Sydney is flying blind on a long-term housing and infrastructure plan, advocates warn, after the state government quietly moved to axe a key strategic plan for the region that conceptualised a “city region” between Newcastle and the Illawarra.
Greater Sydney no longer has a single long-term growth strategy that includes transport and infrastructure plans. The Planning Department’s housing plans are the main driver of growth.
The “Eastern Harbour City” is one of six cities named in the plan.Credit: Sam Mooy
Without any announcement, the Minns government late last month tabled a bill in NSW parliament to amend the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act to remove all references to the Six Cities Region plan, a Coalition-era strategic plan that sought to unify progress and targets on housing and infrastructure over 20 years.
The plan was made under the Greater Cities Commission, a body originally known as the Greater Sydney Commission, which was established by the previous Coalition government and nominated six “cities” across Sydney with housing and infrastructure plans for each one. The plans were frozen after Premier Chris Minns absorbed the commission into the Planning Department.
The Six Cities Region plan created by the Greater Cities Commission.Credit: Greater Cities Commission
Eamon Waterford, chief executive of the urban policy think tank Committee for Sydney, said removing the plans meant the city had no unifying long-term strategic plan.
“We’re on the cusp of being one of the only global cities operating without a long-term 20-year vision,” he said. “In other words, we’re flying blind.
“Yes, we’re in an affordability crisis, but a housing plan is not enough. We need a blueprint that aligns with an economic vision and infrastructure planning matching housing growth with jobs, transport, sustainability and liveability.”
Planning Minister Paul Scully said the changes were part of a “more whole-of-state approach” to strategic planning, rather than just focusing on the Six Cities Region around Sydney.
“The Minns government is currently prioritising the review and update of the Greater Sydney Region Plan, while progressing important planning policy reform including the Industrial Lands Action Plan which is currently out for consultation,” he said in a statement.
“Those measures reflect the government’s commitment to cutting red tape, improving the efficiency of our planning system and continuing to tackle the housing challenge.”
Of 377,000 new homes the NSW government is attempting to build by 2029, 322,000 are within Sydney’s “mega-region”, said Stuart Ayres, a former Liberal minister who is now the chief executive of the NSW branch of the Urban Development Institute of Australia.
“The government’s not removing strategic planning; it’s removing the Greater Sydney Commission. We’d emphasise and highlight the importance of strategic planning.
“Just because the government’s decided the Greater Sydney Commission doesn’t exist any more doesn’t mean the role of strategic planning is removed from the system.
“If anything, it’s more important … [long-term planning] is the best stage to consult the community.”
The bill is set to be debated in parliament on March 18.
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