Is it time for Ballina to go high rise?
Reside Living Ballina at 3 Kerr St is Ballina’s most recent multi-storey residential complex, approved by council a decade ago.
Ballina Shire Council has adopted new planning laws put forward by the NSW Government to fix the housing crisis by allowing more granny flats and duplexes.
The changes hope to increase urban density by permitting detached secondary dwellings on blocks with a minimum size of 600 square metres and attached buildings like townhouses on lot sizes as small as 450 square metres.
Supporting the change, Councillor Philip Meehan said further planning reforms were needed to encourage more residential flat development which he believes is being limited by current height limits.
The height limit is 16 metres in the CBD area, allowing for residential buildings up to seven storeys.
Cr Meahan said very few residential flat complexes had been constructed because of the current limiting height requirements and the lack of capacity for below ground parking on Ballina island due to flood issues.
“This makes it unviable for developers. Therefore it’s an aspect of housing diversity and choice that is missing from our mix. We need more one- and two-bedroom flats for our community,” Cr Meehan said.
“There are many who don’t want to see change, or they say they don’t want to see us go high rise like the Gold Coast, but it doesn’t cut it for me, we need to think about the coming generations and the housing needs for coming decades.,” Cr Meehan said.
Planning Director Matthew Wood said the issue would be considered as part of the implementation of council’s recently adopted housing strategy.
Council most recently approved a seven-storey residential apartment building for this block in Grant St, however there is no sign of construction commencing.
Patrick carney
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