Arabic version: خطة المنازل الصغيرة في مارغريت ريفر تواجه تأخيرات طويلة
According to ABC News, housing charity MyHome has submitted a development application for 11 prefabricated small homes for homeless people on the long-vacant railway barracks site in Margaret River, Western Australia. The proposal, first raised by the local Rotary club five years ago, followed years of negotiations with the state government over use of the disused land.
MyHome founder Michelle Blakeley said securing a peppercorn lease for the crown land had been a lengthy process despite community support for social and alternative housing. She said high demand for holiday rentals had pushed rents beyond the reach of many local residents, including employed people and key workers. MyHome has previously delivered 30 small social homes on leased vacant land in North Fremantle and Albany, as well as 24 homes in Carlisle.
Blakeley said lease arrangements, checks and government funding processes needed to be streamlined, particularly as winter approaches. The Department of Planning indicated that negotiations would need to occur with local Aboriginal corporation Karri Karrak. Its chief executive, Abby Phillis, said the corporation broadly supported providing social and affordable housing at the site.
Shire of Augusta Margaret River chief executive Andrea Sevley said the proposal would now be assessed and that the shire had a long history of supporting safe, secure and affordable housing initiatives. A state government spokesperson disputed that government processes had caused the delay, saying MyHome had only re-engaged with planning officials this year and had previously concluded through its own due diligence that the site was not viable for residential development.
The spokesperson said the land was eligible for inclusion in the Noongar Land Estate but had not been offered to Karri Karrak, and that this eligibility had not delayed the project. If approved, the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage would consider suitable tenure. Social housing provider Accordwest said regional Western Australia needed a mix of social and affordable housing, crisis accommodation, modular housing and other faster-delivery models, rather than a single solution.
