To explore the potential for further development of social and affordable housing that's been here from the 1990's on vacant land at 2 Fraser Drive, Aireys Inlet.

No, the nearby community garden and Fraser Walk, public access pathway to Albert Avenue, are not be included in the project and would remain in Council ownership.

There is much evidence to suggest there is significant need for social and affordable housing in our shire.

There are 674 applications for social housing in the Anglesea ‘broadband’ area and approximately 30 social housing dwellings.

Social and affordable housing is required when the private rental and home ownership markets cannot meet housing need.

Private rental vacancy rates have improved since the pandemic (then below 1%) and median rent has stablised. However median rent in Anglesea in November 2023 was still $620 per week (CoreLogic 2023) and among the highest non-metro median rents in Victoria.

Currently Anglesea and Aireys Inlet have approximately 30 social housing dwellings and there are just under 100 social housing dwellings across the Surf Coast Shire.

We have heard from key workers, families, women and older residents struggling to stay in their communities due to a lack of affordable housing.

The shortage of key workers such as nurses and other specialised health professionals, teachers, early year’s educators, emergency service officers, hospitality and retail and health and beauty workers negatively impacts the social fabric and the economic prosperity of our communities and townships.

More information on Homes Victoria’s Victorian Housing Register including datasets can be found here

The Regional Development Victoria (RDV) have created a dashboard (link here) which tables the following data sets:

• Cost of rent and growth in rents (DFFH Rental Report- Quarterly)
• Cost of housing and growth in prices (Domain Housing Report- Quarterly)
• Housing and Rental stress (Census 2021)
• Rental Vacancy Rates (SQM Research – Monthly)
• Housing Stock on the market (SQM Research – Monthly)
• Dwelling Typology (RRV Analysis based on DFFH Rental Report- Quarterly)

Clause 52.20 Victoria’s Big Housing Build was introduced on 1 December 2020 through Amendment VC190 to the Victoria planning provisions.

Clause 52.20 removes the need for a development funded by the Big Housing Build to obtain a planning permit or scheme amendment and replaces these processes with a streamlined development approval process that:

• Exempts scheme requirements that would ordinarily apply, however, does not exempt certain scheme requirements such as bushfire management, environmental audits and environment effects statements.
• Requires consideration of the planning provisions that would ordinarily apply such as heritage, design and environmental issues.
• Exempts the requirement to notify surrounding properties and review of decisions, however, a community consultation process, completed to the satisfaction of the Minister, is required.
• Includes requirements and development standards (based on ResCode and Better Apartments) to support faster decision making, certainty and the amenity of adjoining neighbours.

More information about amendment VC190 and the operation of Cl 52.20 can be found at Amendment VC190 questions and answers at the Planning Victoria website.

A Community Advisory Group of 11 Aireys Inlet community members collaborated with Housing Choices Australia and the project architects to co-design the concept for Fraser Drive.

A concept design provides high level layout and shows where buildings and spaces will be located.

This concept design shows the proposed layout of the housing, private open space, public open space and the interface between, as well as access, internal roads and parking.

Project architects developed the concept design with the Community Advisory Group. It’s intended to inform a future design response. Any representations are diagrammatic only and are subject to further consultation and the relevant design and planning process.

Two land tenure options were considered for 2 Fraser Drive including a ‘transfer of title’ or a ‘long term lease’.

The lease option was considered to best meet Council’s objectives and obligations.

Analysis of the land tenure options considered:

• Project viability, i.e. whether Housing Choices Australia’s ability to attract funding would be affected
• Council’s ability to control or influence the project
• Council’s obligations to existing social housing residents
• Council’s obligations to Homes Victoria currently secured via caveats and mortgages
• Loss of a valuable public asset; and
• Initial and possible future costs.

In 2023, we ran an expression of interest process to identify a suitable Community Housing Provider partner for the development, use and management of land at 2 Fraser Drive for social and affordable housing. The submission from Housing Choices Australia was identified as the most aligned proposal.

Housing Choices Australia (HCA) is one of the largest community housing providers in the country.

HCA manages over 7,000 properties including 100+ specialist disability properties across five states, providing homes for over 8,500 Australians.

HCA has 11 offices, including an office being established in Geelong.

Affordable housing is a broader term that includes social housing.

In Australia, affordable housing does not have a common meaning across jurisdictions and government programs. Affordable housing may be defined as having costs lower than the prevailing local market rate. Affordability may also be defined based on a household’s ability to pay housing costs.

Social housing is an umbrella term that includes public housing, which is housing provided by state and territory governments, and Community Housing, which is housing provided by Community Housing Organisations.

Community Housing Organisations are mission driven, not-for-profit organisations, governed by the Victorian Housing Act 1983. Eligibility for social housing refers to priority categories, such as people with disabilities or people escaping family violence, as well as asset and income thresholds. Social housing caps rent at between 25 to 30% of household income.

Council will lease land to Housing Choices Australia to build, operate and maintain social and affordable housing on the site for 50 years.

At the conclusion of the lease period, the land is returned to public ownership which means there is no sale of public land. The lease will provide direction for what happens to the dwellings at the conclusion of the lease.

The lease model aims to ‘improve access to affordable residential accommodation’ by utilising Council land that is suitable for the development of social and affordable housing.

By setting the annual lease fee at $1, the lease model contributes the value of the land to help make a social and affordable housing project feasible for our community housing partners, without losing an important public asset.

Council will be able to have influence through the conditions of the lease with Housing Choices Australia. The conditions will include things like:

• The leased area.
• Council’s construction and operational requirements, i.e. housing allocation to local residents/connection to Aireys Inlet and district.
• An agreed maintenance program of the dwellings and private open spaces included in the lease.
• Details on the asset handover at the conclusion of the lease.

The lease conditions will enable Housing Choices Australia to apply for funding to develop social and affordable housing at 2 Fraser Drive.

As recommended by the Community Advisory Group - though somewhat contingent on suitable funding programs - this housing will be 50% social and 50% affordable housing for key workers. Eligibility will prioritise people with a connection to Aireys Inlet and district, i.e. they will be living and/or working in Aireys or surrounding neighbourhoods already.

The concept design includes the land on which the four existing social housing dwellings sit. Including this land will enable a single cohesive masterplan for the site, improving land use efficiency and introducing medium density and housing diversity without compromising on neighbourhood character values.

The lease will not include the land on which Community Garden 3231 and Fraser Walk (public access pathway to Albert Ave) are located.

If Housing Choices Australia is successful in obtaining funding, then a detailed design and town planning process will look at how the development may be staged so that the existing social housing residents may stay on site and then have first option on the newly-developed housing.

If there is significant disruption on site during the development process, other social housing as close as possible to Aireys Inlet can temporarily house the social housing residents.

Residents will be supported throughout the process and will have a home at 2 Fraser Drive as long as they want it.

It’s important to note that the design concept is diagrammatic only and will be subject to further consultation and due process as part of detailed design.

In accordance with S115 of the Local Government Act 2020, Council’s Property Use Agreement Policy and Community Engagement Policy, Council is calling for submissions in regards to Council’s intention to enter into a lease with Housing Choices Australia.

1. You can upload your submission via this online submission form, or
2. You can email your submission to info@surfcoast.vic.gov.au, or
3. You can post a submission to:

Surf Coast Shire Council Property Officer

PO Box 350

Torquay VIC 3228

Any person proposing to make a submission regarding a lease agreement must do so by Thursday 4 July 2024.

A person making a submission is entitled to appear in person at a Hearing of Submissions with a date and time to be determined by Council.

Please Lodge a Request with us, or call 5261 0600 to speak with an officer.