Wollongong misses fast track development plan

The Liberal Party's Wollongong candidate says the city should have been included in a state government plan designed to boost jobs and housing development in key urban centres.

State cabinet has approved a new State Environmental Planning Policy for urban renewal, which is designed to bring 770,000 new dwellings into urban areas, and provide 60,000 jobs in the next 25 years.

The government has announced that it will apply to Newcastle, along with the previously announced suburbs of Redfern-Waterloo and Granville in Sydney.

In Sydney, the SEPP will allow the Sydney Regional Development Authority to drive high density development in inner urban areas which are well serviced by public transport.

The authority will design new plans to facilitate housing and employment development in areas where current planning rules restrict or prohibit such projects.

The Liberal Candidate for Wollongong, Michelle Blicavs says she is outraged Wollongong wasn't included in the plan for urgent revitilisation. She wants to know if the sitting ALP member Noreen Hay lobbied the government.

"I don't imagine that the key leaders came to me first. I imagine that they have been speaking with the Labor Government and they tell me they have been speaking with various ministers and with our local MP". she said

The Member for Wollongong, Noreen Hay says Newcastle and Redfern-Waterloo have special needs that may require some fast tracking of rezoning.

Ms Hay says she has made representations to the Planning and Infrastructure Minister Tony Kelly, and Wollongong is not being excluded from future plans.

I've spoken to the minister, I spoke to the Business Chamber on Friday and I spoke to council, and the Minister is more than happy to receive a delegation from Wollongong and look at it, if that's what we want." she said.

Source: www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/11/01/3053942.htm?site=illawarra