NSW housing growth precinct plans sparks water, infrastructure concerns from North Sydney Mayor

A Sydney mayor has sounded alarm bells over plans for more than 40,000 new homes in the city’s ‘growth precincts’ with fears basic water infrastructure may buckle under the population demand.

Contentious plans to pack thousands of new residents into one of Sydney’s most densely populated suburbs has sparked fears basic infrastructure including the supply of water services may not keep up with demand.

North Sydney Mayor Zoe Baker has sounded alarm bells over rezoning plans by the NSW Government to fast-track housing within a 1200m radius of the new Crows Nest Metro station.

The suburb is one of eight Sydney postcodes that have been designated as an “accelerated growth” precinct – giving developers streamlined approvals to build new medium and high density housing.

The rezoning plan has an aim of adding 47,800 homes across the eight suburbs over the next 15 years in a move to address Sydney’s housing shortage.

The increased density would be within 1200m of the Crows Nest Metro station.

Ms Baker has raised concerns over the lack of detail about how key roads, water infrastructure and open spaces may accommodate the anticipated population growth.

Ms Baker said the concerns included the ability for Sydney Water to supply the Crows Nest and St Leonards growth precinct with key infrastructure.

Ms Baker has cited a Sydney Water “growth servicing plan’ released this year which outlined limited trunk capacity for wastewater in the Crows Nest and neighbouring St Leonards area.

North Sydney Mayor Zoe Baker.

A spokeswoman for Sydney Water in a statement said there was enough capacity to service the Crows Nest area until 2029 and there were plans to “deliver increased wastewater capacity to service” the suburb beyond 2029.

Crows Nest – along with St Leonards – has already experienced record development growth in recent years with a further 6683 homes proposed to be built across the two suburbs in the coming decade as part of the previous government’s 2036 Crows Nest St Leonards Plan.

Ms Baker said North Sydney was already one of the most densely populated local government areas in NSW with 89 per cent of homes in the council area classified as medium or high density.

The area within a 1200m radius of Crows Nest Metro station.

“In North Sydney we already have an infrastructure deficit for those living in Crows Nest and the rezoning plans will add to that again without any plan or certainty about the delivery of the essential services,” she said.

“We are an inner urban council – we are not the leafy upper north shore – and we have the lowest levels of open space and recreational facilities in the whole of northern Sydney.

“What’s now being proposed has been a rushed process with very little detail and we’re now looking at numbers above the 2036 plan in an area already subject to significant density.”

As part of the rezoning push, the government has pledged to provide $520m for community infrastructure across the eight areas earmarked for rezoning.

Ms Baker, however, said the funding would go “nowhere near” enough to fund key infrastructure across the eight suburbs including new roads and schools.

Other suburbs earmarked as accelerated growth precincts include Bankstown, Bays West, Bella Vista, Homebush, Hornsby, Kellyville and Macquarie Park.

A NSW parliamentary inquiry into the rezoning changes is assessing the infrastructure capacity of suburbs earmarked for increased density and is due to make recommendations by September.