Developers bypass slow councils through Housing Delivery Authority

Developers are bypassing NIMBY councils and pushing nearly 60,000 properties through a fast-tracked approval process, as one of the Minns government’s key housing solutions picks up speed.

Developers are bypassing nimby councils and pushing nearly 60,000 properties through a fast-tracked approval process, it can be revealed, with the Minns government’s Housing Delivery Authority shaking off the red tape that has held housing back for decades.

A Saturday Telegraph analysis of the 157 projects assessed by the high-powered HDA shows 127 – or 80 per cent – of developments are located in the eastern, northern and inner city.

The HDA, announced by Premier Chris Minns at The Daily Telegraph’s Bradfield Oration last year, gives developers a way to bypass local council planning rules by applying directly to a three-person panel which can give projects a quick green light.

Since the pathway was established, the HDA has declared more than 59,300 dwellings as “state significant developments” in council areas that have been dragging the chain on new developments, such as North Sydney, Willoughby, Ryde and Ku-ring-gai.

NSW Planning Minister Paul Scully said the latest data proved developers were no longer being held to ransom by councils in areas where housing was needed most.

Premier Chris Minns announcing the HDA at the 2024 Daily Telegraph Future Sydney Bradfield Oration. Picture: Richard Dobson

“It’s great to see strong interest in new housing across the east and north of Sydney after the NSW government got directly involved in the assessment of large-scale housing proposals,” Mr Scully said.

“Greater certainty in assessment times and consistency has meant projects that could have been stuck in councils for years are being brought forward.”

In North Sydney, the authority has declared nine projects “state significant”, including an application for 520 dwellings on Walker St, metres from the train station and new metro.

Up the road, a further 600 dwellings have been fast-tracked for development along the Pacific Highway next to St Leonards Station, nearby another project for 187 homes.

The projects sidestepped North Sydney Council, which had the fourth-longest average wait time for development approvals as of March this year at 154 days.

In Willoughby, where wait time for approvals topped 194 days, six projects planning for up to 1847 dwellings have been declared state significant in the past year.

Planning Minister Paul Scully. Picture: NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard

Developers are lodging applications in areas where projects have been hardest to get off the ground. Picture: NewsWire / Damian Shaw

A project declared “state significant” can bypass local council assessment and be approved at the departmental level.

Last month’s budget forecast the Minns government will only deliver 244,000 homes by 2029, falling far short of the 377,000 outlined in agreed targets.

Urban Taskforce Australia chief executive officer Tom Forrest said it was “no surprise” the fast-track process was popular in areas “that have not pulled their weight in housing supply”.

“No doubt the HDA has been a welcome pathway for developers to deliver housing supply where previously they have been frustrated by councils,” Mr Forrest said.

Urban Development Institute of Australia NSW chief executive officer Stuart Ayres welcomed the HDA’s progress, but said the government still faced an uphill battle.

“We think the HDA has injected energy and momentum into the planning system in NSW, but we should recognise its presence as a workaround of a broken system,” Mr Ayres said.

Originally published as Developers bypass slow councils through Housing Delivery Authority