Two years after completing one of the newest developments in North Sydney, developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/aqualand-australia">Aqualand</a> is turning its attention to the rapidly evolving St Leonards apartment market.

The developer, which completed AURA by Aqualand on North Sydney's Walker Street, has lodged plans for a 5,918 sqm site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/33-37-herbert-street-st-leonards-nsw-2065">33-37 Herbert Street, St Leonards,</a> seeking approval for a pair of residential towers rising above a shared podium opposite Royal North Shore Hospital.

The proposal forms part of the broader transformation underway across the St Leonards-Crows Nest precinct, where former industrial and commercial sites are increasingly being redeveloped into high-density mixed-use projects tied to major transport infrastructure.

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2cc428cf-fe70-4cac-9cd5-264ad53af62c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.56%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=otKSnHtbjAvAddOnovyXQMgcAwE6DMe1" />

According to the planning documents, the site sits “within the St Leonards–Crows Nest Strategic Centre, identified by the NSW Government as a key area for accommodating future jobs and housing across Sydney.”

The proposal has been designed by fjcstudio, formerly FJMT Studio, and is being progressed through the State Significant Development pathway due to its scale and affordable housing provision.

The scheme would comprise 413 apartments, including 46 affordable housing units, alongside retail and commercial uses fronting Herbert Street. The project would also include communal open space, landscaping, a swimming pool, gymnasium, children’s play areas and podium-level resident amenities.

Planning documents show the development would consist of a part-13, part-39 storey tower form positioned above a four-storey podium.

“The development comprises a unified podium that activates the street interface, and two setback towers to accommodate new housing supply while maintaining an appropriate human scale at ground level,” fjcstudio noted in its Design Report.

The northern and southern towers have been shaped to respond to the surrounding skyline while also limiting overshadowing impacts to nearby public open space, particularly Talus Reserve.

The design report said the differing tower heights were intended to “contribute to a varied skyline while responding to the surrounding built form context and solar access considerations.”

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="36da62dc-ff9e-41f2-a7e3-7be38373751c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.45%E2%80%AFAM_0.png?VersionId=Mo6Rp2r.XRLTzIfg_PEEpw8NepDH8UBs" />

The site sits directly opposite Royal North Shore Hospital and within walking distance of both St Leonards Station and the new Crows Nest Metro station.

While the site itself sits just outside the formal Crows Nest Transport Oriented Development boundary, the planning documents repeatedly reference its alignment with the broader TOD objectives reshaping the Lower North Shore.

“The site is located adjacent to St Leonards Station and in close proximity to Crows Nest Metro which is within the Crows Nest Transit Orientated Development Accelerated Precinct which has been identified by the NSW Government to support housing delivery,” the Design Verification Statement noted.

According to fjcstudio, the project has been designed to respond to the broader transition occurring across St Leonards, where increasing residential density is being concentrated around transport infrastructure and employment hubs.

“The broader precinct is undergoing significant change, with a mix of existing mid-rise buildings and newer high-density developments,” the report stated.

“Recent and approved projects indicate a consistent shift toward taller built form, typically organised as tower-and-podium typologies with more active ground levels.”

The proposal includes close to 6,000 sqm of retail and commercial space across the ground floor and podium levels, designed to create a more activated street edge along Herbert Street.

Aqualand’s plans would also introduce a landscaped podium shared between the two towers, with communal open space in the form of a podium rooftop designed to support resident interaction and improve urban greening outcomes. The scheme would also introduce pocket parks at the northern and southern ends of the site, including a landscaped area at the corner of Herbert and Ella streets designed to improve pedestrian amenity and soften the streetscape.

&nbsp;

The proposal is being progressed through the NSW Government’s Housing Delivery Authority pathway, which was introduced to accelerate housing supply across the state. The application was declared State Significant Development in April 2025 following an expression of interest process.

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="faf6d97d-2671-454f-b85a-fe1c6a7be608" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.49%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=diVd28OBVr5.YV.7prrOz.uAanwwwm7a" />

St Leonards has been particularly active with new developments in recent weeks. Developer SP Setia’s <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-sp-setia-targets-st-leonards-skyline-with-40-storey-tod-tower">plans for a new 42-storey tower</a> recently went on exhibition through the same pathway, while <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-stockland-plans-52-storey-538-apartment-st-leonards-tower">Stockland’s 52-storey tower proposal</a> was also recently unveiled.

Aside from the St Leonards project, which is expected to take around nine months to move through the approvals process ahead of a potential 2027 launch, Aqualand is also preparing to launch Boronia, a new apartment project in Roseville comprising around 111 apartments on Larkin Street.

The developer also has approvals in place for the next stage of the Barangaroo precinct, which will feature new residential, retail, hospitality and community uses, alongside a new metro entry across the five-hectare site.

More than 50 new retail destinations are planned for Central Barangaroo, alongside a 270-metre-long boulevard connecting Hickson Park to Nawi Cove. Together with Harbour Park, more than 50 per cent of the precinct will comprise public open space and parkland.

Joel Robinson

First look: Aqualand joins St Leonards apartment party

<section data-scroll-anchor="false" data-testid="conversation-turn-5" data-turn="user" data-turn-id="e65dbe94-e3b6-47f7-b62a-9cbb30c9bf79" data-turn-id-container="e65dbe94-e3b6-47f7-b62a-9cbb30c9bf79" dir="auto">Time &amp; Place’s plans to transform the former David Jones factory building in Surry Hills into a mixed-use residential precinct have gone on exhibition through the NSW Government’s In-fill Affordable Housing pathway.</section>

<section data-scroll-anchor="false" data-testid="conversation-turn-6" data-turn="assistant" data-turn-id="request-WEB:f4d533b7-64a5-413d-86fd-5c99649c2b73-2" data-turn-id-container="request-WEB:f4d533b7-64a5-413d-86fd-5c99649c2b73-2" dir="auto">
The Marlborough House proposal, lodged for the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/marlborough-house-47-97-marlborough-street-surry-hills-nsw-2010">47-97 Marlborough Street</a> site, would see the adaptive reuse of the heritage-listed warehouse building alongside the construction of new residential additions and a separate apartment building on the northern portion of the site.

