Camden LGA

Camden City Council engaged HillPDA to investigate factors that may impact on the diversity of housing being delivered in the Camden LGA. Council wanted to understand:

• What type of development controls (i.e. flexible or prescriptive) are most effective in delivering medium density housing in greenfield areas and why?
• How do different development processes (i.e. integrated development and split land and house package) effect the delivery of competitively priced medium density housing in greenfield areas, and what options are available to Council to overcome any challenges?
• What are the key infrastructure and market thresholds that need to be reached to initiate the development of high-density housing in greenfield areas?
• What is the affordability threshold in Camden, and to what degree do smaller lot sizes assist in improving housing affordability?
• How attractive/viable is redeveloping existing housing stock in established suburbs?
• What are the key elements or principles that can guide Council policy and planning to deliver an increase in housing diversity?

HillPDA assisted Council in understanding the development economics under the current planning controls and market conditions of the different housing types in the Camden LGA. A comprehensive evidence base was provided to answer the questions.

Outcome

The study identified:

• Lessons learnt and what has and hasn’t worked in urban release areas in terms of increasing housing diversity
• A framework or set of principles to guide planning for better built form outcomes and an increase in housing diversity
• Areas of innovation that Council should be exploring internally and with stakeholders to overcome challenges
• Specific interventions that are planning control related.

Services:

• Stakeholder consultation
• Planning framework review
• Market analysis
• Feasibility analysis
• Case study research
• Options appraisal

Client: Camden Council
Project date: 2020

For more information, contact Elizabeth Griffin, Principal