Queensland Department of Housing and Public Works buys 252-254 James St for social housing

Planning is underway for proposed social housing after the state housing department purchased two lots along a busy regional Queensland thoroughfare.

Proposed site for social housing development in Harristown along James St.

Toowoomba has more social housing planned as the state housing department buys two lots along one of the city’s major thoroughfares.

The Queensland Department of Housing and Public Works purchased 252-254 James St for just under $1m dollars in August 2024, according to RP Data.

In total the two blocks are almost half a hectare (0.44ha) in size and are a few doors down from the new Officeworks and within 1km of Clifford Gardens Shopping Centre.

The site has been proposed for social housing, with planning and design works underway, a housing department spokeswoman said.

Located within the school catchments of Harristown and Newtown, the site is one of a number of new developments aimed to ease the housing crisis and provide affordable homes for those in need.

Proposed site for social housing development in Harristown along James St.

The latest official statistics show Toowoomba had 1465 people currently on the social housing waitlist, with an average wait time of more than two years, Lifeline Darling Downs and South West chief executive Rachelle Patterson said.

“Half of those are people with disabilities, homeless or at risk of homelessness,” Ms Patterson said.

Within the past 18 months, what had concerned her was the number of people seeking Lifeline services across the region who were employed.

“Just because you have a job doesn’t mean you are guaranteed a house or aren’t struggling to meet your basic needs,” she said.

She said she applauded the government’s investment in social housing and was looking forward to seeing a commitment from the new LNP government over what social housing they would build, where, and when.

Lifeline Darling Downs and South West Queensland chief executive Rachelle Patterson, Wednesday, March 1, 2023. Picture: Kevin Farmer

She said it was important that people were housed appropriately, taking into account a range of needs and the mix of people living together in a community.

“We and other services around the region are routinely using motels to put people in,” she said.

This is not a short-term solution to providing long-term accommodation, she said.

“With no access to kitchens, they have limited facilities, and are unsuitable places for a large families,” she said.

Both housing security and insecurity has a flow-on effect, she said.

If people are in financial or housing stress it has a negative impact on their mental and physical health, she said.

On the other hand, she said, if people have opportunity for stable housing options, it will benefit the entire community.

The proposed social housing is one of a number of social housing developments in the area, such as the six-storey housing development in Princess St, directly across from Clifford Gardens and St Vincent De Paul’s Tor and Hill St project in Newtown.