‘It’s not NIMBYism’: Locals fear parking, traffic chaos from new units

Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore has been urged to ditch her antipathy to cars and allow more parking spaces at high-density developments, as angry neighbours from surrounding areas claim their streets are being swamped by other people’s vehicles.

The issue was a flashpoint at a public meeting convened by opponents of a proposed Meriton development in Zetland, near the border with Kensington, which will contain about 860 parking spaces for its 814 apartments and shops.

High-rise apartment blocks are common in Zetland.Credit: Rhett Wyman

The local MP, Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig, said high density housing in Zetland was predicated on a train station that was secretly dropped from Metro West plans in 2019. Without it, people would drive more than the City of Sydney expected, and they would need more parking.

“It’s a big call to ask Clover Moore to put in more parking spaces, but it’s not an unreasonable request,” Hoenig told the meeting of about 50 people at Kensington’s Jubilee Hall on Thursday.

The City of Sydney has strict limits on parking spaces for residential flat buildings. On this site, a two-bedroom apartment is allowed one space and a three-bedroom apartment is entitled to 1.2 spaces. A building also gets a small additional loading per dwelling.

Hoenig said a two-bedroom apartment should generally come with two parking spots. “That’s not the view and philosophy of the city council, so consequently we have this parking shambles.”

A sketch of the proposed Meriton development in Zetland and a map showing its location next to Southern Cross Drive.Credit: City of Sydney Planning Proposal, Google Maps

Thursday’s meeting exemplified the debate likely to play out across Sydney as the new state Labor government flags higher density near transport corridors to house the city’s growing population.

The site in question is about 1 kilometre from Green Square train station. Planning consultant James Lidis said that was “far too far, people are not going to walk that far to a railway station”.

Current planning controls allow for mixed use development and Meriton’s proposal, supported by the council, is to increase the height limit to enable a 25-storey tower and more public space. The planned density or floor space does not change.

Hoenig told residents it was futile to try to stop the project altogether, although he personally believed it should be reserved as employment-generating land.

“I suggest you make submissions that the council can legitimately consider,” he said. “There’s no point just saying ‘we don’t want anything there’ because it’s zoned already for mixed use.”

Local Government Minister and Heffron MP Ron Hoenig, left, addressed the public meeting at Jubilee Hall in Kensington on Thursday night.Credit: Michael Koziol

One of the meeting conveners, Jane Grusovin, said the Zetland project epitomised the failures of NSW’s planning system. More broadly, she said it was wrong to blame the housing affordability crisis on “not in my backyard” opposition to development because negative gearing, short-term rentals and developer land-banking were the real issues.

“NIMBYism is 0.5 per cent of the problem,” Grusovin said. “Is it NIMBY for people to question inappropriate development? Is it NIMBY to complain that development affects the amenity of people’s lives? Rampant development through bad planning is not solving our housing crisis.”

Some residents called for the state government to intervene, and Grusovin wanted Planning Minister Paul Scully to visit the site. “He can jump in my car, I’ll show him the area,” she said.

Parts of Zetland are pedestrianised but many residents are reliant on cars to travel further.Credit: Rhett Wyman

But Hoenig said people should be careful about state government intervention. “You’ll get stuck with a planning panel, and you’ll find that residents’ views are probably ignored.”

Earlier, Meriton founder Harry Triguboff rubbished the idea Zetland residents would park in Kensington, as there was a freeway – Southern Cross Drive – in between.

Parking problems were caused by Randwick Council residents coming to Zetland, Triguboff said. “They come to park on my side because I’ve given them all the shops.”

Moore declined an interview as the matter was before the council’s planning committee.

In a statement, the council said the maximum number of parking spaces allocated to a development was based on the number and type of apartments, the amount of non-residential floor space and the site’s access to public transport and services.

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