What are the Waterloo South issues people should comment on?

The exhibition documents can be found at Planning NSW - Waterloo Estate (South) Concept Exhibition. The key document is the Waterloo South Concept Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to which almost all the other documents are Appendices supplying additional information. The last Appendix KK contains the Rezoning Report with the Draft LEP Maps, Revised Design Guide, Connecting with Country Framework and Retail Market Demand Assessment. You can find further information about the exhibition and documents on the REDWatch website at Waterloo South Concept Plan and Rezoning on Exhibition until 2nd June 2026.

The Social Impact Assessment (SIA) and Social Impact Management Plan (SIMP) 

This is the bit of the planning proposal that deals with how people might be impacted positively or negatively by the development. REDWatch is aware that Council and some other stakeholders have concerns about the adequacy of the existing recommendations. From REDWatch’s perspective more needs to happen in the management plan to guarantee that community cohesion is rebuilt and that a successful social mix outcome is achieved in the longer term.

For example, since 2010 there have been lots of meetings with a focus of what is necessary to deliver the promise of “social mix” from mixed tenure developments. The study and plan have a section on “Changing social mix and impact on existing communities” which it recognises as a “High Negative”. The management plan proposes a number of measures it expects to move the outcome to become a “High Positive”. REDWatch thinks public housing tenants will have some ideas on what needs to happen to deliver the best possible outcomes from the redevelopment, so if nothing else put your thoughts into a submission.

Across a range of areas, the Social Impact Management Plan makes 82 recommendations. There are three questions that need to be asked: a) have all the possible impacts (positive and negative) been identified; b) do the recommendations adequately address the problem and improve the situation, are there any recommendations needed but are missing and; c) what needs to happen to make sure that these recommendations are implemented so that positive improvements actually result.

Community Facilities

The rezoning proposes to introduce “educational establishment” as a permissible use into the 5,000 sqm community facilities part of the development. The EIS on page 94 spells out that this needs to be a school or a tertiary institution constituted by or under an Act. REDWatch is concerned that Stockland seems to be talking publicly about something less formal that does not need this change. REDWatch would not want to see space that could be used for local community activities given over to an external educational facility.  This is especially because there has been a lot of talk about what the community wants to see, but none of it is currently guaranteed. REDWatch would like to see people say what they want the redevelopment to deliver and for Stockland and Council to then cooperate about who will do what in their spaces. At the moment, because Council has not yet decided what it will do with the space it gets, it is easy for Stockland to make assumptions about what things the Council facility will do that will not happen.

Non-Residential space uses

REDWatch is concerned about the adequacy of the Retail Market Demand Assessment especially given the importance of the need for low cost retail to service the public housing community who are primarily on pensions and benefits. While a low-cost supermarket would go a long way towards servicing this cohort, there is also a need for other low-cost services and outlets – tenants complain about the recent loss of the cheap bread shop, the cheap greengrocer, bulk billing doctors and where to get a cheap haircut and perm.

The retail market demand assessment does not address this issue even though its figures show that 92% of social housing households have low incomes of under $52,000 per annum it does not look at what is necessary to service this part of the community in long term retail. It is clearly a desktop study with no input from locals about where they shop and why. It does not even distinguish between the lower cost full range supermarkets and the more expensive metro versions of the same brand. The Concept Plan needs to be able to guarantee there will be long-term low-cost facilities.

The Social Impact Management Plan makes some recommendations about what is needed to deliver “Improved retail access and diversity”. People should look at these and ask if they are adequate to move the impact from a “Low Negative” to a “High Positive”. With the approach to preserving diverse retail not mapped out, REDWatch remains concerned about Stockland’s proposal to move 2,000 sqm from non-resident, such as retail, to residential uses. Our concern is that if there is not enough non-residential space and effective mechanisms to reserve space for low-cost retail and community needs, that a shortage of space may lead to high rents and retail focusing increasingly on those who can pay more for goods and services.

Affordable Housing

REDWatch is keen to see all Affordable Housing in perpetuity. We are pleased to see that 7% remains in perpetuity and the undertaking in the EIS that the balance 13% will be for at least 25 years. If financing for an affordable housing block cannot be secured in perpetuity at the build stage REDWatch would like to see first right of refusal arrangements put into the contract so that if government policy has changed at the end of that period of at least 25 years or if the CHP has the financial capacity so it can acquire the stock in perpetuity at the end of the 25-year financing arrangement. There is a difference between the wording in the EIS and the design guide, which is not binding. To avoid ambiguity, REDWatch wants the development conditions to make all affordable housing based on a rent of no more than 30% of household income and managed by a CHP for both that which is in perpetuity and that guaranteed affordable for 25 years.

Design Excellence

REDWatch is concerned that the design excellence provisions are not following those of the City of Sydney for buildings over 35m. The project has committed to a tenure blind approach and yet the private buildings will have design excellence delivered by a design competition whereas for social and affordable housing, design excellence will be determined by a panel in response to a proposal put up by an invited architect. One other change proposed by the Concept is to allow the same architect to deliver more than one building on a block. In the 2022 proposal architects were limited to one building on a block to deliver diverse building designs.

Planning Controls and Concept

To date the comparisons drawn against the concept proposal have been the 2022 approval to which the Department of Planning added 10%. There has not yet been an external examination of the Stockland Concept. REDWatch is aware that Council has a range of concerns about the planning controls and the concept proposal, but we have not seen the details and given the time available we have not been able to form our own views. It will be interesting to find out more about Council’s concerns. The Department of Planning will need to assess these potentially competing views.

One document that it is reasonably easy to get an idea of the changes proposed is the proposed Revised Design Guide. To make this easy-to-follow Stockland has used the 2022 design guide and track changes, to remove what it wants to take out and add in. Here you can also see the changed diagrams against the 2022 versions and get a good idea of what is proposed to change and what is not by flicking through and looking at what is in red. Just remember the Design Guide is just a guide and it does not have the same binding effect as the zoning or what the Department approves or conditions.

We know we have just scratched the surface of the issues that could be explored, but hopefully if you have not had time to dive into the documents, this gives some ideas to work on.

On the REDWatch website you can also see the Counterpoint Submission on Waterloo Concept Plan May 2026, which will give you more ideas.

This information is extracted from a REDWatch email update issued on 28 May 2026.