The proposal seeks approval for 172 apartments across three buildings, including 15 per cent affordable housing managed by a community housing provider for at least 15 years from occupation.

<img alt="Marlborough" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5d1d3c2a-bf13-47d6-a335-7c01102cdee1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.29.36%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=cjMYrbR.BLUlWH4dar0RVDDo0bG.u2YT" />

Interior view from the Northern Building Penthouse overlooking the park

&nbsp;

The redevelopment is planned for the prominent 3,413 sqm site bounded by Marlborough Street, Goodlet Street and Lansdowne Street, directly opposite Eddie Ward Park and around 200 metres from the Surry Hills light rail stop.

Time &amp; Place acquired the former David Jones building in 2024, marking the first time the property had changed hands in around 50 years.

Designed by Wardle, the proposal centres around the adaptive reuse of the former David Jones factory, originally constructed between 1913 and 1935 in the Inter-War Chicagoesque architectural style.

Wardle noted in its Architectural Design Report that the building “occupies a significant place in the industrial and cultural history of Surry Hills” and at its peak was “the largest department store manufacturing facility in Australia, employing over 800 people and fuelling the growth of Sydney’s fashion and retail industries.”

The practice said the project positions itself “not as an isolated intervention, but as a contributor to the civic, social, and architectural grain of the precinct.”

The proposal would deliver 75 apartments within the retained southern heritage building, 59 apartments within the central addition, and a further 38 apartments within the new northern building fronting Lansdowne Street.

Planning documents show the scheme would comprise a mix of heritage apartments, new-build apartments, townhouses and penthouses.

<img alt="Marlborough" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="57758518-40a3-4b83-958c-d06e96a2cffa" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.29.42%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=VerlX9ST5xgBi8.1_YRsqdWTJeT6ygjs" />Interior View of the Heritage Building Apartment

The development would also include a ground-floor retail tenancy on the corner of Marlborough and Lansdowne streets, rooftop communal open space, a landscaped pedestrian link along the western edge of the site, and basement parking accessed from Lansdowne Street via a car stacker system.

&nbsp;

The scheme emerged from a competitive design process run by Urbis, with Wardle ultimately selected as the winning architect ahead of FJC Studio, TZG, Architectus and Wilkinson Eyre.

The Design Integrity Panel later described several aspects of the Wardle scheme as fundamental to the project, including “the stepped character of the new addition to the north of the site”, the landscaped western pedestrian link, and the “garden arrival” experience separating the original Marlborough House from the heritage addition.

Wardle’s design heavily references the site’s industrial and heritage history, while also responding to the surrounding Surry Hills streetscape.

The Architectural Design Report describes Surry Hills as “a finely grained neighbourhood with beautiful and expressive brickworks throughout the suburb,” with the proposal introducing a material palette intended to sit comfortably alongside the existing warehouse fabric and neighbouring terraces.

The report also outlines the project’s relationship with Eddie Ward Park and the broader landscape context of the area.

“Marlborough House occupies a site of deep cultural memory and the neighbouring Eddie Ward Park is of local ecological significance, where natural systems, topography, and stories have long shaped human experience,” Wardle noted in the report.

The architects said the proposal sought to “rebind built form to Country” through landscape, materiality and the adaptive reuse of the heritage structure.

<img alt="Marlborough House" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="9ae3f2f9-c85f-477a-a6f8-b43f6cb97c41" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.29.53%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=B.qUCLqRvJOR.n9CvYcTpaknIX9LuqKZ" />

The project is also being progressed under the NSW Government’s in-fill affordable housing provisions, allowing developments that include affordable housing to access additional height and floor space incentives.

Under the plans, 2,593 sqm of the project’s floor space would be dedicated to affordable housing, slightly exceeding the required 15 per cent threshold.

In its Design Excellence Strategy, Urbis said the project aimed to “sensitively adapt and enhance the heritage-listed building on site through alterations and additions that preserve its historical significance” while delivering “high-quality market and infill affordable housing development in Surry Hills.”

Time &amp; Place has been one of the most active developers nationally in the last 12 to 24 months. Late last year they completed&nbsp;The Queensbridge in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/southbank-vic-3006">Southbank</a>, a mixed-use tower with 353 apartments and a hotel. They are currently selling Park Modern, 246 apartments near the famous Botanic Gardens in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/south-melbourne-vic-3205">South Melbourne</a>, and have future projects, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-wilmot-173-burke-road-28-hope-street-glen-iris-vic-3146">The Wilmot</a>&nbsp;in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/glen-iris-vic-3146">Glen Iris</a>, the redevelopment of the Northcote Plaza, and another tower in South Melbourne.

The developer broke into Sydney just a few years ago with Two Tides in Manly. They have another project nearby, which is at the ultra-luxury end of the market on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/buildings/shoreline-manly-beach-89-90-north-steyne-manly">North Steyne</a>, fronting the beach.

It is also continuing to work through the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-time-place-settles-on-design-for-the-chimes-potts-point-redevelopment">redevelopment of The Chimes building</a> on Macleay Street in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/potts-point-nsw-2011">Potts Point</a>, as well as a project on <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/time-place-to-take-on-mosman-apartment-market">Mosman's Redan Street</a>.
</section>

First look: Time & Place unveils Marlborough House redevelopment designs for former David Jones warehouse in Surry Hills

The residential transformation of St Kilda Road is set to continue into with more new apartment plans for the sought-after boulevard.

Wing Tai Asia has lodged plans for a major residential tower at 464-466 St Kilda Road, replacing the former VACC House with an 18-storey mixed-use development designed around a retained heritage podium and a sculpted contemporary tower.

The proposal, prepared under Victoria’s Significant Residential Development with Affordable Housing pathway, would deliver 325 apartments and ground-floor retail across the prominent 4,653 sqm boulevard site in Melbourne’s St Kilda Road North Precinct.

The project centres on the adaptive reuse of the site’s heritage-listed VACC Building, an eight-storey office designed by Bernard Evans that has occupied the address for decades. Planning documents state the development would involve “carefully dismantling and conserving off-site the original metal fabric of the podium visible from St Kilda Road,” before reinstating it as the defining frontage of the new scheme.

