Tamworth Regional Council moves forward with plans to build houses on Crown land

Member for Tamworth Kevin Anderson told the Leader in March a re-elected coalition government would assess the housing feasibility of 10 vacant lots around the hospital in North Tamworth, along with sites along Forest Road.

Though the coalition failed to secure its re-election, the local council says it plans to progress with the development, which has been earmarked for housing projects since September last year.

"The change of State Government has not had any impact on the ongoing efforts to address local affordable housing needs," a Tamworth Regional Council spokesperson said.

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However, council also said progress will be slow, as much of the 124 hectares of land in the area needs to be re-zoned.

"There would first need to be a planning proposal to change the zoning of land to allow it to used for residential purposes, this involves many stages including community consultation and stakeholder engagement," the council spokesperson said.

The re-zoning process is likely to take at least 12 months, meaning it will take years for housing to actually be delivered.

"It is likely to be two or more years before we see a subdivision developed and houses being built," the spokesperson said.

The council is working with Crown Lands, the NSW Land and Housing Corporation, Landcom, and the Tamworth Local Aboriginal Lands Council to assess and re-zone this land as part of a larger suite of housing projects across the region.

The goal of the overall project is to use Crown land to ease housing stress and build social housing on underutilised land near jobs, shops, transport and services.

The 124-hectare site council owns at North Tamworth is near the Tamworth hospital and extends behind McCarthy Catholic College, along Moore Creek Road and behind William Cowper Anglican School and then across towards the Tamworth Landfill with a small frontage on Forest Road.

Council says it is committed to respecting the interests of relevant stakeholders, including homeowners in the area and Aboriginal interests in respect of land claims and native title.

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