City of Sydney claims rival Waterloo plan will avoid 'urban disaster'

The twin public housing towers at Waterloo would remain standing and new unit blocks would top 13 storeys, under a lower-density plan for the redeveloped estate put forward by the City of Sydney.

The NSW government wants to demolish the housing estate's existing apartments, including the Matavai and Turanga blocks, to make way for 6800 homes in buildings that will climb to 40 storeys.

The state government proposes towers up to 40 storeys and two parks for the Waterloo housing redevelopment. Credit: City of Sydney

But Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore is urging the government to dump its preferred masterplan for the site in the city's inner south to avoid creating an "urban disaster".

The council will on Friday reveal a lower-density proposal for 5300 homes at the 19-hectare site, which is owned by the state government.

Councillors will debate the rival plan at an extraordinary council meeting on Monday night. If approved, the proposal will be discussed at a town hall meeting at Alexandria next week.

The shape and density of the current masterplan has attracted staunch criticism from Cr Moore, residents and public housing advocates.

The City of Sydney council would create one large park with a community centre at the estate site, under a lower-density plan.Credit: City of Sydney

The government's plans for 6800 dwellings will accommodate more than three times the existing 2012 homes on the site and transform it into one of the densest masses of development in the city.

Many of those homes would be in 17 towers climbing to 40 storeys. About 35 per cent of the development will be social or affordable homes.

The development is part of the government’s "communities plus" program, in which private housing is built on public land to fund the upgrade or replacement of public housing.

The government has said that the social housing units on the site will be replaced, and all tenants will have the opportunity to continue living in the area.

In comparison, the council's plan would include 5300 residences. Those dwellings would be spread among apartment blocks that would top 13 storeys around a major park planned for the site.

The bulk of the buildings would be between four and nine storeys.

The site's 30-storey Matevai and Turanga towers would be retained, as well as two other large public housing blocks that would each be split into two smaller buildings.

Forty-five per cent of units would be social and affordable housing. The development would be staged so that residents moving into new apartments could stay on-site while they were built.

The council's modelling shows the state government's proposed buildings at the site from Redfern Oval. Credit: City of Sydney

Social Housing Minister Pru Goward previously said that 60 per cent of all new buildings on the site would be seven stories or lower. The governments says its proposal includes two parks and a widened George Street "boulevard".

Cr Moore said the city's plan for lower buildings, wider streets and one large park would allow more natural light and ventilation in units and be more in-line with accepted urban design principles.

"While the government's proposal includes two parks, they will be overshadowed by the tall towers in midwinter, meaning grass will struggle to grow.

Cr Moore said the parks would be hit by strong winds because of the tall buildings around them.

"The NSW government has a choice - use this once-in-a-generation opportunity to create the kind of place where people want to live and spend time, or build a future ghetto of tall towers and overshadowed and unsafe public areas."