Above the restored podium, Wing Tai is proposing a curvilinear residential tower. The scheme includes 172 one-bedroom apartments, 63 two-bedroom apartments, 66 three-bedroom apartments, and 24 four-bedroom apartments, alongside two ground-floor food and beverage tenancies fronting St Kilda Road.

The tower has been designed with substantial articulation and variable setbacks to minimise perceived bulk and maintain view corridors along the boulevard. Urbis, which prepared the planning report, said the design “has been significantly articulated through a curvilinear design” with “an interplay with materials, façade expression and depth” to create visual separation and visual interest.

The proposal also includes 254 basement car spaces, landscaped pedestrian links connecting St Kilda Road and Queens Lane, and a biophilic landscape strategy featuring canopy trees, raised planters, cascading greenery and a glass oculus pool overlooking the eastern frontage.

Planning documents confirm the $270.1 million development will contribute 3 per cent of project costs to the Social Housing Growth Fund as part of the application process.

Wing Tai acquired the St Kilda Road property in 2018 alongside Abacus Property Group for $95.38 million, before later consolidating ownership of the site. The property previously served as the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce headquarters for around 60 years.

The transformation of the St Kilda Rd boulevard is already beginning to materialise, with a number of high-profile projects recently completed, launched, or approaching launch as developers continue to back the long-term appeal of the precinct.

Among the most notable recent completions is Louise by Samuel Property Group, just off the strip on Queens Lane, the same pocket Hirsch &amp; Faigen recently launched The Queensbury. Mirvac is too on the same street with The Albertine, which is approaching completion.

Dexus recently secured approval for its slice of St Kilda Road, while Gurner also has approved plans for the precinct.

Wing Tai unveils 325-apartment St Kilda Road tower on former VACC House site

Malaysian developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/s-p-setia">SP Setia</a> is the latest to jump into St Leonards booming Transport Oriented Development precinct.

The developer, which has previously delivered Sapphire by the Gardens apartment development in Melbourne, identified the Atchison Street site in 2023. It filed a Scoping Report around 12 months ago, and now has revealed the designs for the new&nbsp;40-storey mixed-use tower.

The State Significant Development Application covers <a href="https://next-portal.urban.com.au/projects/14650/summary">20-22 Atchison Street</a>, a 1,374 sqm site positioned between St Leonards Station and the new Crows Nest Metro station.

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cox-architecture">COX Architecture</a>, the project would deliver 181 apartments, above a four-storey commercial podium, five basement levels, and new public domain works along Mitchell Street. The apartment mix comprises 35 one-bedroom apartments, 39 one-bedroom-plus-study apartments, 85 two-bedroom apartments, and 22 three-bedroom residences.

The proposal has been lodged as a shop-top housing development under the NSW Government’s TOD planning pathway, which allows increased density around key transport infrastructure. The site sits within the recently rezoned Crows Nest Accelerated TOD Precinct.

<img alt="First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b799673d-48e2-46b0-801a-0e33a9330100" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/atchinson%20site.png?VersionId=dPh0UfwfaHpbFL1R7H1cbZNbIW0CHbCC" />

SP Setia acquired the Atchison Street site as part of its continued expansion into the Australian apartment market. In comments made to City &amp; Country (The Edge Malaysia) in 2023, SP Setia President and CEO Datuk Choong Kai Wai described the acquisition as “a strategic move” aligned with the group’s post-pandemic market recovery strategy.

“Our target for this exceptional development is local and overseas buyers, including first-home buyers, downsizers and investors,” Choong said.

The tower has been designed as a slender vertical form rising from a mixed-use podium, with COX Architecture positioning the development as a response to the evolving St Leonards and Crows Nest skyline.

“The purpose of the project is to facilitate the delivery of high-quality housing at a strategically located site and deliver a built tower outcome that is consistent with the desired future character of St Leonards and aligns with the TOD controls,” the design report stated.

<img alt="First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b1a85eee-76f7-436c-a6da-73ba827b9b13" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/atchinson%20entry.png?VersionId=dA9jHGPMcm.dDbwk4QfxqWiY5bfh3UVt" />

The podium would incorporate retail uses fronting Atchison Street, commercial tenancies, landscaped communal areas, and pedestrian improvements along Mitchell Street. Vehicle access and loading would be consolidated via Atchison Lane.

Residents would have access to more than 665 sqm of communal indoor and outdoor spaces, while the development proposes 96 parking spaces across five basement levels.

The proposal also includes a commitment for 10 per cent of residential floor space to be allocated toward affordable housing through a monetary contribution.

COX said the tower form responds directly to the emerging high-density character of the precinct while seeking to maximise solar access, cross ventilation, and outlook from apartments.

<img alt="First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2163f85c-f63b-4be3-aafa-f8763976cec5" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Article%20Feature%20Image%20%28Grid%29_5.png?VersionId=WiAmtIKJ6.ZQ41EtYEQ1fol7AeorKBlL" />

“The building is orientated towards north,” the Apartment Design Guide compliance report noted, adding that the tower’s slim form was driven by the constrained inner-urban site dimensions.

The design also incorporates landscaped setbacks and communal open space at podium level, intended to soften the interface with surrounding streets and improve pedestrian amenity.

The project adds to a growing wave of redevelopment proposals reshaping St Leonards and Crows Nest following the opening of the Sydney Metro City line and the NSW Government’s push for higher-density housing around major transport nodes.

Last week Stockland filed plans just down the road. They want to build a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/601-pacific-highway-st-leonards-nsw-2065">52-storey tower on Pacific Highway</a>.

Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-stockland-plans-52-storey-538-apartment-st-leonards-tower">First look: Stockland plans 52-storey, 538-apartment St Leonards tower&nbsp;</a>

First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/urban-property-group">Urban Property Group</a> has revealed plans for a new mixed-use tower at 10 Dangar Street, Wickham, advancing a proposal that would reshape the southern gateway to Newcastle’s city centre with one of the city’s tallest residential buildings.

