News
7 November, 2024
New social housing
Caboolture and Morayfield are each set to have new affordable and social housing developments, as the City of Moreton Bay granted two community housing providers a 50 year ‘peppercorn’ lease over Council land to help alleviate homelessness across the city.
In line with Council’s Housing and Homelessness Action Plan commitments to support the urgent delivery of social and affordable housing, this approach will see Bric Housing and Coast2Bay Housing Group Ltd be given tenure over Council-owned land to develop and manage social housing.
Subject to finalising contract negotiations, Bric Housing will develop 72-74 Cox Street, Caboolture, and Coast2Bay Housing Group Ltd will develop 33 Oakey Flat Road, Morayfield.
Mayor Peter Flannery said the current local situation was disheartening, and as the level of government closest to the people, Council had stepped in to provide solutions and critical support for people experiencing homelessness.
“This is a new approach for City of Moreton Bay, and over the last 12 months, we have worked with the community housing and specialist homelessness services sectors to undertake a two-stage Expression of Interest process,” he said.
“It was rewarding to see four organisations submit nine different proposals and my thanks for their efforts, innovation and investment, goes to all of them,” Mayor Flannery said.
The proposals were assessed against a range of criteria including public benefit and alignment with strategy, partnerships, capacity to develop, and capacity to manage.
Consideration was also given to the mix of social and affordable housing, the targeting of priority populations for tenancies, and the development type and density of the proposed buildings.
Council will work closely with Bric Housing and Coast2Bay Housing Group Ltd to rapidly finalise contracts so they can commence projects quickly.
Along with the lease of Council land to community housing providers for activation, Council has:
- waived over $1 million in development fees and infrastructure charges in fifteen key suburbs across the City for the development of social and affordable housing
- committed a $3.36 million investment to the new Peninsula Support Hub that is currently being built
- financially contributed to the Redcliffe Sleepbus
- employed two Council officers as Public Space Liaison to connect people sleeping rough with Department of Housing and specialist homelessness support services.
