Questions about Social Mix in Redfern and Waterloo

Social mix

Its known fact that social housing residents are more likely to know their neighbours and have a good established social network unlike their private resident counter parts, do you think social mix could potential damage these support networks..?

Is not also true that middle income earners tend to spend more time away from their home community and community as they are more mobile than their social housing counterparts..?  so how would this improve the local economy for local business etc.?

 What empirical evidence is there that social mix really works?

The 2006 Australian Census, 8,508 people considered Waterloo the place they most likely call home. The average person is a youthful 35 years of age, and they have a less than average weekly gross income of around $350 per week. Waterloo folk that are (un)lucky enough to be on their way to owning their own home, found they had a painfully high weekly mortgage of around $541 with the average house price in Waterloo being around $522,000. For those too poor, smart, and/or young to buy into the great Australian dream of spiraling debt, the average rent in Waterloo was around $164 a week. In terms of employment, 40.87% of people in Waterloo were considered employable.

Given the above what is the correct mix for a sustainable community? What makes it sustainable today and will it be the same in 40 years..? Given the changes in the last 40?

What type of geographic mix are we talking about Streets, Buildings? Or pepper and salt next door neighbours?

Don’t we currently have such as ‘street’ mix...yet still perceived divided or o is this only in policy makers heads?

Other than social housing residents getting improved and new stock what are the other benefits..?

When placed in new modernised stock what strategies doe s housing have for maintaining the standard of the stock which hasn’t happened with the current stock.?

Isn’t the fear of crime as high in dominated private house communities as it is here? Which is just as challenging as actual crime?

Stock transfer

 How does changing the landlord improve the service delivery for residents?

How is a landlord of social housing tenants expected to pay back loans, level against the stock, when there not sufficient revenue brought in through renting to social housing residents to cover maintenance never mind pay for new stock and interest on a loan..?

Where will community housing providers get staff with the experience when housing nsw already struggle to maintain their staff..?

Will Community housing providers be force to merge to survive and become mini bureaucracies?

Will there be a fair and balanced debate before any decision is made and does this include equal resources for both sides to put the arguments for and against the proposal? (when st George took over a block in Redfern no one but the resident in that block new about it, it was done quickly and the community were ill informed before making an informed choice.)

What is the Tenanted Market Valuation of the stock and does giving the homes away at knock down prices represent good value for money?

Will it be the same sub standard contractors looking after the properties on the same limited budget?

Why should we trust you?

Given promises to release following reports have not being honoured why should we trust you won’t do the same again?

·         Tennant participation, PTC and NAB state wide review

·         ANZSOG research on cross-sectoral barriers

·         High Rise Strategy research

You claim you want to work in partnership yet only in recent month have you excluded your funded service responsible for local community development from public meeting and ministerial announcement about project that came out of that programmes work?

You’re going to consult the community on potential plans that may or not may happen, and if they do won’t happen for 20 years… what will you do about current basic problems in the area such as anti-social behaviour? Poor maintenance and contract service delivery? Poor contact centre response poor health support and coordinated service delivery between government departments?

How do you expect the average tenant to understand the process you outline in your recent newsletter that academics would even struggle to get their head round?

Source: Questions tabled at REDWatch meeting 5 August 2010.