The State Significant Development proposal, now on exhibition, seeks approval for a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/bowline-10-dangar-street-wickham-nsw-2293">43-storey tower</a> immediately adjacent to the Newcastle Interchange. The project would deliver around 200 apartments, including 42 affordable housing dwellings, alongside 99 co-living units, a 171-room hotel, retail space, and new public domain integrated through the site.

The scheme marks a significant escalation of plans previously approved for the site. Urban Property Group took over the prominent 2,904 sqm parcel, where excavation and demolition had already commenced under an earlier consent for a 14-storey mixed-use development.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s next supertower at Wickham interchange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="58a96dd9-407f-4d20-86b4-94e4bfeef74b" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/wickham%20podium.png?VersionId=LGlf08pdFGAZDzvx_CXC4XakHNZRuEE0" />

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/sjb-architects">SJB</a>, the tower has been conceived as a landmark transit-oriented development anchored to the Newcastle Interchange precinct. The proposal includes 245 build-to-sell apartments across a mix of one, two, and three-bedroom residences, as well as two penthouses. Fifteen apartments and one operational unit are earmarked for NDIS housing. The co-living component would add a further 99 units, while the podium would accommodate retail uses and hotel facilities.

SJB said the site presents “a valuable opportunity to anchor the precinct by setting the standard for design, active ground planes and character at the key southern gateway.”

The architecture responds directly to the site’s position beside major transport infrastructure and within one of Newcastle’s fastest-evolving urban renewal precincts. The tower form sits above a sculpted podium designed to frame new public spaces, including a through-site pedestrian link connecting Station Street to Hannell Street, landscaped plazas, and activated retail edges.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s next supertower at Wickham interchange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a7bd6ff0-f7db-4ce8-a6dc-ea56e72c6149" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/wickham%20lanne.png?VersionId=xzf39VADyhj7zBQY2I9fx9vI62u2tuSb" />

The design report describes the project as part of the broader transition of Wickham into “a vibrant, high-quality mixed-use urban precinct” that leverages proximity to the station, open space, and regional connectivity.

A detailed public art strategy has also been prepared for the development. The strategy positions the project as “a transit-oriented development of state significance at the gateway to Newcastle’s city centre” and outlines a series of integrated artworks responding to Newcastle’s industrial and transport heritage.

Creative Road’s curatorial framework for the project, titled Unveil, draws on “stratified surfaces, carved volumes, and light-filled apertures” while referencing Newcastle’s transformation from an industrial city into a contemporary education and technology hub.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s next supertower at Wickham interchange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="77a882bb-14b1-4d28-99ff-9438e39508c0" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/wickham%20site.png?VersionId=cevgo_vN0eKPK78P8YcEu3mKPLkpFqE7" />

The proposal is being advanced through the NSW Housing Delivery Authority pathway after being declared State Significant Development in June 2025. The accompanying scoping report states the development aims to “maximise the site’s proximity to the Newcastle Interchange by delivering transit-oriented development” while increasing housing supply and affordable housing provision within the Newcastle LGA.

Urban Property Group’s plans align with the long-term strategic vision established under the Wickham Master Plan, which identified the interchange precinct as suitable for substantial uplift in height and density. The current proposal would significantly intensify that vision, positioning the tower among the tallest developments proposed for Newcastle.

The site sits immediately north of the Newcastle Interchange, bounded by Dangar Street, Hannell Street, and Charles Street. It is surrounded by a rapidly growing cluster of residential towers and mixed-use projects that have emerged following the completion of the light rail and transport interchange.

First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s latest tower at Wickham interchange

Infrastructure

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Queensland’s regional areas have seen the launch of the RegionsQ Framework this morning, with Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning Jeff Seeney, saying he recognises the importance of the regions.
This plan’s framework has identified nine initial projects of regional significance that will provide a boost to their areas and much needed services.
These projects are:
<ol>
<li>North West Minerals Province</li>
<li>Galilee Basin Development</li>
<li>Gulf Rivers Agricultural Zone</li>
<li>Burdekin Catchment Development</li>
<li>Charlton-Wellcamp Precinct near Toowoomba</li>
<li>Cairns Airport Aviation and Commercial Precinct</li>
<li>Charlton-Wellcamp Precinct near Toowoomba</li>
<li>Springfield Health Precinct</li>
<li>Sunshine Coast University Hospital/ Kawana Health Precinct.</li>
</ol>
“Our government recognises that Queensland’s regions are the economic powerhouse of the state, with more than $140 billion worth of output produced outside Brisbane in 2010-11,” Seeney said.
“Since we were elected in 2012, our government has restored respect for the important role that regional Queenslanders plan in driving our state’s economy.”
They have six priority action areas for the regional areas, including planning for development, infrastructure services, capitalising on economic drivers and attracting/retaining people.
“We promised to support growth in the four pillars of the economy – tourism, resources, agriculture and construction and we are delivering on that promise,” Seeney said.
“We’ve simplified complex planning regulations, boosted investment in infrastructure, and untangled the red tape that had been strangling industry, business and landholders.”
The framework is based on the Governing for Growth Economic Strategy and Action Plan and looks to achieve the goals from The Queensland Plan.
11 forums will be held around Queensland’s regional areas over the next few months to seek feedback on the priorities. 
</body></html>

