Hello Supporters,
Since our last update, we've been working with government representatives and community groups across Sydney to address the persistent exploitation of new planning rules by developers. This is directly relevant to the 160 Oxford proposal and many others across NSW.
We have stood up a new NSW parliamentary petition which, if successful, will require a debate in the NSW Legislative Assembly.
Alex Greenwich, our Member for Sydney, is supporting and sponsoring our parliamentary petition, and will represent us in this debate if successful.
We need 20,000 signatures on our new petition to get the parliamentary debate this issue deserves.
Please sign the new petition on the NSW parliamentary website here, and share it widely - across Sydney and broader NSW.
This is different from change.org petitions, and signatories need to be NSW residents.
This is a unique opportunity for us to work across the state and require the government to address these issues. Read on for more information.
Thank you for your continued support!
Paddington United
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More information
The NSW Affordable Housing Bonus (AHB) is being exploited to replace low-cost homes with luxury apartments all over Sydney, and this is most prominent in suburbs where developers can make the most profit. With the new NSW planning rules, developers gain 30% extra height while conceding a small proportion of temporarily discounted rent.
Across our city, existing residents are being displaced and our communities hollowed out.
This is a perverse and cynical exploitation of the planning rules - where genuinely affordable housing is being replaced by ultra luxury. The extra height entitlement is far more valuable for developers than the temporarily discounted rent.
This Affordable Housing Bonus is what the developers have proposed for 160 Oxford St, Paddington and many other developments across the state.
Our petition calls on the NSW Parliament to fix the system before the damage becomes permanent by:
• Not allowing the Affordable Housing Bonus where it causes a net loss of low-cost housing
• Requiring genuinely affordable housing — capped at 30% of household income and retained in perpetuity
• Introducing location-based limits to the $75 million State Significant Development pathway
• Assessing infrastructure, amenity and heritage impacts before granting density
• Establishing a Parliamentary Inquiry into how the AHB is actually operating
We need to fix this policy before Sydney becomes a city only the wealthy can afford.
It will also enable us to specifically combat this proposed development with its cynical usage of the Affordable Housing Bonus.