the $125m rail upgrade, probably garnering another ~300 rail commuters - better off buying them helicopters. Berry and shoalhaven council are offenders of hoarding excessive under-utilised infrastructure, I’ve never seen a cow catch a train but they’re well serviced here. Ironically their fierce NIMBYs cherry pick and play-up on minor infrastructure issues. Meanwhile the last ~$50m piece of infrastructure gifted to gerringong, the rail overpass, would go on to earn Australia in return a measley 12% growth in housing stock, against a national ~25% growth in housing demand in that time (of which 15% from pop growth). No surprise, a new resi lot is now $1m on the rare occasion it is trickled to the market by Australia’s biggest land bankers - Kiama council. They didn’t do their share then, they won’t do it with $125m rail pork barreling. Kylie Minogue summarises it well: “NAH”

13/06/2026

$30m for ~400 lots, plus probably $50m for civil work, connection services and infrastructure? that’s at most $200k in costs to supply a new lot to the market. However we see new lots sell for $500k near Nowra. That $300k price gap is the premium you pay for scarce rights to live.. near Nowra. It’s an embarrassment that shoalhaven council, a regional area yet some of the worst land bankers in the country for virtually no good reason, trickle feed this to price out young and working people. Local governments have used this as a a century old tactic to slowly leak out the rif raf and replace them with quiet, old, knife and fork pizza eating types. Don’t think that’s the case here, you wouldn’t give their strategic planners and councillors credit for that level of intelligence. Another once vibrant, dying and boring region. Only way to turn it around is rezoning like this, and or construction innovation / rule relaxation

11/06/2026

Funny seeing familiar faces who fight for the environment when it suits them. When confronted, they prioritise trees and green space behind the icky feeling they get about tall buildings. Talk about fickle values. Blaq’s tall shop top housing development behind collegians has proposed building coverage far less than townhouses - more for public and green space. But since it quadruples height settings to 100m we get the perpetual protestors who can’t recognise they’ve won gold here. 25m height limits were set by the whims of some strategic city planner who lives in a 1 storey house at the back of Cordeaux heights and travels to Jamaica once a year for research. They’re not some natural law, nor do they provide any societal benefit, just harm. The sightlines to the escarpment from every square meter of the continent doesn’t encourage new family creation or earlier retirement or more holidays - a $300k discount on a homes thanks to abundance supply does. Written submissions of support due 7/7, link in bio

08/06/2026

I’ve moved to Sydney for now. Pls keep writing submissions of support to council or on Planning Alerts website for more apartments, unless you want to visit your grandkids in Nowra. We are far behind on housing targets. Rents will go up, on average more - even through this brief rates cycle. The tax reforms will of course help.. by providing the a 4% price reduction, wiping out a couple months growth lol. Construction innovation too - maybe a 10% reduction than otherwise. The big issue is unfortunately shortages

07/05/2026

Grow a set IRT and go 30 storeys through the state government. The only thing “challenging” is maintaining a friendship with unelected council planners. You’d have a better time having Friday shandy’s with an elite chess player. You never regret a dump, so dump the council, get better friends in state, don’t waste another day putting the square peg in the council pinhole ❤️

13/04/2026

REFUSED

By the local planning panel, Wollongong Council.
87 retiree living units towradgi

F$king atrocious. They have been trying for 5 years, even redesigning *with* council to address previous concerns.

Do we have a housing crisis or not?

09/04/2026

“Alot of the things that were preventing affordable housing coming on to the market was some of the complex planning rules.”

First pattern book home in the state, coming to Corrimal. 4 units on a 500m2 site, council planners aren’t allowed to block, scrutinise or delay - so it’s approved in about a week.

This will help a lot and is great for many places, though with the growing demand and price of land in corrimal it’s going to quickly become an underdevelopment for the area. Even with a cheap structure, scarce developable land comes at near 2/3rds the price of a home here

Address

36 Park Road
Wollongong, NSW
2517

Website

https://linktr.ee/greatergonghaven

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