jduke-EHk3XBmHkn

The nine projects at the centre of Queensland’s regional framework

Infrastructure development the factor to watch in Sydney: Knight Frank

<html><body>
We all love a hilarious headline and this week we were served up a cracker - “Australian house prices fall 1.9% in May”.
What part of this embarrassing statistic is relevant to real estate? For such data to be extrapolated thousands and thousands of suburbs’ data would need to be fed in, all of which means next to nothing given it significantly fails the relevance test. Households are simply concerned with just the one thing, namely the data pertaining to the suburb in which they own property. For those slightly interested, Sydney posted a 1.1% decline which based on approximately 670 suburbs which would then average out at a 0.00164% decline per suburb.
When it comes to house prices what consistently fails to be mentioned is that the suburbs within that crucial 15 kilometre radius of the CBD continue to outperform simply because they are not cursed by diabolical infrastructure inadequacies. With Australia moving closer and closer to a population of 24 million and a resources industry in significant decline, there will be more pressures placed on the major cities as families relocate to gain employment.
It is anyone’s guess how Sydney (which is facing an 8 million population) and Melbourne (9 million) are simply going to cope given Australia’s current population growth rate is 1.8% and growing. The reality of the argument is that there is simply not enough housing to meet the projected demand nor for that matter even a plan projecting how these major cities will cope. Given it is quite obvious now that the residents of Sydney and Melbourne prefer to live as close to their respective cities, than the onus falls majorly on the governments to develop infrastructure that can meet with this demand which just so happens to be growing at the fastest rate ever recorded before.
To get a better perspective one only has to look at this week’s gross domestic product (GDP) which for the March quarter of 2014 grew 1.1% seasonally adjusted, although it would be fair to say that the June GDP figures won’t be anything to write home about. What the GDP figures did reveal is that it does not look good for Western Australia and Queensland given both are fast-tracked into spiral declines with reduced construction and commodity price declines. Historically, what usually happen next are major unemployment headlines as businesses start scaling down operations.
It should be noted that NSW posted a 9.3% increase in private investment for the quarter together with the best home approval figures in over ten years.
<a href="https://www.rwm.com.au/files/2014/06/2-06-2014-9-56-48-AM.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-11333" src="https://www.rwm.com.au/files/2014/06/2-06-2014-9-56-48-AM.jpg" alt="2-06-2014 9-56-48 AM" width="429" height="420"></a>
The onus is now definitely on the states and territories to start getting their respective infrastructure spends into overdrive, hence the massive asset sales. The only foreseeable problem with these asset sales is what they do when there is nothing left to sell? It’s no secret that no Australian state or territory is basking in a budget surplus, rather all are in significant deficit or on the borderline.
It should not have come as any great surprise that when the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released data this week it revealed that 46.4% of state and local government taxation revenue from the 2012/13 financial year came from property related taxes. The total amount collected, a record, came in at $35.931 billion leaving consumers rightly furious that infrastructure and transport have never been worse.
<a href="https://www.rwm.com.au/files/2014/06/2-06-2014-9-59-05-AM.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-11335" src="https://www.rwm.com.au/files/2014/06/2-06-2014-9-59-05-AM.jpg" alt="2-06-2014 9-59-05 AM" width="633" height="286"></a>
With strong public debate about the GST being raised it should be noted that when the GST was introduced by the Howard government back in July 2000 – this was done so on the basis that the states and territories would reduce/remove these taxes. It should be noted that council rates did not come under the GST removal mandate.
So the question that keeps popping up is once the assets have been sold (and this is fast approaching) then how are the state and territory governments going to survive given all they can tax is properties and businesses (remember pay roll tax was supposed to go also)? You can’t increase the GST only to see these respective governments run amok again as they can no longer balance the books.
Therefore there is a very sound argument to look at a model in Australia where state and territory governments cease to exist and local councils are merged into super councils. It would certainly be good for employment. Work, maintenance and construction would be consistently rolled out across the nation.
Quite simply, it may never come to fruition even though the USA does not have middle-tier government and it works fine there. It would be fascinating to see what this model would look like and how it could possibly work – which should not be that hard. It would certainly remove the politician pension gravy train which is a total waste of tax payer monies. Many would argue successfully that in itself is enough reason to remove this tier of government once and for all.
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robertsimeon-hRNTwJyXkQ

Onus on governments to build infrastructure for major cities' projected population explosion

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The ACT government and internet service provider iiNet are the latest in a growing number of telcos, as well as state and territory governments, to announce the rollout of public Wi-Fi programs.
The joint iiNet-ACT government initiative will see 300 Cisco outdoor wireless access points in high traffic areas, with 400 access points set to be rolled out in businesses across Canberra as part of a network called CBRfree.
The initiative also includes a 12-month Wi-Fi trial on five Action Canberra buses, with a further rollout under consideration, depending on passenger response.
The first stage will be rolled out across Civic by October, with further rollouts in Belconnen, Dickson, Woden, Tuggeranong, Bruce, Manuka-Kingston, Gungahlin, Weston Creek and key tourist hotspots to be completed by June 2015.
The initiative is the latest in a growing trend of telcos, state and territory governments announcing public Wi-Fi rollouts.
In March, the Victorian government announced a free public Wi-Fi program around the <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/technology/36012-victorian-premier-says-free-wi-fi-program-for-melbourne-s-cbd-will-help-boost-businesses">Melbourne, Ballarat and Bendigo CBDs</a>, followed by a $40 million to program to <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.startupsmart.com.au/growth/innovation/victorian-state-government-to-invest-40-million-in-mobile-blackspots-free-wi-fi-country-trains/2014040812075">provide free Wi-Fi services on key V/Line train services</a>.
Aside from the ACT network, iiNet operates a free public Wi-Fi service in the Adelaide CBD called AdelaideFree, which sees an average of about 200,000 unique users each month.
Meanwhile, iiNet’s rival, Telstra recently announced a $100 million public Wi-Fi network for its broadband customers, with businesses <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.startupsmart.com.au/technology/telstra-asks-small-businesses-to-hand-over-their-wi-fi-for-hot-spots/2014052112351">offered the opportunity of hosting a hotspot</a>.
It follows recent research from Telsyte showing Australia’s mobile broadband market grew by just 3% in the year to December, with many customers preferring to <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/technology/42003-growing-use-of-wi-fi-and-smartphone-tethering-slows-wireless-broadband-growth">connect their laptops and tablets to Wi-Fi networks</a>.
Telsyte senior analyst Alvin Lee told StartupSmart the rollout of public Wi-Fi networks is increaingly popular with operators, government and local communities as the number of devices capable of using the technology grows.
"Wi-Fi networks provided by local businesses will potentially increase foot traffic and keep customers around for longer," Lee says.
"Wi-Fi can also be strategically positioned by operators or businesses to enable enhanced customer analytics and providing location-based services or targeted advertising."
This story originally appeared at <a href="https://www.startupsmart.com.au/">StartupSmart</a>.
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asadauskas-o9wSWMRiAW

