Housing Crisis Action
ON AUGUST 6 the Newman Government announced action to end the housing crisis in the state's mining towns.
It will fast track land releases for housing development freeing up land held by the Urban Land Development Authority (ULDA).
Premier Campbell Newman said today there would be no more fiddling around the edges of the problem as Labor had done.
"We want real impact and we want it fast," Mr Newman said.
Initial action will accelerate delivery of more than a thousand land allotments in Moranbah and Blackwater.
But the process will quickly expand to other central Queensland towns, Mackay, the Darling Downs, Burnett and Central Queensland coasts, Cairns and Mt Isa.
The Premier said the Government had set a new direction for the ULDA, which was being merged into Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney's Department of State Development, Infrastructure and Planning.
Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney said his department would spend $15 million over the next nine months to deliver 185 housing allotments in Moranbah and Blackwater.
"That land will be available by next March," Mr Seeney said.
"I have also tasked the ULDA transition team to work clos ely with Isaac Regional Council to assist it in the early delivery of its Belyando Estate which will deliver 1000 lots to the market.
"Secondly, I have tasked my department and ULDA team to collaborate with Western Downs and Maranoa Regional Councils and the Gladstone Regional Council to identify projects that they can accelerate to deliver housing more quickly in the Surat Basin and Gladstone respectively.
"The Government will work with the private sector to meet land supply demand in some communities to ease the rental pressures currently being faced."
The Premier said the Government was also conscious that there were other issues being experienced in regional and resource centres which were impacting on the delivery of housing.
This may involve identifying 'lazy' government land which could be utilised to increase housing supply.
The initiative will include a series of workshops in 11 regional centres across Queensland which will provide the team with the chance to talk to people on the ground that are involved in the delivery of housing who know the issues and also the potential opportunities.
These workshops, to be held in the coming weeks, will inform the preparation of a Resource and Regional Town Action Plan for government consideration by December 2012.
Workshops are being held mostly throughout September with the first workshop in Dalby on 29 August. They will be held in the following locations:
• Dalby (including Chinchilla, Wandoan, Miles)
• Roma (including Injune)
• Toowoomba
• Bundaberg
• Gladstone
• Emerald (including Blackwater)
• Rockhampton
• Moranbah (including Clerm ont, Middlemount and Dysart)
• Mackay
• Mt Isa
• Cairns