New business opportunities as ACT and iiNet jumps on the free Wi-Fi bandwagon

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The NBN Co has issued a statement saying small businesses in 15 localities across Australia will have copper phone services, ADSL and Telstra cable switched off on May 23.
The suburbs and towns affected are <a href="/news">Armidale</a>, <a href="/news">Minnamurra</a> and <a href="/news">Kiama Downs</a> in New South Wales; <a href="/news">South Morang</a> and <a href="/news">Brunswick</a> in Victoria; <a href="/news">Townsville</a>, <a href="/news">Aitkenvale</a> and <a href="/news">Mundingburra</a> in Queensland; <a href="/news">Deloraine</a>, <a href="/news">George Town</a>, <a href="/news">Kingston Beach</a>, <a href="/news">Sorell</a>, <a href="/news">St Helens</a> and <a href="/news">Triabunna</a> in Tasmania.
The NBN Co also warns other towns and suburbs are scheduled to have fixed-line services switched off over the coming months.
These include <a href="/news">Toowoomba</a> (August) and <a href="/news">Aspley</a> (September) in Queensland; <a href="/news">Coffs Harbour</a> (July) and <a href="/news">Gosford</a> (October) in New South Wales; <a href="/news">Bacchus Marsh</a> (October) in Victoria); <a href="/news">Gungahlin</a> (July) in the ACT; <a href="/news">South Hobart</a> (September), <a href="/news">Midway Point</a>, <a href="/news">Scottsdale</a> and <a href="/news">Smithton</a> (October) in Tasmania.
NBN Co notes transitions to the national broadband network aren’t automatic, and has posted maps of the <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/about-us/media/news/tasmanias-final-copper-countdown">affected areas on its official website</a>, where business owners are urged contact their internet service provider to discuss their options.
Businesses using an EFTPOS terminal, fax or alarm system are asked to contact the provider of that service (for example, their security company for an alarm) in order to find out which NBN services support their device.
This article first appeared on <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/" target="_blank">SmartCompany</a>.
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NBN switching off copper phone and ADSL services in 15 communities on 23 May

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The Victorian government’s new strategy for 2050, Plan Melbourne, looks to focus on infrastructure for growth over the next 30-odd years, noting that it is the biggest infrastructure program in the history of the state.
In announcing the new plan, Premier Denis Napthine said that it included transport projects that are game changers, as well as urban renewal and activity precincts.
<a href="/images/2014/05/20/mleb%202020.png" target="_blank"><img src="/images/2014/05/20/mleb%202020.png" alt=""></a>
His focus is on new jobs, transport, and more homes and lifestyle opportunities across the city, while maintaining the liveability.
“The plan creates a clear picture of Melbourne's infrastructure-led growth  to 2050 and a long term plan integrating Victoria's regions with metropolitan Melbourne,” Napthine said.
He noted that $27 billion in the 2014/2015 state budget is being committed for economic infrastructure for the state, in what is the biggest program ever seen in Victoria for infrastructure.
<a href="/images/2014/05/20/mleb%202020%20TWO.png" target="_parent"><img src="/images/2014/05/20/mleb%202020%20TWO.png" alt=""></a>
Land within urban areas will be unlocked, explained Minister for Planning Matthew Guy.
“This is a comprehensive plan for Melbourne that caters for a projected population of 7.7 million people by 2051 and provides a solid foundation to meet these challenges,” Guy said.
The new dedicated Metropolitan Planning Authority will implement the plan and will be given planning authority powers for the metro area of Melbourne, and will use this new authority in urban renewal precincts, employment clusters, activity centres and health and education precincts.
Here are the specific areas mentioned in Plan Melbourne.
Major urban renewal areas include:
Fishermans Bend
E-Gate
Arden-Macaulay
Key rail corridors
National employment clusters:
Monash
La Trobe
<a href="/news">Sunshine</a>
<a href="/news">Dandenong South</a>
East Werribee
<a href="/news">Parkville</a>
Key activity and job centres:
<a href="/news">Dandenong</a>
<a href="/news">Box Hill</a>
<a href="/news">Ringwood</a>
Essendon Fields
<a href="/news">Narre Warren</a>
<a href="/news">Broadmeadows</a>
<a href="/news">Epping</a>
<a href="/news">Footscray</a>
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The 16 suburbs to benefit most from Plan Melbourne 2050

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The federal budget has paved the way for Melbourne’s suburbs to shine, underpinned by the infrastructure package and improving access to employment hubs.
LJ Hooker national research manager, Matthew Tiller, said that the capital works injection and low interest rates are expected to provide a lift for property markets near the major project zones.
“The infrastructure package will help alleviate housing affordability issues by bringing new housing markets closer to centres of employment,” he said.
“A number of the projects will help ensure employment opportunities are evenly spread across cities and regional areas and ensure housing demand and price growth is not distorted,” said Tiller.
LJ Hooker’s state manager for Victoria, Paul O’Regan, said that fringe and outer suburban markets will benefit the most, including:
<ol>
<li>Richmond 
</li>
<li>Collingwood 
</li>
<li>Abbotsford  
</li>
<li>Brooklyn 
</li>
<li> Tottenham  
</li>
<li>Sunshine 
</li>
<li>Footscray</li>
</ol>
He believes these areas will be the “major beneficiaries” of the spending, and will come onto investors’ radars.
“Those who purchase property in the outer suburbs will see the social and lifestyle benefits of having a shorter commute to work, alleviating pressure on the inner city areas,’’ he said.
Tiller said that the $1 billion for East-West Link Stage 2 will lessen congestion on the Monash West Gate Freeway.
“Surrounding suburban streets will be spared the current ‘rat running’ but it’s accessibility to the CBD for western suburbs residents which will be the catalyst for further development,’’ he explained.
The current price growth experienced in Melbourne is also expected to continue in the capital.
Other major projects that should see property markets doing well across the country include the Badgerys Creek airport, the 33 kilometre Westconnex and the Toowoomba Bypass.
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The seven Melbourne suburbs to benefit from the budget: LJ Hooker

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Local public and private infrastructure is a key determinant of value for property. But what are the local amenities that really support price growth?
Many investors were keeping a close eye on the federal budget, with big projects on the way as part of a <a href="/expert-insights/investing/the-budget-will-be-big-on-infrastructure-but-we-need-more-than-just-roads">$10 billion infrastructure package from the Abbott government</a>. 
As Observer Terry Ryder has said, to predict price growth, <a href="/expert-insights/investing/follow-the-infrastructure-trail-to-find-future-growth-suburbs">you need to follow the infrastructure trail</a>.
Property Observer looks at the pieces of infrastructure that will deliver value to your property purchase.
<ol>
<li>
Train stations Prices will be boosted by infrastructure that increases demand from the desired buyer groups. Easy rail access to employment hubs will make a suburb popular with employed professionals, workers and students. 
</li>
<li>
Education facilities  Good schools, kindergartens and universities will all drive demand for a suburb. Not only do schools support population growth for up and coming suburbs, but good quality schools will attract buyers who are willing to buy their way into the right school zone, <a href="/news/hot-topic-buying-property-to-secure-children-a-school-place">as seen in Balwyn and McKinnon.</a>  
</li>
<li>
Airport  As we learned from The Castle, properties can languish near the noise and pollution offered by an airport. But away from the flight path, prices can flourish thanks to increased employment and tourism in the area. Many are looking towards Badgerys Creek to see if <a href="/expert-insights/sydneys-new-airport-at-badgerys-creek-will-be-a-double-edged-sword-for-investors">Sydney’s second airport will pay off for investors</a>. 
</li>
<li>
Roads  Roads, like rail, will attract buyers who need to be connected to employment hubs. Brisbane’s <a href="/expert-insights/investing/nine-brisbane-suburbs-to-become-property-hotspots-place-advisory">Toowong, Woolloongabba and Hamilton</a> are all set to benefit from road projects in the coming years. 
</li>
<li>
Hospitals  Hospitals and other emergency services are vital pieces of infrastructure for a suburb. While Hobart’s property market is still underperforming, some believe that the $340 million secured by Independent Andrew Wilkie for the redevelopment of the Royal Hobart Hospital helped keep the city’s market out of an even deeper slump. 
</li>
<li>
National parks  Tourism and recreation facilities are often key drivers of demand for a suburb. Colliers project director Curtis Field, who is marketing the New South Wales North Shore community development Crimson Hill, says that the national park bordering the project has been a big draw card for buyers. “We’ve seen purchasers come in and want to downsize and have something brand new that’s not on the highway, not sitting on the train station, but bordering the bushland,” he said. 
</li>
<li>
Jetties and marinas  The past year has seen many developers marketing jetties and marinas as prime pieces of private infrastructure for new apartments. One such development is Wyndham Harbour in Port Phillip Bay, <a href="/news/buyers-to-navigate-towards-wyndham-harbours-the-lighthouse">set to be Victoria’s biggest marina upon completion</a>. 
</li>
</ol>
 Whether public or private, local infrastructure will be a major factor in the kinds of buyers your prospective property attracts. Recreation facilities could attract young families or retirees, roads and rail can lure professionals and students and jetties and marinas can help secure luxury buyers for waterfront suburbs.
If you're looking for price growth, make sure you keep one eye on the infrastructure to come.
Photo courtesy of Flickr/<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" target="_blank">Creative Commons</a>.
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jrichardson-uRX5hFdKfN

Seven ways infrastructure boosts your property’s value or investment outcome

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GUEST OBSERVATION
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has hailed the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/07/tony-abbott-free-trade-deal-shared-values-japan-australia" target="_blank" style="line-height: 1.3em;">“shared values”</a> that enabled Australia’s free trade deal with Japan and now heads to China for crucial trade talks.
But the Australian mainstream sees itself as fundamentally separate from our Asian neighbours across most economic and cultural dimensions.
This mindset is challenging enough in trade and person-to-person ties. Transport infrastructure and city planning just don’t feature sensibly in discussion between Australia and its developed Asian neighbours.
Abbott has invited the Koreans to invest in yet more roads, but we have continuously spurned a long-held Japanese interest in Australian high speed rail opportunities.
Two problematic and emblematic cultural preconceptions hold Australia back from fully engaging with our region in the field of urban planning and infrastructure.
The first is the idea that Asia is “too different” to be relevant to our experience. The second is the even more problematic idea that we have nothing to learn from Asia (while they should presumably listen intently to us).
This intellectual blockage is possibly caused by an Australian infrastructure inferiority complex arising from decades of lost opportunities - rather than some weakness of planning policy or cities in developed Asia.
It also originates from insufficient distinction between developing Asia and developed Asia (incorporating Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore).
Let’s be real here - Australian cities are planned appallingly and have some of the most unsustainable living patterns and transport outcomes of all the world’s developed cities.
<img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/45890/width668/29fkmghq-1396996230.jpg" alt="">
Photo: Nagoya, which has similar population to Sydney or Melbourne, has an efficient metro system and an emphasis on rail travel. Chris Hale, March 2014
Places like Melbourne have done okay recently with downtown urban design and renewal. But at a broader scale, we have failed to develop mass transit systems capable of meeting commuter demands.
This hurts our cities and it hurts our trade opportunities in the infrastructure, planning and city design sphere.
Sydney has recently decided on a light rail corridor where a metro was needed. Melbourne struggles to launch any coherent response to rampant ridership growth on trams and trains.
Brisbane remains in cloud cuckoo land with its bus obsession - when only strategic rail-based interventions can shape its future growth.
Australian cities have spent the past 30 years riding the complacency of a car culture based on local vehicle manufacturing.
Major road projects formed the core of cynical pork barrel politics, draining the vast bulk of our infrastructure dollar.
Australians need to take a serious look at what major Asian cities - such as Tokyo - have achieved in infrastructure and urban policy over recent decades.
Tokyo coped with a massive influx of internal Japanese economic migrants during the second half of the 20th century. It did so through radical investment in metro rail, combined with judicious attention to zoning, parklands and community assets, which has led to the dominance of rail as majority mode of travel.
Other cities such as Singapore and Hong Kong have heavily oriented city planning to rail, with new metro stations opening yearly to bring distinct benefits of convenience and livability.
Japan’s high speed rail has also played a core role in that country’s economic and scientific development. Recently the Chinese have invested in a great and growing system of fast inter-city connections.
By contrast, successive Australian governments at all levels have turned their backs on transit as a tool for policy, economic development, and urban structure.
Infrastructure Australia was clearly due for an overhaul, but as a country we can’t afford a replacement that exists only to rubber stamp destructive road pork.
Tony Abbott has said he wants to be the ‘infrastructure prime-minister’ but his reported obsession with the virtues of the private vehicle over public transport can only be understood as an outdated and defeatist ideology.
This thought process has no place in influencing contemporary infrastructure policy.
We should look carefully at the emphasis Asia has placed on high-speed inter-city rail. These systems are now the backbone of advanced economies around the world, while only Americans and Australians remain unconvinced.
By censoring our discussion, we miss out on a fuller appreciation of 21st century infrastructure thinking and urbanism. Some great planning ideas and examples are available right on our doorstep.
Perhaps its time for a little less lecturing, and a little more learning.
Chris Hale is lecturer, Department of Infrastructure Engineering at University of Melbourne.
Chris Hale receives funding from the Carlton Connect Initiative of the University of Melbourne. This also includes funding from: City of Moreland, City of Darebin, and City of Yarra, Grimshaw architects, and MGS architects. Over many years, Chris has been the recipient of meaningful in-kind support from the MTR Corporation of Hong Kong - in the form of data availability, strategic briefings, and access to senior staff time.
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>.
Photo courtesy of Flickr/<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" target="_blank">Creative Commons</a>.
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jake-cSmGT7VXVf

Time for Australia to consider Asian lessons on city infrastructure

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GUEST OBSERVATION
The Abbott government is preparing to give Sydney’s WestConnex road project a <a href="https://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/westconnex-to-get-2bn-in-budget-20140508-37wzp" target="_blank">A$2 billion boost</a> in this week’s federal budget, part of a broader $10 billion <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-05-08/government-to-detail-road-funding-and-detention-centre-closures/5437748" target="_blank">infrastructure package</a> aimed at boosting productivity and private sector investment.
Congestion in Sydney continues to escalate with gridlock on roads impacting passenger and freight logistics. The persistence of this situation reflects poorly on project selection and asset management processes, along with distortions that have arisen from poor interactions between the Commonwealth and the states.
Reform is urgently needed where there is less focus on ribbon cutting and more use of well-targeted “pinch point” interventions.
For example, removing congestion and bottlenecks from existing infrastructure along with shifting a small amount of demand from the peak to the shoulder period can often have superior productivity impacts compared with building expensive greenfield assets.
The school holiday effect on roads is an example of this point, when there are better traffic flows when less than 5% of traffic is absent in the peak. Surely there must be a way to win the community’s confidence that we can make the peak hour work better by shaping demand through means other than just pricing. Changing school opening times and retail operating hours could be a starting point.
Thinking beyond roads
While NSW has a strong case to build more new infrastructure like WestConnex and North Connex; it must use these once in a lifetime opportunities to do much more than build a new road.
The reality is the Sydney of today and yesterday is simply too “land hungry” to be sustainable into the 22nd century.
The appetite for land, unchecked with proper pricing signals for the provision of infrastructure has seen an un-virtuous cycle demanding ever more capital and diminishing return.
Many Sydney-siders have sought relief from escalating land prices on the city fringes, and have done so without the benefit of any genuine choice on where else they could live. Spacious residences on the fringe compare poorly in their mind to the expensive “compact” living of the inner areas.
Important projects like WestConnex can be a catalyst for triggering a new wave of innovative investment, that is, if we consider WestConnex the road project and WestConnex the urban revitalisation project.
A critical question that needs to be answered is how much extra housing and urban revitalising can and should we expect from WestConnex?
Despite the best intentions of those tasked with delivering WestConnex the public documentation suggests that the A$11.5 billion price tag will only deliver 25,000 new strategically located residences for Sydney over 20 years.
Sydney requires at least 800,000 new residences by 2050.
Given that WestConnex is developing such a valuable artery for the city, can it do more?
The first step will require governance model that breaks down traditional administrative silos and enables integrated land use and transport planning to occur.
Productivity matters
The objective of lifting state productivity has been missing from project planning in the past, making it difficult for governments to be purposeful and consistent in their infrastructure decisions in recent decades.
To accommodate the extra three million people by mid-century in NSW, the stock of transport infrastructure will need to either expand by 60% or its productivity must lift by a similar magnitude.
Obviously, it will be some combination of the two.
But anyone flying into Sydney can see that there is not a lot of room for new roads and rail systems. So productivity is going to matter a great deal.
To that end the regulatory system requires reform, as it must provide the right price signals and incentives to make the best use of existing infrastructure. This means a willingness to allow prices to reflect full cost recovery for the infrastructure provided.
Tolls are an option, but a toll should always be a fee for a defined level of service, and the community has the right to expect choice in the services available. The problem is that infrastructure often fails this test to the detriment of business and community confidence.
Tolls need to be justified
It is notable that the M1, M2, M4 and M5 toll roads in Sydney all originally demonstrated great benefit to commuters with faster travel time. But the reality is that now each of these toll roads has a peak hour exceeding 10 hours per day; slow speed and uncertain travel time is the norm.
To address this situation, state and federal infrastructure agencies need to enshrine customer service benchmarks that govern lifetime performance of major assets and networks. Government and the private sector concession holders will then require a framework to sustain them together.
Citizens living in our global cities expect globally competitive transit times during the peak hour. But the reality is Sydney has an average commute speed in peak hour that is 17% lower than London, at just 50km/h, and Melbourne is only marginally better.
Given Sydney and Melbourne are small cities by comparison to London, this is a concerning signal about the health of the road transport system.
Using tolls to help fund transport infrastructure is reasonable but without service benchmarks such as minimum speed guarantees in the peak then commuters are not assured of value for money; a toll becomes just another tax.
Tolls and user charges are not a panacea without fundamental institutional reform. Infrastructure must perform a service to the community that is relevant and compelling in order to justify a user charge in the first place. This is one of the missing ingredients to a successful infrastructure future.
Garry Bowditch is CEO, SMART Infrastructure Facility at University of Wollongong.
Garry Bowditch does not work for, consult to, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has no relevant affiliations.
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>.
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